The Oyster

April 1, 2026April 1, 2026 / Stefan Nicholson / Leave a comment

The Oyster is a harmless soul who lives beneath the changing tides.

Keeping to itself it takes no sides, feeding quietly where its secret hides.

But no longer, for we say that some are ‘blessed’,

When a speck of grit fouls its silvery nest.

Our Earth is as the Oyster’s life, for commercial gain has plundered its wealth,

And we take it with greed, much more than we need, at the expense of its finite health.

And like the caged hen, whose last stolen egg ascertains it will soon be plucked,

The oyster is attacked by a feverish hand as we comically say it is ‘shucked’.

Yet, another word often springs to mind, which careless people use,

Sometimes to joke or curse or randomly say . . . and sometimes to hurl abuse.

But I will save it for our future world, which now shares a common fate.

For “The world is my oyster” as they say and yet we consume both at an extravagant rate.

Reading by Digital AMY:

(from my poetry book: “Frames of Poetry” – available Amazon, Kindle, Google Books)

What does AI Predict?

July 9, 2025July 9, 2025 / Stefan Nicholson

Here is a snippet from my conversation with AI tool ChatGPT, about what happens if AI is embedded in everything – and it STOPS (for any reason) for one month.

In a complex world of “black box” technology, software, AI control and self-learning systems, the risk of errors increases the chance for the global meltdown of society if it fails. Specialist engineers, programmers, AI solutions and the manufacturing of components to “fix” everything, may be beyond their ability to recover . . .

Mind of a Spy

June 26, 2023July 16, 2024 / Stefan Nicholson

Excerpts from my Ruby Spy Novels

It all seems much easier now, to accept that soldiers always have to follow orders, regardless of what they think about them, or who gives them . . . or the consequences of their actions, or the long-term effect on their minds.

Spying is a different ‘game’. It is meant to stop wars and terrorism from happening in the first place . . . especially when diplomacy is in such disarray and lunatics are elected by the naive and apathetic populace. People get who they vote for – but then democracy is only useful for a small population, before imbalance and corruption sets in.

Spies gain information that can be used to counteract and destroy any thoughts of aggression from the perceived enemy, or to eliminate any threat that is likely to prevent a problem from occurring in the first place.

Spying is a game of fake news, propaganda and delusion. No one knows the truth anymore.

There is no “truth”- just the game that a few faceless people play, for their own inadequacies, using gullible and misguided people as their disposable pawns.

The common enemy now hails from those with power and greed, with some people assuming that they have a right to be treated better than others. So, they engage in skimming, side-swapping, terrorism and corruption, media manipulation, destruction . . . and killing.

After note: If we apply Ruby’s thoughts to Ukraine as an example. We know the top players from their latest “game” and what they do. The rest of the world suffers at the hands of just a few people . . . as they always have done.

Ruby Trilogy: