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Ursula Le Guin passes
Ursula K. Le Guin: Her Name is Freedom
Amid the sadness of the passing of Ursula K. Le Guin, we offer her wise advice on art and literature, given in 2014. In receiving her lifetime achievement award in 2014, Ursula delivered a speech that was prescient, timely and necessary:
Neil Gaiman presents lifetime achievement award to Ursula K. Le Guin at 2014 National Book Awards from National Book Foundation on Vimeo.
Ursula K. Le Guin first told her audience that she wanted to share her award with her fellow-fantasy and science fiction writers, who have for so long watched "the beautiful awards" like the one she'd just received, go to the "so-called realists". She then went on to
say:
"I think hard times are coming, when we will be wanting the voices of writers who can see alternatives to how we live now, and can see through our fear-stricken society and its obsessive technologies, to other ways of being. And even imagine some real grounds for hope. We will need writers who can remember freedom: poets, visionaries–the realists of a larger reality. Right now, I think we need writers who know the difference between production of a market commodity and the practice of an art…The profit motive is often in conflict with the aims of art…We live in capitalism. Its power seems inescapable; so did the divine right of kings… Power can be resisted and changed by human beings; resistance and change often begin in art, and very often in our art–the art of words. I've had a long career and a good one, in good company, and here, at the end of it, I really don't want to watch American literature get sold down the river… The name of our beautiful reward is not profit. Its name is freedom."
Nina Munteanu is an ecologist and internationally published author of novels, short stories and essays. She coaches writers and teaches writing at George Brown College and the University of Toronto. For more about Nina's coaching & workshops visit www.ninamunteanu.me. Visit www.ninamunteanu.ca for more about her writing.


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Home » TV Shows » HBO Max Penguin Spinoff Series – What We Know So Far About The Colin Farrell Show
HBO Max Penguin Spinoff Series – What We Know So Far About The Colin Farrell Show
BY Meghan Hale February 28, 2022March 1, 2022
We're only days away from the highly anticipated The Batman. Fans are eager to see a new actor, Robert Pattinson, take on the iconic role of the caped crusader. But along with the expected Bat, we'll also be getting some other characters that we're desperate to see on the big screen again. Amongst them are folks like the Riddler, Catwoman, and the Penguin. One of them will be earning their own series. Here is what we know so far about the HBO Max Penguin spinoff series starring Colin Farrell.
What We Know So Far About The HBO Max Penguin Spinoff Series With Colin Farrell
Spinoff series about side characters, whether they're heroes or villains, have become commonplace in franchises like Marvel. DC is only beginning to dip its toes into the experiment with shows like Peacemaker, and one of the next attempts will be with the HBO Max Penguin spinoff series that was announced late last year. The actor behind the role, Colin Farrell, had previously signed on for the starring role and announced that he would be executive producing it.
Lauren LeFranc (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) is penning the scripts for the show. Dylan Clark and Matt Reeves are both signed on to co-executive produce with Warner Bros. Television.
As for the plot, the untitled Penguin project will show him rising to power in the city of Gotham and its criminal underworld. A recent interview with Clark has revealed that it could be similar to Scarface in tone. The 1983 film shows its main character as he takes over a drug cartel, entranced by the opportunities it provides as he succumbs to greed.
Image via Warner Bros.
How The Penguin Series Will Fit With The Batman
We'll be entering The Batman next month equipped with our knowledge from his past on-screen variations and comic book lore. By the time the HBO Max Penguin series rolls around, we'll have plenty of expectations to start us off. Clark adds in his interview that it will work as a standalone story, but will compliment The Batman by showing things that "speaks to the character" and the film.
Colin Farrell has also been excited to share news about the series. An interview with Entertainment Tonight revealed how it will dig deeper into the motivations of the character, sharing:
We have to get into what made him the man he is. And also, it will pick up where this film finished off, I think. I think it'll pick up a little short time after the last frame of this film. We'll get to go on a little kind of left turn off to the world of Oz and how he's beginning to kind of dream of filling a potential power vacuum that may exist. It's a lovely, lovely character, and explores vulnerabilities. His violence is apparent, his propensity for violence and his ability to use it as a tool is apparent, but to see we all have soft spots. Every single person. And to be able to find that location, dig around it would be fun.
