Vatican Urges People to Have Many Children *

Nov 8th, 2005 | Filed by

Many, many, many children.… Read the rest



Three Muslims Killed in Hindu Attack on Village *

Nov 8th, 2005 | Filed by

Why? Rumours that cows had been slaughtered for the Islamic Eid-al-Fitr celebrations.… Read the rest



No Intifada, No Cause, Just Gang Stuff *

Nov 8th, 2005 | Filed by

Once two or three districts had their night on the news, every other quartier wanted to follow.… Read the rest



Turn Back the Tide

Nov 7th, 2005 6:43 pm | By

John Judis says Alito may be not a ‘prudent conservative’ but a ‘determined reactionary.’

Samuel Alito’s position on abortion, evidenced in his dissent in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, may turn out to be an accurate barometer of his overall judicial philosophy. First, Alito’s dissent in the 1991 case may be indicative of his position on the larger question of women’s liberty and equality, and more broadly still, of how he views the changes the feminist movement made in our understanding of liberty. In this opinion and others, Alito appears, as Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas often do, to be standing athwart history, yelling stop.

And what is the chief thing people who seem to stand athwart history yelling stopstopstop … Read the rest



Things Fall Apart

Nov 7th, 2005 3:42 pm | By

I’ve been meaning to say: sorry about the weekly update. I’ve been getting emails from readers who miss it, and who try to resubscribe only to get an error message. It’s broken. Sorry. I wish I could fix it – I would if I could – but I can’t. Sorry. It’s probably the hacker who broke it. I miss it too – apart from anything else, it sold a few copies of the Dictionary every time it went out, which meant that in five years or so there might be a tiny royalty. Thanks, hacker.

I think B&W is probably on its last legs. I don’t have the tech skills to fix things, so as more things break, they will … Read the rest



Alan Johnson Interviews Martin Shaw *

Nov 7th, 2005 | Filed by

The reactionary left sees human rights and democratisation as expressions of imperialism.… Read the rest



Raj Persaud Accused of Plagiarism *

Nov 7th, 2005 | Filed by

Journal article on Milgram’s experiment echoes book by US scholar.… Read the rest



John Fowles 1926-2005 *

Nov 7th, 2005 | Filed by

The French Lieutenant’s Woman, The Magus, The Collector; three landmark novels.… Read the rest



Christian Identity Church Called ‘Hate Group’ *

Nov 7th, 2005 | Filed by

Despite not calling non-whites ‘mud people.’… Read the rest



Can Evolutionary Psychology Inform Lit Crit? *

Nov 7th, 2005 | Filed by

Achilles was Alpha male, Emma Bovary lusted for alpha male. Now what?… Read the rest



Always Heed the Rhetoric *

Nov 7th, 2005 | Filed by

‘Principled’; ‘tough and fair’ instead of ‘tough but fair’ – it all adds up.… Read the rest



John Judis on Reactionary Legal Philosophy *

Nov 7th, 2005 | Filed by

Alito doesn’t weigh women’s liberty and independence against other factors; he fails to acknowledge them. … Read the rest



‘Respect’ Apparently a Somewhat Incoherent Word *

Nov 7th, 2005 | Filed by

You should respect yoof no elders no doctors no the poor no the rich no people with guns.… Read the rest



Sarcasm is Okay *

Nov 6th, 2005 | Filed by

If you’re a Basil Fawlty.… Read the rest



Mshari Al-Zaydi on Crisis in Saudi Education *

Nov 6th, 2005 | Filed by

Those who mention need to reform education are attacked and accused of being agents of West. … Read the rest



Nick Cohen on Plutocracy *

Nov 6th, 2005 | Filed by

‘When such opulence surrounds you, you are in danger of finding it normal.’… Read the rest



Ceci n’est pas Ordinary Delinquency *

Nov 6th, 2005 | Filed by

‘These riots show evidence of social protest.’… Read the rest



He Called Us Louts, says Arsonist *

Nov 6th, 2005 | Filed by

Youth explains grievance: ‘He should have said sorry for showing us disrespect, but now it is too late.’… Read the rest



‘Youths’ Set Fire to Disabled Woman on Bus *

Nov 5th, 2005 | Filed by

Officials say rioting is also about youths simply ‘having a go’ at the police. And women on crutches.… Read the rest



Why Does P Charles Cleave to Islam? *

Nov 5th, 2005 | Filed by

Monarch-worshipping, woman-oppressing, non-democratic — what’s there for Charles not to like! … Read the rest