Alex Massie 
US to UK: You Think We Care?
Remember that book, He’s Just Not That into You: The No-Excuses Guide to Understanding Guys? There are times when I think Britons should remember this message when they consider the… Continue reading
5 CommentsPour encourager les autres? Oui, monsieur…
Of course I agree with Megan that dog-fighting is a bad, even wicked thing. Still, I was struck by her (cutting) question: did Michael Vick and his pals think that… Continue reading
0 CommentsThe Diversity of the British Press
One of the other great glories of the British press is cartooning. Drawing (ha!) their inspiration from a tradition that stretches back to Hogarth and Gillray, today’s cartoonists take pride… Continue reading
0 CommentsDoes the GOP want to be the Nasty Party?
David Frum looks at the GOP’s slide in support amongst voters under 30 and doesn’t like what he sees: White young people continue to favor Republicans by a thin but… Continue reading
4 CommentsThe George and Gordon Show Begins Its Run
UPDATE: Welcome TNR Plank people. Nice to see y’all again… Gordon Brown’s approach to the United States has followed the traditional “Good cop, Bad Cop” approach. Having let his subordinates… Continue reading
0 CommentsThis Washington Life
Quote for the Day: "In Washington, achievement is measured by how much legislation is passed and how much money is spent, not by whether the nation’s interests are advanced." Cato’s… Continue reading
0 CommentsWhy vote Tory?
While Gordon Brown visits Camp David for the first time as Prime Minister (on which more later), David Cameron takes stock. The Tories have been surprised by the goodwill that… Continue reading
2 CommentsWhile Smeaton watches, Scotland never sleeps…
Memo to terrorists: you’ve missed your opportunity. It’s too late now. Just pack up and go home. John Smeaton – the Pride of the Clyde and scourge of terrorists everywhere… Continue reading
1 CommentEmbro to the ploy…
Sunday’s New York Times travel section has a 36-hour guide to what to do and see in Edinburgh. Unfortunately it’s terrible, listing rotten pubs and feeble restaurants. Though it’s a)… Continue reading
1 CommentBaltimore-Limerick connections…
This interesting story about jury duty in Baltimore brought to mind that old and favourite line from an Irish judge: You have been acquitted by a Limerick jury and may… Continue reading
0 CommentsFlipper Romney stumbles onto truth…
Romney in Iowa: "America is not happy with how the war in Iraq is going, and is angry. But America is not about to take a sharp left turn… Continue reading
0 CommentsCan we please lock up the prosecutors instead?
If you only read one thing today, read this. Then weep. Of course, don’t expect this sort of thing to be addressed by any of the Presidential candidates (with the… Continue reading
0 CommentsShambo RIP
It’s official. A nation mourns. Mr Eugenides strikes a mournful, plangent note: Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy T-bone,Silence the tambourines… Continue reading
0 CommentsJames Bond vs. Jason Bourne
Peter Suderman and Isaac Chotiner each highlight an interview with Matt Damon (who is promoting the latest Jason Bourne thrilla, The Bourne Ultimatum). I like Damon. He’s an increasingly interesting… Continue reading
4 CommentsDepartment of Dangerous Books
Does this sorry tale demonstrate a) the dangers of reading, b) the extraordinary idiocy of local government or c) both? I’d say it was extraordinary except for the fact that… Continue reading
0 CommentsThe Greatest Non-Reader of Them All
As a coda to yesterday’s posts on Not Reading Books, it was remiss of me not to quote the man who may make a decent claim to being the greatest… Continue reading
2 CommentsDepartment of missing the point completely
Good grief. Jonah Goldberg makes this argument: I think, even if broadly accurate, Frank made a mistake in running these pieces because they aren’t up to the standards of his… Continue reading
2 CommentsShock troops latest:
Much gnashing of teeth in conservative circles over a TNR piece written by a soldier in Iraq that catalogues various episodes of unsavoury behaviour in Iraq. The Weekly Standard has… Continue reading
1 CommentThe School for Scoundrels
On Turkey’s lobbying to prevent Congress recognising the Armenian genocide, TNR’s Mike Crowley notes that people such as Dick Gephardt, who once supported the Armenian cause, now bat for the… Continue reading
1 CommentIn which it’s a small, small world…
Heaps and heaps of stuff has been written on the historic/revolutionary/awesome CNN/YouTube debate on Monday night. But what are the odds that you’d see and old friend from college days… Continue reading
1 Comment