The descriptions of the violence and backstories that we can expect will fit a more mature audience compared to The Batman, which is only rated PG-13. An official rating for the Penguin series hasn't been confirmed, but Farrell believes that it could be R-rated.
As for The Batman, the Penguin actor says that he will only have about "five or six scenes" in the film and will be taking up fewer than 10 minutes of screentime within the almost three-hour film. This might be disappointing for fans who are most excited to see Farrell, but it's reassuring to know that more is to come.
Danny DeVito as The Penguin in Batman Returns. Image via Warner Bros.
More Batman Spinoff Series Are Coming To HBO Max After The Penguin
The HBO Max Penguin spinoff series with Colin Farrell will not be the only show to come after The Batman. A Gotham PD series is also in the works with Joe Barton serving as the showrunner. Little is known about the series, however, it will look at more corruption within Gotham. This could lead to exploring more of the lesser-known villains in the DC universe.
The Batman Premieres In Theaters On March 4th, 2022.
Readers, we're excited for The Batman. But we're also excited for the HBO Max Penguin spinoff series which will dive deeper into the character played by Colin Farrell. The film might leave us wanting more, but Warner Bros. promises that we'll get some.
Let us know your expectations for both The Batman and for the HBO Max Penguin spinoff series, and remember to check back to Comic Years for more updated news about the spinoff series.
Featured image via Warner Bros.
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Feeling Close to Fellow Citizens in Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand
Chau-kiu Cheung
Raymond Kwok-hong Chan
Wing-chung Ho
Social Indicators Research
https://scholars.cityu.edu.hk/en/publications/publication(742319ca-88f5-4f52-ae96-e913eec99f18).html
Feeling close to fellow citizens in the city is a feature of social cohesion that is worth investigation among East Asian societies for exploring societal conditions for the closeness. Because of the variation of such conditions among the societies, differentials in the closeness among the societies are possible. As the variation of societal conditions can translate into differences in personal characteristics and experiences, such differences are likely to explain differentials in the closeness. This likelihood is a focus for the present study, which surveyed 4,087 adult citizens in Hong Kong (n = 681), South Korea (n = 1,006), Taiwan (n = 1,200), and Thailand (n = 1,200). Results revealed significant differentials in the closeness among the societies, showing that it was highest in Thailand and lowest in Taiwan. Furthermore, these differentials were largely due to differences in personal and characteristics among citizens in the four societies. Among the significant predictors of the closeness, work-family conflict and the costliness of medical expense are two experiences. The two experiences, as well as other predictors, champion a conflict or social force explanation for citizens' closeness. Accordingly, conflict or social force that is incapacitating would estrange the incapacitated individual from others. The results and explanation imply that relieving work and family conflicts is relevant to lifting citizens' closeness. In conclusion, the East Asian societies manifested differentials in citizens' social cohesion, and the differentials are explicable by differentials in resources and conflicts among the societies.
Social cohesion, Social quality, East Asian, Work-family conflict, Job stress
Publication fingerprints text
Hong Kong Medicine & Life Sciences
Thailand Medicine & Life Sciences
Korea Medicine & Life Sciences
Taiwan Medicine & Life Sciences
Emotions Medicine & Life Sciences
citizen Social Sciences
society Social Sciences
conflict Social Sciences
social cohesion Social Sciences
explanation Social Sciences
Full Fingerprint ›
Feeling Close to Fellow Citizens in Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. / Cheung, Chau-kiu; Chan, Raymond Kwok-hong; Ho, Wing-chung.
In: Social Indicators Research, Vol. 119, No. 1, 10.2014, p. 25-48.
