In the Russian town of Ekaterinburg, 14 households are currently cut off from the gas supplies for a month during the FIFA 2018 World Cup. The official reason, given by the authorities, is that the high-pressure gas supply is considered to be too dangerous during the period when the town hosts four group matches. This […]
Society
Cultural Appropriation Is a Myth – I’m Not My Culture, I’m Me
The French and English cultures in which I grew up, influence my tastes and moral judgements. But they are not me…I am. Cultural appropriation is a myth because there is nothing to appropriate. For Tania de Montaigne, a French journalist and writer, Blacks do not exist, but blacks do. “Why the capital B?”, she asks. […]
- Society
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Facebook – When Human Nature Became An Algorithm
We are all victims of it – we all love it. My writings depend on it – your lives may revolve around it. Facebook is not his fault – it is ours. And worst of all, if Facebook disappeared tomorrow, it would be replaced the day after. The name Facebook says it all, depicting the […]
The Art Of Censorship, And The Censorship Of Art
MENU Film producers Jafar Panahi (Iran) and Wanuri Kahui (Kenya), A lady “Blackface” who lost her heads (Réunion Island), A poem that got lost in the web, A painting that got lost in a gallery in Manchester, but found its way back. ….welcome to the world of art. [beautifulquote align=”left” cite=””]Home, Sweet Home[/beautifulquote] Iranian film […]
Brexit Musings (22) – Hegel’s Song For Europe
I’m trying to understand, and have an interest in, a European phenomenon that has withstood the test of time, in a similar fashion to the iconic Doctor Who, but one that I have no understanding of, or interest in, at all. And, before all you unconditional Europhiles take a pick at me on Facebook, let […]
May 1968 – I Love Paris In The Springtime
It may not have escaped your notice that this month marks the 50th anniversary of the riots that took Paris by the scruff of the neck. The widespread violence, of May 1968, resulted in… well not much, apart from transforming Parisian little brats, dependent on their parents’ money into… liberated Parisian little brats, dependent on […]
- Psychology
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Left In The Cold – The Freeze Response And Rape Victims
You are probably aware of the so-called “fight-flight response”, also known as the “acute stress response”. It is a biological reaction to a stimulus perceived as an imminent threat to survival. The response is carried out by the autonomic nervous system – a control system that acts largely unconsciously and regulates heart rate, digestion, respiratory rate, pupillary response, urination, and sexual […]
- retrospect
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Blue Moon Ready To Rise
Blue moon You saw me standing alone Without a dream in my heart Without a love of my own At about twenty past six, on Sunday 15th April a feeling of profound bliss penetrated the very heart of my soul. Something so powerful, that it made me clench my fists and cut the air with […]
Emmanuel Macron Cannot Change French “Strike Culture”
There is another culture that the French are proud of, besides the “cultural exception” represented by their language, in the face of Anglo-Saxon dominance. It is the right for you to strike, regardless of whether your actions will close schools, disrupt the business commuter, or leave the unsuspecting tourist stranded at Charles de Gaulle airport. […]
“England…Little England”
It was to be expected that the Daily Mail, a British institution if ever there was one, would come out with another gem. I thought that the paper had reached rock-bottom, when it described three judges who upheld the law as, “enemies of the people”, and members of parliament who dare oppose the government, as […]