Cilaw

LATEST ARTICLES ( 91 )

• You Gotta Call That Love

  

  Adore this Janis Joplin quote. Reminds me that too often we get hung up on ideas of ‘forever’ when we should just be appreciating ‘now’. I don’t understand why... Read more

  Posted on 02 February 2012 ENTERTAINMENT, HISTORY, MUSIC

• Northern Ireland Police Don’t Work After Dark

  

  Two men raped a woman at a disused leisure centre in Belfast on Monday, 30 Jan. According to local authorities it is an “anti-social hot-spot” where people... Read more

  Posted on 31 January 2012 DEBATE, SOCIETY

• Lammy Says – Bring Back the Smack

  

  Conservative MP for Tottenham David Lammy has put forth a suggestion of A Modest Proposal-level brilliance: cut frustrated parents some slack by allowing them t... Read more

  Posted on 24 January 2012 POLITICS

• Falkland War 30th Anniversary Prompts Unprecedented British Morality

  

  The Argentine government has requested discussions on the future of the Falkland Islands but the BBC reports that “the UK government has said it is ‘not prepare... Read more

  Posted on 18 January 2012 DEBATE, POLITICS

• Murder City: Death and Drugs in Mexico

  

  I just finished Charles Bowden’s Murder City, possibly the most disturbing book I’ve ever read. The horrifying death toll in Mexico due to the “War on Drugs”... Read more

  Posted on 17 January 2012 BOOKS, DEBATE, SOCIETY

• Bald Absurdities

  

  Over dinner my mother started talking about ‘donating’ her hair. When I chuckled at this bizarre joke she looked blank. Eventually we got the communication... Read more

  Posted on 13 January 2012 ART & DESIGN, BOOKS, CULTURE, DEBATE, HISTORY, POLITICS, SOCIETY

• George Orwell – Why I Write

  One of my all-time favourite essays is George Orwell’s Why I Write. He says there are four great motives for writing and, with characteristic honesty, puts... Read more

  Posted on 05 January 2012 BOOKS, HISTORY

• Optimisim Vs Realism

  

  One of my the things I’ve been weighing as I work on my book is how ‘self-help’ it is, or should be. Is it possible to inspire without tipping into woolly... Read more

  Posted on 04 January 2012 BOOKS

• Support Mary on the Green

  

  High on my list of favourite feminist books is Mary Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of the Rights of Women. Clear, succinct and utterly even-handed, the book –... Read more

  Posted on 13 December 2011 BOOKS, HISTORY

• Laughter the Best Antidote to Bad News

  

  Beats Crying! We’re rolling down a Pyrenees mountain road, the green flanks of the four wheel drive skimming past matching trees and mossy stones when John says... Read more

  Posted on 30 November 2011 SELF EXPRESSION

• I (Heart) the Left Coast

  

  My grasp of Tea Party politics is faint and my interest in them fainter, but the Washington Monthly feature ‘A Geography Lesson for the Tea Party’ is worth the... Read more

  Posted on 04 November 2011 DEBATE, POLITICS, SOCIETY

• Money Can’t Buy You Love

  

  Hate to say ‘I told you so’ but… A survey of 1700 couples found that the partnerships where both individuals were highly materialistic were A) richer and B)... Read more

  Posted on 20 October 2011 SOCIETY

• Dropouts and Billionaires

  

  Peter Thiel owes some of his billions to being one of the first investors in Facebook. This insanely profitable hook-up with Harvard dropout Mark Zuckerberg mus... Read more

  Posted on 15 October 2011 DEBATE, HISTORY, POLITICS, SOCIETY

• Baha Mousa – Murder, Military and Moral Courage

  

  Bad things happen in war. Worse things happen when occupying forces run amok in a country which – thanks to relentless political and cultural hostility from... Read more

  Posted on 08 September 2011 DEBATE, SOCIETY

• Mothers of Stillborn Babies Charged with Murder

  

  To paraphrase George Dubya: misogynists never stop thinking of ways to harm women, and neither does America. The latest joyous news from the motherland (a term ... Read more

  Posted on 29 June 2011 DEBATE, POLITICS, SOCIETY

• The Exile of Britney Spears

  

  The Exile of Britney Spears: A Tale of 21st Century Consumption By Christopher R. Smit Intellect Books, 2011 Reviewed by Cila Warncke The Exile of Britney... Read more

  Posted on 18 May 2011 BOOKS, CELEB, CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT, SOCIETY

• If You Work For a Living You Must Be Stupid

  

  If you have to earn a salary in the current economy (as opposed to, say, live off your dividends) you’re screwed. Not least because asshole corporate types thin... Read more

  Posted on 11 May 2011 SOCIETY

• Ohio Approves Guns In Restaurants and Bars

  

  One of my favourite things about America is the way that, just when I think it can’t possibly be more ludicrous, news like this comes along: The... Read more

  Posted on 19 April 2011 DEBATE, POLITICS, SOCIETY

• Anti-Street Harassment Campaign

  Support the good work of the UK Anti-Street Harassment Campaign (ASH). About the UK A.S.H. Campaign Beginning life as the London Anti Street Harassment Campaign... Read more

  Posted on 15 April 2011 DEBATE, SOCIETY

• French Burqa Ban is Anti-Woman and Anti-Freedom

  

  Posted by Irresponsibility The French burqa ban has been criticised for being unnecessary (only around 2000 women in France actually veil their faces),... Read more

  Posted on 11 April 2011 CURRENT, DEBATE, HISTORY, POLITICS, SOCIETY