Cheung, C, Chan, RK & Ho, W 2014, 'Feeling Close to Fellow Citizens in Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand', Social Indicators Research, vol. 119, no. 1, pp. 25-48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-013-0483-8
Cheung, C., Chan, R. K., & Ho, W. (2014). Feeling Close to Fellow Citizens in Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. Social Indicators Research, 119(1), 25-48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-013-0483-8
Cheung C, Chan RK, Ho W. Feeling Close to Fellow Citizens in Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. Social Indicators Research. 2014 Oct;119(1):25-48. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-013-0483-8
Cheung, Chau-kiu ; Chan, Raymond Kwok-hong ; Ho, Wing-chung. / Feeling Close to Fellow Citizens in Hong Kong, Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. In: Social Indicators Research. 2014 ; Vol. 119, No. 1. pp. 25-48.


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When Gracie and I went out earlier, I was surprised by how warm a morning it is. The sun is shining, and there is a slight breeze. It was quiet except for music from the radio of a car being parked next door. The car belongs to a man who works for my neighbor, the landscaper. When he opened the car door, the music stopped. It was quiet again. I was still in the backyard waiting for Gracie. She took her time. I didn't mind, though, as I got to be outside enjoying the morning for a bit.
My groceries are being delivered in a while. I open the door, and they are brought to the kitchen where I start putting them away. When I shopped, I aways hated bringing the bags inside the house as it took so many trips. Now I complain about putting the groceries away.
Last night for dinner I had leftovers. They were almost as good as the Thanksgiving meal. They reminded me a turkey is never a single meal. It seems to last forever. First is the grand meal then hot turkey sandwiches that night, cold turkey sandwiches piled high with stuffing and cranberry sauce the next day or two then turkey salad and finally turkey soup. My dad was a champion at picking the meat from the turkey bones. I think he looked forward to it every year. Not even the smallest piece of meat escaped him. He left an empty carcass.
This weekend will be a quiet one. I have nothing planned. Tonight I'll watch a new Hallmark movie. I don't know what it is, but I can guess. The possible plots are easy: two people will meet on a plane or a train or at the airport and fall in love, a curmudgeon will do a Scrooge like make-over and love Christmas, a kid will get his wish, someone who doesn't celebrate Christmas will find it in his or her heart and in doing so will fall in love.
I'm watching the antithesis of those Hallmark movies on a program called Homicide for the Holidays. I figure it will counteract all the sugar from Hallmark. I just watched a detective at his desk talking on the phone about murders during a house invasion on Christmas Eve. Behind the detective were Christmas decorations. A gold garland outlined the window and cards were strung on a string across it. Quite festive indeed!
Yesterday was a perfect day. The weather was warm but breezy enough to keep the heat at bay, the sun shined all day and we even found a table by the water at lunch. My sisters arrived with cake and presents. We went to lunch at one of my favorite places. As a surprise my sisters had invited my friends, and I was definitely surprised. My lobster roll was filled with huge chunks of lobster and the fries and onion rings were perfect. Just ask the gulls who snapped up the French fries we threw on the rocks. After lunch we came back to my house for cake and ice cream and presents. My sisters had chosen the best cake, mocha, and my favorite ice cream, coconut. After that, I opened my presents and was overwhelmed by the generosity of my sisters and my friends. We then sat on the deck a while chatting and laughing. I can't imagine a better day, a better birthday.
Today is cloudy and a bit humid. The breeze is blowing the top branches of the oak trees. Rain is predicted for later. I do have to go out but not far and off the main roads. The bird feeders need to be filled again, and the fountain is empty of water. Gracie drinks much of the water away. The fountain is the perfect height for her. I fill it, she drinks it and we do this several times a day. She has a water dish on the deck but she ignores it. Dogs aren't logical.
Quiet seems to be the order of the day after the excitement of yesterday. I don't hear a sound: not a kid, not a car and not even a bird. I had Alexa play sixties rock, but I kept singing with the music instead of writing so I turned on the TV to MSMBC. It is still reacting to Trump's latest diatribe so I turned that off. Instead, I watched the Food Channel with Giada who was making a Peruvian chicken dish and showing pictures of her trip to Peru. I suppose I could just turn off the TV, but I'm not in the mood for quiet, for silence. I have stuff I could do, but I don't want to do them. I'm just fine with being a sloth, napping on the couch, wearing my comfiest clothes and going barefoot.
