Joan Bakewell wrote of Richard Holloway, the former Anglican Archbishop of Edinburgh, in the New Statesman, that “[he] has always been a radical living in the real world, ready to come to terms with its hectic demands and constraints”. The Anglican Archbishop of South East Asia, Moses Tay, described his 1999 book Godless Morality as […]
My interview with the unparalleled Camille Paglia is now available here.
Patient V.Z., a 66 year old housewife suffered a stroke which compromised her ability to recognise and name people, animals, and objects, Internazionale reported, quoting a study from Cortex magazine. The woman was able to recognise the face of the Pope (John Paul II), but couldn’t work out who he was. When shown a photo […]
Translation is never easy. There are so many words and expressions in any given language that reflect something peculiar to its culture, that finding an equivalent in a different tongue becomes nigh on impossibile. Sometimes, though, one finds an expression whose sense is obvious, but which must be modified for local norms. Translating an article […]
After a (partially successful) 35-year effort to take the gun out of Irish politics, Bertie Ahern wants to remilitarize Irish public life. At the annual conference (Ardfheis) of his political party, Fianna F�il, Taoiseach Ahern announced that a military parade would be reintroduced to mark the anniversary of the Easter 1916 rising. According to the […]
Last week, armed terrorists have shot and killed the vice president of the Calabrian regional authority, Francesco Fortuno while he voted in the left-wing primary elections (16/10/05). Strangely, you might think, terror obsessed prime minister Silvio Berlusconi remained conspicuously absent from the list of politicians expressing condolences and solidarity with Fortugno’s widow. The terrorists in […]
Imagine, if you will, a variety show with a hefty dose of political and social commentary, satire and rock bands, all hosted by an ageing singer/actor who is as close to being a national institution as one gets, unless you happen to be Sophia Loren or the Pope. Hardly innovative programming, but yet the new […]
Poles accepted Harold Pinter’s Nobel prize with good grace, despite the high hopes they had for local boy Ryszard Kapuściński. Old interviews with Pinter and newer ones with his translator were run in the papers and parallels were drawn between him and another local boy, playwright Sławomir Mrożek. Both men have lent their names to […]
Blog entries are often little more than squibs, textual equivalents of a nudge in the ribs and a confidential aside asking “Have you seen this?” However, the occasional blog post has substance and even the vapid ones have the saving grace that they’re free. However, no such excuses can be offered in defence of “professional […]