No country in the world has ever given voting rights to citizens without a fight. And with the struggle in the Middle East for democratic rights its become obvious that people the world over want those rights. So why the fighting? The reasoned critique of leadership starts with the tribal ‘headman’, the best fighter, the…
Keeping One’s Enemies Close
When Obama became President I remember reading the general consensus that he had a spark of Abraham Lincoln about him. I thought at the time this was a back-handed compliment insinuating that the famous Bill to liberate slaves was the beginning of Obama ‘s political career, but the reason given was the way in which…
The Agendum
Every political party has an agenda. So what, that’s the nature if politics it is hardly worth mentioning. Except of course by being the nature of politics it leads us to question if that is exactly the weakness of politics. Agenda come in all shapes and sizes but in essence they all do the same…
Ernest Dowson
Non sum qualis eram bonae sub regno Cynarae Last night, ah, yesternight, betwixt her lips and mine There fell thy shadow, Cynara! thy breath was shed Upon my soul between the kisses and the wine; And I was desolate and sick of an old passion, Yea, I was desolate and bowed my head: I have…
The Dead Hard Drive
Every age brings with it, its own vocabulary. From the new inventions to the ‘lingo’ of the youth the forms have been different but the character has been the same. When tea was first introduced it created tea houses which became haunts of the intellectuals, artists and working men depending on where they were, and…
The Homeless Heart
We all need something to believe in. So it seems. Not just because human society keeps creating religions no matter how absurdist, but even as individuals outside of the State we seek emotional compass points, things we can be certain of or rely upon, to direct our lives. Mexico City in an act of delightful…
Steven Jobs
Having always used computers for work and been sceptical as to the efficacy of most gadgets in my life as they seem to be part-and-parcel of a lifestyle that is always on the move (ironic since the computer age was supposed to make us efficient without going out of our homes) I have been surprised…
I’ll believe it if you say so
My uncle Allen was always full of stories all of them hilarious. It was like liquid wit, impossible to say where the ideas came from or where he was going they just poured from him, but amongst these stories were many that he claimed were true. He went to Durham University and trained as a…
Disney
Now my mother enjoys watching endless Disney cartoons I recall how the political incorrectness, the terribly corny story lines and the inherent racism of so much of what Disney made went completely over my head as a child. I loved the colours, the magical way fantasy was brought to life, talking animals and all the…
Web Pages
Trying to find a template either to buy or clone or work from that suits a publishing house like FootSteps Press has been a labour of exasperation. I have viewed hundreds and having dismissed flash as being too glitzy and bandwidth hungry, I have yet to find one that does in a simple and efficient…