My quiet mornings ended this morning. I heard a dog barking, a little girl yelling from down the street, two mowers from different directions and voices from the next door deck. Gracie even barked out the front door. I didn't bother to get up to see why. I was hoping to fall back to sleep, but then it got quiet and the silence was as loud as the noise.
Today I have people. Skip, my factotum, is completing the deck decorating. He has connected the umbrella light, gotten the fountain working and put down the deck rug. The barbecue has been cleaned, and the squirrel nest on the tray underneath the burners has been cleared. My shower has a new board replacing the mushy one. New lights are on the rails just waiting for the spawns to eat. Lee and Rosanna, my cleaning couple, are due here in the afternoon. Peapod is coming Saturday morning with all my groceries. My job is to write checks, worthwhile checks, as a recent study has shown that if you hire people to do household jobs you are far happier. That would be me sitting here with a grin on my face.
It was sunny when I woke up, but clouds have taken over the sky, and the breeze makes the air feel a bit chilly. Last night I woke up cold and added a light blanket. How silly this weather is for late July.
My menu is set, my movie chosen and the deck is ready for movie night. The only issue is the weather. It may rain on Saturday night at the movies so we'll have Sunday night at the movies.
I'm getting the urge to cook again. I used to love making new recipes and inviting people to dinner. I've been mulling an international dinner with dishes from a variety of countries, each identified by a tiny flag. It would be fun.
When I worked, I had a schedule for weekdays and another for weekends. I got everything done: the cleaning, grocery shopping, laundry and garden and lawn work. Now I have people. The only thing left for me is the laundry, and I admit I procrastinate. The laundry bag sits in front of the cellar door for a few days and sometimes even a week. I don't even care. If I could hire a laundress I would. I have no pride!


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A JOURNEY UNCHALLENGED – ANDREW MARR INTERVIEWS TONY BLAIR
17th September 2010 Alerts
Andrew Marr must have seemed the natural choice to BBC executives looking for an interviewer to grill Tony Blair on his new autobiography, A Journey (The Andrew Marr Show, BBC 1, September 1, 2010. See here for a rough transcript.
After all, Blair has become the most reviled British politician of modern times largely thanks to violent policies that Marr openly celebrated.
On April 9, 2003, as Baghdad superficially fell to the illegal US-UK invasion, Marr lauded Blair's great triumph on the main BBC evening news:
"Frankly, the main mood [in Downing Street] is of unbridled relief. I've been watching ministers wander around with smiles like split watermelons."
Marr delivered this news with his own watermelon smile. He continued:
"Well, I think this does one thing – it draws a line under what, before the war, had been a period of… well, a faint air of pointlessness, almost, was hanging over Downing Street. There were all these slightly tawdry arguments and scandals. That is now history. Mr Blair is well aware that all his critics out there in the party and beyond aren't going to thank him – because they're only human – for being right when they've been wrong. And he knows that there might be trouble ahead, as I said. But I think this is very, very important for him. It gives him a new freedom and a new self-confidence. He confronted many critics.
