10 September 2015 Week in Brief: BUSINESS AND THE CITY WORLD ECONOMY: The slowdown in the Chinese economy is affecting share prices across the world. A survey of China’s manufacturing sector reported a 6 year low. The downturn has affected oil prices with Brent crude now trading at below US$50 a barrel. In the… Continue reading Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Week in Brief: BUSINESS AND THE CITY
Author: Neil Tidmarsh
Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Notes from North of The Wall
10 September 2015 Notes from North of The Wall by Antoninus ‘If the Scots want independence, let them go.’ How many saloon bar conversations have included this glib judgement over the last few years? The truth is, notwithstanding the unremitting noise of Scottish nationalists, most Scots have never said they want to leave the Union.… Continue reading Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Notes from North of The Wall
Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Week in Brief: UK NEWS
10 September 2015 Week in Brief: UK NEWS ROYAL RECORD: Yesterday Her Majesty the Queen became the longest ruling British monarch, passing Queen Victoria who ruled from 1837 to 1901. MIGRANTS: Responding to public pressure, including pressure from the Archbishop of Canterbury and a number of senior Conservative politicians, Mr Cameron has indicated that… Continue reading Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Week in Brief: UK NEWS
Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Sorry!
10 September 2015 Sorry! By Chin Chin Every country has its meaningless expressions. In America it’s “have a nice day”, in Ireland “bejeysus”, in France “je vous en prie”. In Mexico they say “hey gringo” but that can’t be entirely meaningless as (if the films are to be believed) it is normally followed by a… Continue reading Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Sorry!
Issue 19: 2015 09 10: New Face in Town
10 September 2015 New Face in Town by Neil Tidmarsh Has anyone else noticed that a new, distinct and uniform architectural style is sweeping through our towns and cities? Every office building and block of flats to go up over the last year seems to have been designed by the same architect. The style is… Continue reading Issue 19: 2015 09 10: New Face in Town
Issue 18: 2015 09 03: On and Off
3 September 2015 On and Off by Chin Chin The verb “to intermit” isn’t used much anymore but years ago it had an honoured place in the English language. Meaning to suspend action for a time, it can be found in literature as diverse as Milton’s Paradise Lost: “Casual discourse…which intermits Our dayeswork” (sic) and… Continue reading Issue 18: 2015 09 03: On and Off
Issue 18: 2015 09 03: Appointments with Death
3 September 2015 Appointments with Death By John Watson Prosecutions for assisting or encouraging suicide are very rare indeed and Sir Keir Starmer’s remark that during his tenure as Director of Public Prosecutions (2008-2013) there was only one of them says much about the way in which the strict letter of the law has been… Continue reading Issue 18: 2015 09 03: Appointments with Death
Issue 18: 2015 09 03: Week in Brief: UK NEWS
3 September 2015 Week in Brief: UK NEWS CHILCOT ENQUIRY: The row over the delay in producing a report into the war in Iraq continues as Sir John refuses to name a publication day. Blame has been placed on the quality of the first draft of the report and on uncooperative tactics by witnesses who… Continue reading Issue 18: 2015 09 03: Week in Brief: UK NEWS
Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Tianjin: It Tolls For Thee
27 August 2015 Tianjin: It Tolls For Thee By John Watson Children with a taste for philosophy used to ask each other a difficult question. “Which would you prefer,” they would say, “the death of someone close to you or the deaths of 1 million foreigners?” That was of course a trap. Any child would… Continue reading Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Tianjin: It Tolls For Thee
Issue 17: 2015 08 27: A Matter of Style
27 August 2015 A Matter of Style by Chin Chin Well, we’ve all got some explaining to do; all of us, that is, who dragged our children to antique fairs stifling their protests with the mantra “It is a great investment. One day you will thank me. They don’t make more of them. Values can… Continue reading Issue 17: 2015 08 27: A Matter of Style
Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Biding Their Time
27 August 2015 Biding Their Time by J R Thomas The front runner is pulling yet further ahead – but with an uncompromising personality, some unfortunate history coming out of the woodwork and a lack of popularity among key parts of the party machine, doubts are starting to be expressed even among loyal party members… Continue reading Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Biding Their Time
Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Scotched
27 August 2015 Scotched by J R Thomas When you consider its pleasures and advantages, it really is astonishing that cricket in England is not even more popular. Admittedly, matches that can go for five days without a clear result do not really conform to the modern taste for things that are quick, decisive, and… Continue reading Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Scotched
Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Week in Brief: UK NEWS
27 August 2015 Week in Brief: UK NEWS ADULTERY WEBSITE: It is believed that there are 1.2 million Britons among the 37 million users of adultery website Ashley Madison whose details were revealed by hackers last week. These include military personnel, government employees and a Scottish Nationalist MP, as well as two people working at… Continue reading Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Week in Brief: UK NEWS
