Landschlacht, Switzerland, St. Patrick’s Day 2017 I am a Turkey watcher. I have twice visited this beautiful country and I have rarely met a Turk I haven`t liked. I began to talk about Turkey in this blog, because of the event that began 2017: the ISIS attack on a nightclub in Istanbul. Above: The Reina restaurant/nightclub,… Continue reading The rise of Recep
Category: History
Big Yellow Taxi
Landschlacht, Switzerland, Ides of March 2017 These are interesting times we live in, where nothing seems as certain as it once was. Uncertainty as to whether foreign governments can determine other national elections… Increased irrationality and xenophobia and hate crimes against folks whose only offence is the appearance of being different… Wars that never end,… Continue reading Big Yellow Taxi
A Revolution of One: The Power of Passion
Landschlacht, Switzerland, 14 March 2017 Pick up a newspaper. Read a book. Explore the Internet. And the thinking man is left with one conclusion… There is much that is wrong in the world: disease, division, war, terror, discrimination, denied opportunities, environmental degradation and pollution, a scarcity of water, unequal distribution of resources, hunger and starvation,… Continue reading A Revolution of One: The Power of Passion
Slave to the Machine / One Flew Over the Internet
Landschlacht, Switzerland, 12 March 2017 I like Facebook. There I said it. I like the variety of news items that appear, the exchange of ideas, the casual contact with friends and family close or far away, and I find Facebook gives me a forum to share my thoughts. But a few days ago I began to notice… Continue reading Slave to the Machine / One Flew Over the Internet
Deserving democracy?
Landschlacht, Switzerland, 9 March 2017 As a Canadian who grew up exposed to American culture, and now as an expat with a fair number of American friends, the US remains for me what Allan Fotheringham called “the Excited States of America”. Above: Allan Fotheringham and his wife Anne For Americans always seem overly agitated by everything.… Continue reading Deserving democracy?
Behind the veil: Islam(ophobia) for dummies
Landschlacht, Switzerland, 1 March 2017 There are moments when the well runs dry, the fire is out, the spirit extinguished. Moments when I look at this blank screen and ask myself: What should I write about? Regular readers of my blog (both of them?!) patiently wait for some blog series to continue and/or conclude –… Continue reading Behind the veil: Islam(ophobia) for dummies
Just another day?
Landschlacht, Switzerland, 24 February 2017 Perhaps all of this is none of my business. Perhaps I should just quietly go about my life ignoring the world around me. What does one man’s opinion matter, especially if that man lacks wealth, power or fame? I believe that no man is an island, that each man is… Continue reading Just another day?
Half the sky: the wonder of Woman
Landschlacht, Switzerland, 6 February 2017 “We the willing, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much, with so little, for so long, we are now qualified to do anything, with nothing.” (Konstantin Josef Jirecek) Could this statement be strangely appropo if we viewed it from the perspective… Continue reading Half the sky: the wonder of Woman
Out of the Shadows
Landschlacht, Switzerland, 2 February 2017 Sometimes inspiration flows like sap through a maple tree. Sometimes it is as slow-moving as molasses in January. Those who read this blog (both of them!) or follow me on Facebook (the rest of their families!) are aware that I work…a lot. Between working as an English teacher during the… Continue reading Out of the Shadows
Canada Slim and the Promised Land
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, 21 January 1858 “I am astonished more and more at the stupid extravagance… Fashion rules so absolutely… The people in the house would lend me any amount of flower garden bonnets if I would but go out in them. This is so like the Americans… They are generous and kind but… Continue reading Canada Slim and the Promised Land