"I don't think anybody after this is going to be able to say of Tony Blair that he's somebody who is driven by the drift of public opinion, or focus groups, or opinion polls. He took all of those on. He said that they would be able to take Baghdad without a bloodbath, and that in the end the Iraqis would be celebrating. And on both of those points he has been proved conclusively right. And it would be entirely ungracious, even for his critics, not to acknowledge that tonight he stands as a larger man and a stronger prime minister as a result." (Marr, BBC 1, News At Ten, April 9, 2003)
Two years earlier, as Blair bombed Serbia, Marr wrote:
"I am constantly impressed, but also mildly alarmed, by his [Blair's] utter lack of cynicism." (Marr, 'Hail to the chief. Sorry, Bill, but this time we're talking about Tony', The Observer, May 16, 1999)
Marr even supported Blair's crazed call for a ground invasion:
"I want to put the Macbeth option: which is that we're so steeped in blood we should go further. If we really believe Milosevic is this bad, dangerous and destabilising figure we must ratchet this up much further. We should now be saying that we intend to put in ground troops." (Marr, 'Do we give war a chance?', The Observer, April 18, 1999)
In 2005, the former BBC reporter and producer, Tim Luckhurst, no radical, wrote in the Daily Mail:
"Andrew Marr has dismayed licence-payers with apologias for New Labour in general and Tony Blair in particular." (Luckhurst, 'As John Humphrys announces his retirement. The giant the BBC hasn't got the guts to replace,' Daily Mail, May 3, 2005)
Who better than Marr, then, to interview Blair in 2010? David Aaronovitch, perhaps?
In 2007, when the BBC was looking for someone to interview Blair for its series, The Blair Years, management eyes fell on The Times commentator. "This is troubling," Peter Oborne wrote in the Daily Mail, "for over the past ten years Aaronovitch has never… ceased to extend a helping hand to Tony Blair…" (Oborne, 'Forget the Queen fiasco, it's the BBC's love affair with the Blairs that's so disquieting,' Daily Mail, July 14, 2007)
Like Marr, Aaronovitch had strongly backed Blair's attack on Serbia, also supporting Blair's call for a ground war. After two million people marched against the looming Iraq war in London on February 15, 2003, Aaronovitch asked them:
"Finally, what are you going to do when you are told – as one day you will be – that while you were demonstrating against an allied invasion, and being applauded by friends and Iraqi officials, many of the people of Iraq were hoping, hope against hope, that no one was listening to you?" (Aaronovitch, 'Dear marcher, please answer a few questions,' The Guardian, February 18, 2003)
So why does the BBC, a public service broadcaster, habitually turn to journalists who have previously declared their firm support for Blair's militant Christian policies to interview Blair about those policies? The answer is that no-one outside the BBC has the remotest idea – there is flat-zero openness on this kind of choice; it is deemed none of the public's business.
Certainly, the choice can have nothing to do with perceived public preference – it seems undeniable that a huge majority of people would +love+ to see Blair's feet held to the fire. But this never happens. Perhaps, of course, Blair might refuse to appear if this seemed a likely outcome. But then he should be denied the opportunity to peddle his book and his advocacy of Permanent War. The sense in reality, of course, is of elite media managers protecting their elite political friends.
The Chicago Doctrine – Rationalising The Bloodbath
Not only did Marr not seriously challenge Blair, he challenged common sense by dredging up a bogus justification for Blair's actions. Marr said of Kosovo and Sierra Leone:
"After those two interventions you made what in retrospect seems a +very+ significant speech in Chicago in 1999, where you developed a new doctrine about dictatorships."
In fact Blair spoke in Chicago on April 22, 1999, in the middle of the bombing of Serbia (between March 24 and June 10, 1999). The speech was a typically audacious attempt to suggest that deep principle underlay what was actually cynical realpolitik. John Norris, director of communications during the war for US deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott, commented, "it was Yugoslavia's resistance to the broader trends of political and economic reform – not the plight of Kosovar Albanians – that best explains NATO's war". (Norris, Collision Course: NATO, Russia, and Kosovo, Praeger, 2005, p.xiii)
Marr implied that the so-called 'Chicago Doctrine' was rooted in lessons learned by Blair +after+ his two interventions thus far, and that these lessons informed his subsequent decision to attack Iraq. Between the lines, we were to read: 'Iraq's WMDs were never really the point from the perspective of the Chicago Doctrine.' Blair clearly knew exactly what Marr had in mind and was quick to accept the emphasis:
"I also think that there can be circumstances in which it is legitimate to intervene even in another country's affairs where the oppression of the people is so cruel and where you can't simply say well, unless our national interest is directly threatened in a very specific way we're not going to have anything to do with it."
