So much going on in the world. Most of it unambiguously bad. Tension in Kosovo. Tension in the Turkish army. Libya duly quagmired. Famine in Africa. Something or other going in and around North Korea. And so on. Yet bigger even than those problems, each of which is capable of […]
Thinking of Lileks’ Regrettable Food took me back to his site. A terrible mistake. Because you sink deeper and deeper into his world of baffling imagery from the early twentieth century and lose hours of your life rolling in inane laughter. Such as a searching analysis of the artwork of Art […]
Our holiday was booked via Thomas Cook but included a flight back on Thomson Airways, leaving at 0050 and arriving at Bristol at 0330 or somesuch eeeeek. So, we left the hotel at 2100 and arrived at the airport at around 2200. The check-in queue began. It then became clear […]
Here are our holiday snaps. First, no Turkish resort seems to be able to avoid littering the place with freakishly kitsch ancient Greek-style statues. Try this one of Harvest Goddess, with a creepy white head seemingly stuck on a couple of inches out: Not to forget two examples worthy of a […]
Here we are, back from Turkey after the Mother of All Horrible Flights thanks to Thomson Airways, which diligently contrived an 18-hour information-free delay. Details to be written up when I have the strength. For now have a look at my latest DIPLOMAT piece on Diplomatic Technique. It helpfully includes the answers […]
Off go assorted Crawfs to Turkey to fry by a pool for a couple of weeks. Blogging on this site will diminish if not disappear, I hope. I’ll be back towards the end of July. Warm summer regards to all readers. If you’re missing me, there’s plenty of unexpected things […]
The Commentator has published a piece of mine – Torture versus terror – a tale of two resignations – which is intended to bring out in 100% unambiguous terms what practical and ethical/policy dilemmas a blanket extension of the idea of ‘complicity in torture’ might produce. It takes a dramatic imaginary scene some years […]
Here is Craig Murray rumbling on about the fact that News International recently held a reception in the FCO: Last week the Murdoch phone hacking empire hired the palatial rooms of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for their summer party. There Rebekah Brooks and Murdoch junior sumptuously entertained their bought […]
More mega-comment web-factories are appearing, before our very eyes. Here is Iain Dale’s new Dale & Co. site, a self-styled current affairs mega-blog. I of course immediately click on World Affairs, and what do I find? Not much, including this curious little piece by one James Chartlton (sic), a trainee […]
Interesting article describing how one US doctor has removed huge amounts of expensive ‘process’ from his service to patients by introducing a pay-as-you-go cash system. He has a nice life and helps people get better, at far cheaper total cost: We lower costs for primary care by around 85%. Getting […]
