Iranian riot policemen stand guard outside the British embassy in Tehran on June 15, 2009 during a protest by supporters of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad against European interference in the Islamic Republic’s latest election results. EU foreign ministers expressed ‘serious concern’ at Tehran’s crackdown on opposition protesters and called for a probe into the conduct of
TEHRAN, IRAN – JUNE 14: Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad holds a press conference on June 14, 2009 in Tehran, Iran. Photo: Majid/Getty Images. Well, you’d be chuckling if you’d stolen an election too, wouldn’t you? Suggestions for what Ahmadinejad is saying here are, of course, encouraged…
After the jump, the best case for Scottish independence. Oh yes. I especially like Big Jock’s assertion that anyone living south of Edinburgh is, whether they ken it or no’, actually English. That’s a sentiment he might think about keeping to himself, should he ever find himself in these parts. Granted, all political parties attract
The nights will soon be drawing in. That is all.
Since I’ve been sceptical about some of Barack Obama’s rhetoric on democracy promotion and human rights, Stephen Hayes’s comments at the Weekly Standard merit some attention: Obama could tap into the enthusiasm and frustration of the protesters with a few well-chosen words about democracy, the rule of law, the will of the people, consent of
I don’t pretend to have a sophisticated grasp on the complexities of Iranian politics and society, but it’s worth noting that Ahmadinejad had support outside Iran too. To wit, Daniel Pipes: while my heart goes out to the many Iranians who desperately want the vile Ahmadinejad out of power, my head tells me it’s best
Steve Earle belongs in the first rank of the great tradition of Texas singer-songwriters and he’s been in great form since his two-year “vacation” in the early 1990s. The good news is that he shows no signs of slackening off: his new album, Townes, is a loving15-track tribute to his friend and mentor Townes van
I wouldn’t ever dream of debating economics with Paul Krugman*. Politics, however? Well that’s a horse of a different colour. The Nobel laureate is, it seems, in Britain and he has this to say: Weird politics here in London, with Gordon Brown desperately unpopular even (or maybe especially) among those who surely share his general
A tip of the stetson to Radley Balko for reminding (that is, telling) me that today is the thirtieth anniversary of John Wayne’s death. It’s tough to pick one’s favourites from a great career that spanned 171 movies but, though I know that in many ways The Searchers and Stagecoach are the greatest of the
For real: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday accused his election rivals of adopting smear tactics used by Germany’s dictator Adolf Hitler and said they could face jail for insulting him. Ahmadinejad was speaking at a rally in Tehran on the final day of an increasingly bitter and hard-fought election campaign, in which he faces
Like Julian Sanchez, I consider Reason’s compilation of 40 years of Time magazine’s addiction to hysteria a real treat. This 1972 effort – warning, as you can see, of the inexorable rise of Satanism in the United States – is just the beginning of it. From there it’s but a hop, skip and jump to
From the Departments of a) Modern Britain and b) Modern Childhood. The Lancashire Telegraph reports: Primary school pupils are to be shown a film about the dangers of terrorists as part of an organised safety day. More than 2,000 10 and 11-year-olds will see a short film, which urges them to tell the police, their
Angelina Jolie attends Belstaff’s ‘The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button’ Premiere & After Party on December 8, 2008 in Los Angeles, California. Photo by Alexandra Wyman/Getty Images for Belstaff. Some of you will doubtless have your own sordid little reasons for thinking, yes she is. Here’s the good news: Naomi Wolf agrees with you! Ms
First things first: congratulations to Ireland and the Netherlands for enlivening the World Twenty20 Cup. Secondly, well-done Australia who now have an extra couple of weeks to prepare for the Ashes. Typically, England flattered us with their cunning in their opening fixture only to let us down in their second. Thirdly, I’m indebted to Pootergeek
ConservativeHome interview William Hague and it’s all very jocular and genial. Except for when it’s being a little bit troubling and alarming. To wit: ConservativeHome: Name three specific things you would change about British foreign policy. William Hague: First, we would create a fully fledged National Security Council, comprising all relevant senior ministers and chaired
Away from the BNP and the Woes of Brown (which sounds like an Aberfeldy tea-room or something) the other notable european result came in Scotland where the SNP’s handsome victory (29-21 over Labour) confirmed that Labour can no longer automatically consider itself the natural governing party in Scotland. Given that the 2007 Holyrood election was
Boss Man d’Ancona asks us to consider what we would think and what we would do were we Labour MPs. A scary thought, I know but that’s the point of the exercise. For myself, I like to think I’d agree with Tom Harris. That is, if I were a Labour backbencher I’d be very concerned
Meanwhile, though the BNP might be receiving all the attention, this sort of thing strikes me as being a mightily more grievous threat to society. It’s like something from a Philip K Dick story: Officers are targeting children as young as 10 with the aim of placing their DNA profiles on the national database to
What to make of the BNP’s success in Northern England last night? Regrettable, even infuriating for sure. A consequence of this government’s failure and, it might as well be said, proportional representation? Absolutely. The beginning of the end of British democracy, now liable to be swamped by a wave of neo-national socialists? Hardly. I’m with
As any fool knows the freedom of the press is, in the end, the freedom of the chap who owns the press. Much the same may be said of blogs. Which is why I won’t waste time by recommending that you could buy my father’s latest novel and skip straight to suggesting that you damn