Arts
A New Dark Age
I have been struggling for a reasonable historical analogy to illustrate where the western democracies are going today. As we have clearly entered a new dark age I do not intend to hypothesise when exactly [more…]
Politics
Authoritarianism
Lockdown Mark 2
What the bloody hell are the motives behind the second lockdown? Given that the official line seems to hold less and less water, it’s no surprise people are coming up with crazy sounding theories. Even [more…]
20th Century
Operation Teapot
In the current extremely uncertain days, I don’t know about you, but my thoughts have been regularly wandering off into ‘what if’ territory. I’ve been pondering what ‘might’ happen, what is important to me, and [more…]
America
Voter Fraud in Pennsylvania
As a young boy, I lived in the colonies. Peaceful if not idyllic to start with, things began to run out of control. The flames were fanned by ancient tribal hostilities and anti-British sentiment. The [more…]
Democracy
A particularly insidious form of evil
There are moments in life when one remembers exactly where they were when a particular event occurs. The death of JFK, the moon landings, Hillsborough, the death of Diana, 9/11. For all these events I [more…]
Authoritarianism
Zombie Nation
Britain is no longer great, it has not been for my entire life. I was born just days after the dawn of the Blair horror years in 1997, a year that marked the official end [more…]
America
The United States is clearly not united, nor was it ever
One of the great historical myths is the American Civil War was fought to abolish slavery. Serious historians know it was neither a civil war, nor was it fought to emancipate slaves. A civil war [more…]
America
HATED! Trump Doesn’t Care
Donald Trump is a man of his word. He’s the Ronseal One Coat of politicians – “it does what it says on the tin”. Promises made, promises kept. Americans see a flawed President who said [more…]
20th Century
Hunter S Thompson: Thou shouldst be living at this hour
Before he shot himself in 2005 after decades of cocaine & booze self abuse, HST produced some of the most remarkable commentary on the modern US political process. With insider access to the players involved, [more…]