Matthew Carr's Blog, page 51
January 26, 2015
In the kingdom of TINA
One of the most depressing things about the grotesque and brutal fraud known as ‘austerity’ has been the ability of its proponents to convince so many people to accept its basic assumptions. Once you begin to believe in There Is … Continue reading →
January 25, 2015
Why does the right hate the NHS?
When I was young I never paid that much attention to the National Health Service. This isn’t entirely surprising. When you’re young, you don’t, unless you’re very unlucky, tend to have much very much contact with doctors and hospitals, and … Continue reading →
January 23, 2015
All hail to the tyrant
Anyone who wants to know what kind of world we are living in should note of the extraordinary diplomatic grovelling that has accompanied the passing of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia this morning. Over here Lord Snooty declared himself ‘deeply … Continue reading →
January 22, 2015
Try to be civil, Chilcot
One of my favourite moments in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness occurs when the narrator Marlow is interrupted by an irritated listener who tells him ‘Try to be civil Marlow.’ It’s a very English request, as Conrad well knew. I mean … Continue reading →
January 17, 2015
Je Suis Raif Badawi
We’ve heard a great deal over the last two weeks from Western governments about free speech and freedom of expression. We’ve heard that free speech is a defining value of our civilization that ‘the terrorists’ want to take away from … Continue reading →
January 16, 2015
Genocide Memorial Day
If you’re in London this Sunday, and anywhere near University College London, I’m one of the speakers at an event organized by the Islamic Human Rights Commission to commemorate Genocide Memorial Day. I’ll be talking about the expulsion of the … Continue reading →
January 15, 2015
The folly of Roberto Saviano
I’m a huge admirer of Roberto Saviano’s remorseless denunciation of the Neapolitan Camorra Gomorrah. When I read it some years ago I was blown away by its incendiary prose, its moral fury and the almost reckless courage of its author. … Continue reading →
January 14, 2015
Cometh the hour, cometh Farage
‘Terrorism expert’ Steve Emerson may have earned almost universal ridicule for his comments on Europe’s Muslim ‘no go zones’ last week, but not everyone is laughing. This morning I had the misfortune to be stuck in a car listening to … Continue reading →
January 12, 2015
My name is Emerson, Steve Emerson
Many of the inhabitants of Birmingham were surprised to learn from Fox News yesterday that their city has become an ‘entirely Muslim’ city which non-Muslims ‘simply don’t go in.’ But no one familiar with Steven Emerson, the pundit who expounded …
January 10, 2015
Us and Them
Like a B movie thriller that you’ve seen too many times before, the Paris terror-spectacle has reached its predictable conclusion. All the familiar elements of jihadist noir were present: atrocity and murder followed by manhunts, hold ups, and quasi-military sweeps; … Continue reading →
