England Poems from a School
Oxford Spires Academy is about as far from our idea of the dreaming spires as you can get. OK, it is in Oxford. But this is working class Oxford in…
Bad Advice – a review
Bad Advice is full of good advice. The author, Dr Paul Offit, is a paediatrician, a scientist and a science communicator. He was one of the first medical professionals to…
The Daily Mail attacks its own campaign over Guantanamo Bay story
The Daily Mail was outraged last week by the news that Jamal al Harith, an ISIS suicide bomber had once been interned in Guantanamo Bay until the Labour government obtained…
Should Robots Pay Taxes?
The growing attraction of populist ideas and parties, sometimes of the left, but more often of the nativist right is in part fuelled by the alienation of those left behind…
Churchill or Bust?
There are so many big lies in the world – think Brexit Bus or the current outpourings from the Whitehouse – that there is a danger that the little lies…
Is Trump a God? The Consolations of Mythology.
Bernard Knox’s introduction to Robert Fagles’ translation of The Iliad contains an interesting discussion on the nature of the gods and heroes of Greek myth. In contrast to the moral…
Labour and Article 50
Jeremy Corbyn is coming in for a lot of criticism over the three line whip on MPs to vote for the Government motion on Article 50. But what was the…
Yet Another Baseless Labour Party Scare Story
Labour Officials warned to be on the alert for violent behaviour at Labour Party Conference. This is a headline in today’s i paper. Apparently there is a memo, we are…
A Tale of Two Headlines
On Tuesday 19th July the Northwest Evening Mail was dominated by the news that the renewal of Trident guaranteed the future prosperity of Barrow-in-Furness, where BAe Systems will build the…
Corbyn’s critics plumb new depths
On Sunday Nick Cohen wrote a column in the Observer: Extremism thrives because of cowardly collaborators. It was fairly run of the mill. Republican politicians who pride themselves on their…