Category: The use of Language
-
Mr Toad and Dr Doomboyd
Posted:
The phrase “Shock and Awe” came into our reckoning as a description of America’s opening attack against Iraq in their war (beginning March, 2003) to overthrow Saddam Hussein and his regime. Supported by the British, the Americans went in search of Saddam Hussein’s non-existent weaponry. A short while later, Mr Bush stood alone on one…
-
Mr Toad Goes Bombing
Posted:
This was written on Wedesday August 28th, 2019. Worth noting that date. During this morning, we’ve learned that Mr Johnson intends to stop parliament meeting through most of September. It is on public record that Mr Johnson has been sacked twice for lying. No rational employer would consider even short-listing him for a job. Yet…
-
Dust
Posted:
Lost in the chaos of present events, we – or something in us – look to leadership for orientation, guidance and comfort. And the same something perhaps assumes that, the worse the crisis, the better that leadership must be and rescue is on the way. And assumes as well that, in this chaos, our own…
-
The Parrot Notes a Toad on the Hop
Posted:
This stanza was written last night after I read that Mr Toad was about to head off to meet Mrs Merkel and Mr Macron, etc. And Mr Toad is going to tell them that the Irish back stop was “undemocratic” etc. But today it turns out that there has also been an exchange of letters…
-
The Parrot Notes Mr Toad Grown Larger
Posted:
Today, UK Law seems to have decided that it is not a penal offence for an accountable holder of public office, such as a member of parliament, to lie to or otherwise seek to mislead, a sovereign people. This despite the fact that all members of parliament have sworn an oath to tell the truth,…
-
The Caged Parrot Watches the Demons Dance
Posted:
This piece returns to a preoccupation of my own, concerning language. What is the point of writing, the point of taking a position and then articulating it ? And of course that leads to the question, why keep writing these stanzas, these mere words amid all the bizarre and frantic and disastrous political action going…
-
The Parrot Speaks of the Democratic Covenant
Posted:
A private prosecution has been taken out against Boris Johnson MP, for claims he made during the 2016 EU referendum. After 3 years of preparation, it had its first hearing in private a few days ago. For an example of the Press coverage, see https://www.theguardian.com/…/boris-johnson-could-be-challenged-in-court… Essentially, if the judge agrees that there is a case…
-
The Parrot on Fault-lines
Posted:
This stanza was written on the day the Labour Party’s National Executive decided to support a second referendum on Brexit – but only in particular circumstances, all unlikely. Jez and a sufficient number of his adherents were clearly still keen on being seen to be “honouring” the result of the first referendum of 2016. That…