Marr then reinforced the point: "So you can topple tyrants +because+ they're tyrants, not because they immediately threaten other people."
Even a cursory glance at Blair's Chicago speech reveals that Marr was bending over backwards to find the speech "+very+ significant" in this way. In the speech, Blair said that, in judging the case for military intervention, "we need to bear in mind five major considerations". The fifth of these involved asking: "do we have national interests involved? The mass expulsion of ethnic Albanians from Kosovo demanded the notice of the rest of the world. But it does make a difference that this is taking place in such a combustible part of Europe."
In other words, the conflict +was+ of "national interest" – it +did+ "threaten other people".
Marr's claim on the significance of the Chicago speech is bogus for more obvious reasons. George Bush could not have been clearer in 2002-2003 when he said: "The world needs him [Saddam Hussein] to answer a single question: Has the Iraqi regime fully and unconditionally disarmed, as required by Resolution 1441, or has it not?" (Source)
The "single question" concerned the supposed threat posed by Iraq, not the nature of its government.
Ari Fleischer, Bush's Press Secretary, said, "we have high confidence that they have weapons of mass destruction. That is what this war was about and it is about." (Source)
The Independent's Andreas Whittam Smith wrote in May 2003:
"There was no ambiguity about the reasons for fighting. The only text which matters is the motion the Prime Minister put down in the House of Commons on 18 March, just before hostilities began. It asked members of Parliament to support the decision of Her Majesty's Government 'that the United Kingdom should use all means necessary to ensure the disarmament of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction'.
"There was nothing else in the motion other than citations of various United Nations Security Council resolutions. Regime change was not a British war aim." (Whittam Smith, 'If the weapons are not found, Blair must quit,' The Independent, May 19, 2003)
The Intelligence Lie – And The Real Death Toll
In his interview with Marr, Blair said:
"And I've always apologised for the fact that the intelligence was wrong. What I can't apologise for, however, is the decision we took. Which we took, incidentally, based on intelligence, at the time. So all I'm saying to you is, you know – this has been gone over many, many times. The intelligence picture was clear. We acted on it."
Marr must have known that Blair would once again offer the defence that "the intelligence was wrong", and yet it was a lie that he failed to challenge. But why? Carne Ross, a key Foreign Office diplomat responsible for monitoring UN arms inspections in Iraq, had given testimony to the Iraq Inquiry just six weeks earlier that left Blair's lie utterly exposed. Ross said:
"It remains my view that the internal government assessment of Iraq's capabilities was intentionally and substantially exaggerated in public government documents during 2002 and 2003. Throughout my posting in New York, it was the UK and US assessment that while there were many unanswered questions about Iraq's WMD stocks and capabilities, we did not believe that these amounted to a substantial threat. At no point did we have any firm evidence, from intelligence sources or otherwise, of significant weapons holdings…
"In all the policy documents I reviewed in preparation for this testimony, there is no mention prior to 9/11 of any increase in the threat assessment for Iraq. Instead, these documents discuss the difficulty in maintaining support for sanctions in the absence of clear evidence of WMD violations by Iraq…" (http://www.iraqinquiry.org.uk/media/47534/carne-ross-statement.pdf)
Ross talked of a "process of deliberate public exaggeration":
"This process of exaggeration was gradual, and proceeded by accretion and editing from document to document, in a way that allowed those participating to convince themselves that they were not engaged in blatant dishonesty. But this process led to highly misleading statements about the UK assessment of the Iraqi threat that were, in their totality, lies."
In the interview, Marr commented: "100,000 plus people certainly died" as a result of the war, "some people say more".
Indeed "some people" do say "more" – the world's leading medical journal, The Lancet, for example, publishing a top group of epidemiologists, led by the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. Like virtually the entire media, Marr prefers to cite a figure offered by the website, Iraq Body Count (IBC), described as "a very misleading exercise" even by the head of a major Western news bureau in Baghdad, one of IBC's key sources (Email forwarded to Media Lens, October 25, 2006).
