Sales of the book far outpaced expectations I was 12 years of age when I first became aware of reincarnation. And it came courtesy of the movies. That happened a lot. While it would be too pretentious to call our local cinema a theatre, the Sunday matinee was a staple and one Sunday’s featured film…
The media is spinning it as a win for the Democrats, but losing the House is rarely considered a victory Now that the dust has (more or less) settled from the American midterm elections, let’s take a look at what happened and what it might portend. The Democrats will retain control of the Senate –…
Pirates were always reliable entertainment. Lots of swordplay When my lifelong movie habit began as a child in the early 1950s, adventure was the desired cinematic fare. There should be less talk and more action, preferably involving fights and chases. And please, no kissing! This made westerns the default favourite, but swashbucklers weren’t far behind.…
The Anglo-Irish playwright, poet and novelist ended up imprisoned, the casualty of his own foolishness
Once upon a time, I had an uncomplicated view of capital punishment. I was against it. Period. And a reading of the poem The Ballad of Reading Gaol by Oscar Wilde could reduce me to tears. Even now, with a much more nuanced view of the subject, the power of the language still moves me.…
The last sultan, Mehmed VI, left his palace under British protection on November 17, 1922 The Turkish Ottoman Empire had a long run, stretching from the beginning of the 14th century all the way up to the end of the First World War. At its peak, the empire’s reach was awesome, embracing the Middle East,…
Rodric Braithwaite’s book, Russia Myths and Realities, a perfect segue into Putin's brain Prior to the February invasion of Ukraine, my knowledge of Russian history pretty much started with the early 19th century. Everything before that was vague and fragmentary, enlivened only by titillating tales of Catherine the Great’s purported sexual appetite. But there’s much…
Progressive parties continue to lose ground
I did a column in September on the theme of European political orthodoxies being challenged. Sufficient stuff has happened since then that an update is in order. United Kingdom To quote from the column: “U.K. political governance has four great offices of state – prime minister, chancellor of the exchequer, foreign secretary and home secretary.…
"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers"
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; For he today that sheds his blood with me Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile, This day shall gentle his condition; And gentlemen in England now-a-bed Shall think themselves accurs’d they were not here, And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks That…
Rolando Cubela was a key player in ongoing American plots to kill Fidel Castro
Aged 89, Rolando Cubela died in late August. If you’re wondering who he was, you’re probably not alone. But, at one time, Cubela was an important figure. As the CIA’s man in Havana, he was a key player in ongoing American plots to kill Fidel Castro. Cubela was born in Cuba in 1933, became involved…
The narrative that emerged of American triumphalism was false. There had been a deal
I was a first-year university student in Dublin, Ireland, during the October 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. But I don’t remember it as a time of great angst or agitation. True, the crisis dominated the news and there were certainly people who genuinely feared that nuclear Armageddon was on the doorstep. However, the daily life of…