How long do you stare at a blank sheet of paper before the words start to form and gain meaning, before the ideas begin to flow and a letter, an article, a short story or dissertation worthy of being called such forms beneath the point of your pen, the tips of your fingers? It seems,…
Was It The Repression?
Dear David Grubb, I was came across your collection of poems – From The White Room – recently, trying to find suitable new homes for my collection of books as builders work on my house and push everything to one side and, as is to be expected, not achieving a great deal but dust and…
Debating The State Visit
Dear Theresa May, Today I watched the petition against a state visit by Donald Trump to the United Kingdom pass the one million signature mark. As a British citizen and veteran, I signed this petition in the belief that you, as the elected leader of the government, would honour it. In a statement from your…
A Dinosaur Destined For Extinction
When someone says they are interested in finding someone else who has an interest in reading books, I am often tempted to think that such an interest is dying out, that we are a breed of people condemned to the history books, to be recalled in future generations as a strange hoard of old-timers with…
Executive Order: January 27, 2017
Dear Donald Trump, Yesterday, 27 January 2017, you signed an Executive Order entitled Protecting the nation from foreign terrorist entry into the United States. In Section One of this Executive Order it is noted: The visa-issuance process plays a crucial role in detecting individuals with terrorist ties and stopping them from entering the United States….
House Affairs Committee
Dear Yvette Cooper, On Wednesday, 25 January 2017 you chaired the House of Commons House Affairs Committee’s continuing investigation into the implications of the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union, with four members of the transport and logistics industry giving oral evidence. The evidence given covered import and export, customs and excise, working conditions,…
Writers, Lovers, Soldiers, Spies
Dear Danuta Kean, Today I came across your short but almost enthralling introduction to a book about the Spanish Civil War, entitled Writers, Lovers, Soldiers, Spies by Chris Schüler, and the possible connection between two members of a London Gentleman’s Club and General Franco. At the beginning of your article you write: It’s the kind…
The Ideal Position To Write
I’m not sure whether this is the ideal way to write, but it appeals to me at the moment and, aside from the fact that my fingers cannot seem to hit the right keys as easily as usual, due undoubtedly to the different position, it seems to work. I am stretched out on my couch,…
The Internet Is A Wonderful Invention
The Internet is a wonderful invention: it offers a wealth of information to those willing to search and learn; it provides a means of communication between people who might never have met otherwise, and the chance to exchange views and opinions, to live the experiences of people far away. It helps minds meet across the…