News
Will books soon become extinct?
1+ day, 17+ hour ago (1036+ words) Will books soon become extinct?The Spectator Australia Will books soon become extinct? I am glad that Radio 4 is producing a series called How Reading Made Us, presented by the subtle, super-literate Times columnist James Marriott. I must declare an…...
How the Islamic Republic tried – and failed – to destroy Iranian culture
1+ day ago (799+ words) How the Islamic Republic tried " and failed " to destroy Iranian culture'The Spectator Australia How the Islamic Republic tried " and failed " to destroy Iranian culture The Islamic Republic in Iran is not only at war with the United States and Israel....
I’ve armed the curds
1+ day, 17+ hour ago (22+ words) I've armed the curds'The Spectator Australia I've armed the curds Got something to add? Join the discussion and comment below....
The global climate confidence game
20+ hour, 47+ min ago (926+ words) Every successful confidence game follows roughly the same structure. First comes a compelling narrative " a story persuasive enough to draw people in. Next come authoritative voices who validate the story. Fear and urgency encourage quick decisions. Once the audience has…...
David Byrne has done it again
1+ day, 17+ hour ago (240+ words) SEC Armadillo, Glasgow, and touring until 26 July At the second of two recent Glasgow dates, both interpretations seem to fit. In Talking Heads, Byrne was a jerky, remote presence, aloof to the point of alien. As his discursive solo career…...
Silence the doctors, harm the children? When ethics becomes dissent
7+ hour, 53+ min ago (1465+ words) Kara Thomas and Andrew McIntyre Medicine was never meant to follow ideology. It was meant to follow evidence, ethics, and the simple promise embedded in the Hippocratic oath: first, do no harm. Yet across Australia today, many doctors and nurses…...
My phobia is not to be sneezed at
1+ day, 17+ hour ago (577+ words) My phobia is not to be sneezed at'The Spectator Australia My phobia is not to be sneezed at In January 1894, an assistant of Thomas Edison made a five-second silent film of Fred Ott taking snuff and then sneezing. It was…...
Biological truth must prevail in schools
8+ hour, 46+ min ago (1136+ words) In court, you must swear to tell the truth. Failing to do so is considered a serious offence and harmful to determining justice. Why then is it tolerated for teachers, who are entrusted with the solemn duty of educating our…...
Lloyd Blankfein – guiding light of Goldman Sachs
15+ hour, 39+ min ago (392+ words) Orion Ignite, pp.396, 25 The story of Blankfein, the son of a postal clerk, is a tribute to social mobility and Goldman's meritocratic culture. He grew up in the housing projects in Brooklyn, winning a place at Harvard. After a stint…...
Why is the ‘gay press’ so cowardly on Iran?
21+ hour, 10+ min ago (352+ words) Sometimes the obvious is so obvious that people forget to state it. So let me observe one small footnote among recent obvious things. Earlier this month, Donald Trump killed the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and most of the senior leadership of…...