Recent content by iolo

If we are not to end up like President Trump, just inventing what we please. It's not accurate, but it does tend to give a general map of the past.

Somebody's record of what it suits him to believe happened. There are great chunks of which we know nothing and others (post-Roman Britain, for instance) where archaeology and common-sense contradict what we think we do know. It is necessary for us to have some notion of how the world got...

Anyone who wanted to be a good speaker would, as did the ghastly Mrs Thatcher, get some training. He sounds like an expiring vacuum cleaner.

I like Mahler songs too. I think I've heard Myfanwy and Cwm Rhondda too often to have an opinion. My favourites are Bugeilio'r Gwenith Gwyn, and that lullaby that begins 'Huna blentyn'.

It was exactly the same. as far as I can see.

Power people don't give a twopenny whatsit for the people they kill, and more sensible one's just send out an impressive-looking bit of paper or cardboard, full of the right, meaningless noises. People grieve for people - bosses just use them.

It's a bit like learning a language, I think. I can make nothing of Indian music, the classical sort anyway, but that's because I never listen to any, and I'm baffled by modern pop because it's so bloody loud it gives me earache. I was brought up on Welsh folksong (oh, and hymns. I...

The rich steal all our money. Who else should pay taxes?

Well, he's a dreadful man, supported by dreadful people, so what did we expect, decency?

Left the door wide open for McCarthy, that notion.

A civilized society is one where no penalty can be imposed on a citizen without a properly-formulated legal judgement of his peers based on the proper consideration of the evidence. Anything else is barbarism.

He only got fired when he stopped making money for the rest of his gang. I think the essence of lynching is mob action based on prejudice to deny law.

The point is that you kill and lie about people all the time. What makes America America is the denial of justice by mob law, as you know. If this particularly successful American was guilty before he stopped making money, when did you charge him?

But no trial. I take that to be the key element in any American denial of justice, as under McCarthy.

Yes - all the bullyboys always forget the greatest Russian General, General Winter, and the effects of the Scorched Earth.