Like everyone else I know in the tribe of working journalists, I think being sceptical is a useful, if not indispensable tool of the trade, and tend to dispute being a cynic. But I’m beginning to think both journalists and news consumers have reason and need to embrace the two philosophies.… Read the rest
With the exception of their host, the leaders of the G7 gathered in Italy are demonstrably confused about how to deal with surging right wing populism. The advice they need was provided by one of history’s most storied right-wingers, Charles de Gaulle: “Faced with crisis, the man of character falls back upon himself.… Read the rest
History has shown, repeatedly, that the best the extreme left or right can manage is a revolution, which in the end eats itself and accomplishes little of lasting value. Three events this week prove the point that extreme views can be catalysts for debate, but casting change and progress comes from when the two meet in the middle.… Read the rest
Nothing can be done about youth being “wasted on the young”, but squandering the power of moral outrage on the ridiculous is waste to the nth degree. Beset as we are by screeching to ban books for “woke” agendas, universities more focused on ensuring students don’t feel “uncomfortable” than in sparking critical thinking and a Press willing to quote lies in the name of “balance”, it’s time to rehabilitate the Luddites, if only in spirit.… Read the rest
No fist pumping. No face-contorted, triumphalist screaming.
When the penalty kick sealed the dream, Lionel Messi looked up, raised his arms, fell to his knees and was swamped by his team mates. When they finally untangled, he saluted the rapturous Argentinian fans with open arms and his signature boyish smile: a lesson in class for the many who lack it, in sport and elsewhere.… Read the rest
It must be really annoying to be so rich that bleeding hearts are always banging on about how you could single-handedly solve world poverty or whatever. So, here’s a suggestion to ease the pain for the world’s leading multi-billionaires: try cashing in on the wisdom of Benjamin Franklin: “It is prodigious the quantity of good that may be done by one man, if he will make a business of it.”… Read the rest