a dedicated band There is a world of difference between telling a story and telling a story to someone. It can be likened to shouting at the sky and having a conversation: you might well manage to remain coherent and intelligible while doing the former, but you're more likely to manage it in the latter. … Continue reading Ch. 2: We happy few – a dedicated band
Author: jfmward
Author, bicycle enthusiast
Chapter 1: How did it happen?
photo: Shaun Bythell Well, here I am in the Bookshop, Wigtown, at the height of the Wigtown Book Festival, Scotland's Literary event of the year (and I say that as one who has appeared more than once at the Edinburgh Book Festival). Those red books on the table, in the case and in the basket, … Continue reading Chapter 1: How did it happen?
Another way to misrepresent the EU referendum result: the Charles Moore Defence
[photo by Policy Exchange - Flickr: Charles Moore, former editor of the Daily Telegraph, at Edmund Burke: Philosopher, Politician, Prophet, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=30224977%5D As we have seen ( in Liars in public places) the usual method of misrepresenting the 2016 referendum result, as employed by messrs Rees-Mogg, Jenkin and Johnson, is to lie outright … Continue reading Another way to misrepresent the EU referendum result: the Charles Moore Defence
Johnson now certain Britain wishes to remain and would reverse Brexit in second referendum
picture: BBC Website Boris Johnson has admitted that a second referendum would reverse Brexit and see Britain vote to remain in the EU. In his speech today, Mr Johnson said holding another referendum on the UK's membership of the EU - as some campaigners are calling for - would be a "disastrous mistake … Continue reading Johnson now certain Britain wishes to remain and would reverse Brexit in second referendum
Reading between the lines in Boris’s valentine
Boris Johnson, whatever else he may be, is a wily creature. His Valentine's Day attempt to woo us all to get behind Brexit is a typically guileful effort. It is presented as a magnanimous 'reaching out' to 'Remainers' along the lines of 'let's all pull together to make this happen'. He wishes to persuade us … Continue reading Reading between the lines in Boris’s valentine
Why Writing is like a Playtex Bra
‘It lifts and separates’ is a slogan that will be familiar to those of my generation - it was advertised as the chief virtue of the Playtex ‘cross-your-heart’ Bra in the impressionable days of my youth. However, it also serves as a memorable illustration of my theory concerning the origin of what we think of … Continue reading Why Writing is like a Playtex Bra
Liars in public places
'die breite Masse eines Volkes... einer großen Lüge leichter zum Opfer fällt als einer kleinen' - 'the broad mass of a nation will more easily fall victim to a big lie than to a small one.' (Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf) 'These are people who are bent on trying to reverse the substance of Brexit and … Continue reading Liars in public places
The Actual Colour of the Sun
‘The sun is actually white, it just appears yellow to us through the Earth’s atmosphere.’ This is a line that appeared on Facebook a while ago, courtesy of my friend Else Cederborg, who posts all sorts of curious and interesting things. It is a common form of argument that most will readily understand and generally … Continue reading The Actual Colour of the Sun
‘Like, yet unlike.’
'Like, yet unlike,' is Merry's comment in The Lord of the Rings when he first sees Gandalf and Saruman together: Gandalf, returned from the dead, has assumed the white robes formerly worn by Saruman, who has succumbed to despair and been corrupted by evil and is about to be deposed. So we have two people … Continue reading ‘Like, yet unlike.’
The curious case of Toom Tabard and the Indyref Paradox
Psychological projection is a theory in psychology in which humans defend themselves against their own unconscious impulses or qualities (both positive and negative) by denying their existence in themselves while attributing them to others. For example, a person who is habitually rude may constantly accuse other people of being rude. It incorporates blame shifting. – … Continue reading The curious case of Toom Tabard and the Indyref Paradox
COMPLEAT TROWZER 