Max Fawcett searches for the prophet of atheism.
John Harris posts a slightly argumentative view on the Statue Wars controversy
Margaret Randall is thinking about statues, racism, and history.
Recent Articles and Reviews:
If it quacks like a Duck, it might not be a Duck, it might be just a Quack. If it sounds like Donald Trump… well, he probably said it, or maybe it was Fox News, or QAnon, or whatever.
Did Trump say it? Did he deny saying it? Who knows?
The (Good) Trouble With David Shields
David Shields’ The Trouble with Men. It ain’t self-help, says Brian Fawcett.
Apropos of Woody Allen: The Anxiety of Being… and don’t forget Nothingness
Woody Allen’s autobiography is not-so-great, but the films are more than good. Stan Persky reviews the book, the scandals, and the stuff on the silver screen.
A moment With Dostoyevsky, James Wood, and an obscure Hungarian Writer
Brian Fawcett recalls something he discovers about how Dostoyevsky wrote dialogue that leads him to take a swing at James Wood, (the critic, not the actor)
Norm Sibum and the Poetry of “Flaneurism”
Brian Fawcett reads Norm Sibum’s new volume of verse. He thinks Sibum is a skilled poet, but….
Big Pharma: drugging involuntary psychiatric patients
Lawyer Jim Gottstein uncovers Big Pharma’s use of the drug Zyprexa on involuntary mental patients.
Kindly People Who Feed Squirrels: A Rant
Brian Fawcett isn’t fond of people who feed peanuts to squirrels. Here’s why.
Paul Krugman vs. the Policy Proposals of the Living Dead
Paul Krugman’s Arguing With Zombies drives a stake through the heart of “zombie ideas.” The premier U.S. op-ed columnist who writes honestly about dishonesty.
For Those looking for our Olga Tokarczuk Post on the Corona Virus
A few days ago, Merrily Weisbord sent me a piece written by Olga Tokarczuk about the Covid-19 crisis currently sweeping the world. A friend of Merrily’s, Jerzy Przytyk, had translated the piece using Google’s notoriously mechanical translation program. What Tokarczuk had to say in the piece was interesting because she is Olga Tokarczuk, the author…
Ken Belford RIP
Brian Fawcett’s obituary for poet Ken Belford, who died in February
Ken Belford: A Personal and Literary Reminiscence
John Harris remembers poet Ken Belford.
Graeme Gibson RIP
I didn’t know Graeme Gibson well, and for most of the time I was a member of the Writers’ Union of Canada, I didn’t like him very much. Gibson was one of the Union’s founders and in a way, remained, to the end of his life, its primary living role model (the Union’s other role…
Is There an Answer to Cultural Appropriation?
John Harris reviews a little known pamphlet from a little known press about a deceptively large subject.
Once in Europa: What do the 2019 EU election results mean?
The rightwing populist tsunami didn’t happen; Greens blossom; Europe fragments, pro-EU majority maintained.
- National Game: Quebec Bans Hockey Mask Face-Covering
- Senator Corker, Bob (R – Tenn.)
- Margaret Atwood’s Backyard
- Democracy, Two Cheers for…
- Native-born Immigrants. Huh?