Marr ought to be aware of a recent study by Professor Brian Rappert of the University of Exeter, which details how the UK government worked to discredit the Lancet studies. A 'Restricted' letter from a ministry's Chief Economist dated 8 November 2004 closed with:
"It might also be possible, as Gerald Russell has suggested, to try and validate the study's preinvasion estimate of mortality by checking it against unpublished MoH health figures. But there is (a) no certainty at this stage that this kind of work would invalidate the Lancet findings, or (b) any guarantee that if it does produce a difference answer, that the rejection of the Lancet findings would be conclusive."
Rappert comments:
"This quote suggests, again, that deliberations were geared in a particular direction – towards finding grounds for rejecting the Lancet study, without any evidence of countervailing efforts by government officials to produce or endorse alternative other studies or data. At numerous other occasions in the exchanges released it could be argued that officials were not undertaking a neutral attempt to understand the impact of violence in Iraq on the civilian population. Rather – and in the absence of evidence and research of their own – they adopted the attitude of opponents of one particular study. While they did not wish to override the more nuanced evaluations of technical advisors, the general thrust of inter-ministry deliberations reads as seeking to find as many grounds possible for dismissal of the study's findings as possible."
The media swallowed the government smear campaign with gusto – the Lancet studies have been consigned to oblivion in most media reporting. Thus, the Guardian last month preferred to cite IBC, "which is widely considered as the most reliable database of Iraqi civilian deaths".
From the BBC to the New York Times, from the Guardian to Channel 4 News, the figure of choice is that offered by Iraq Body Count of around 100,000 civilian deaths by violence. Sometimes this figure is interpreted as total Iraqi deaths as a result of the war, sometimes as total Iraqi civilian deaths, sometimes as total Iraqi deaths by violence. Almost +never+ do journalists make clear that it is an extremely limited count of deaths recorded by media in a country that is obviously much too dangerous for journalists to be able to work effectively. Why do we say 'obviously'?
The Most Lethal War For Journalists
A recent report from Reporters Without Borders (RWB) comments:
"The second U.S. war with Iraq [2003 onwards] has been the most lethal for journalists since World War II. To date, the number of journalists and media contributors killed in the country since the conflict broke out on 20 March 2003 stands at 230. That is more than those killed during the entire Vietnam War or the civil war in Algeria.
"Iraq has also been the world's biggest market for hostages. Over 93 media professionals were abducted in those seven years, at least 42 of whom were later executed. Moreover, 14 are still missing."
A study of deaths in Guatemala from 1960 to 1996 by Patrick Ball et al at the University of California, Berkeley (1999) found that numbers of murders reported by the media +decreased+ as violence increased. Ball explained that "the press stopped reporting the violence beginning in September 1980. Perhaps not coincidentally, the database lists seven murders of journalists in July and August of that year". (Patrick Ball, Paul Kobrak, and Herbert F. Spirer, 'State Violence in Guatemala, 1960-1996: A Quantitative Reflection', 1999; http://shr.aaas.org/guatemala/ciidh/qr/english/chap7.html)
Ironically, then, as a theatre of war becomes more lethal to civilians, including journalists, media reports of civilian deaths can give the impression of a falling death toll. RWB comments further on the aftermath of the 2003 invasion:
"From day one, the new government proved to be extremely distrustful of the media, going so far as to prohibit Al-Jazeera from operating in the country, after accusing the TV news network of 'inciting violence and sedition.' The Qatari network still does not have an office in Iraq and is operating via on-site correspondents.
"Iraqi journalists soon had to face numerous restrictions and prohibitions enforced by the latest ruling authorities….
"In 2006, Nuri al-Maliki's government regularly threatened to shut down certain newspapers after accusing them of incitement to violence. Television networks were also pointed out as being responsible for stirring up ethnic and religious passions. They were prohibited from broadcasting segments that showed blood or murder scenes. On 5 November 2006, the Minister of the Interior decided to close down the Sunni television networks Al-Zawra and Salah-Eddin for having broadcast footage of demonstrators waving pictures of former dictator Saddam Hussein and protesting against his capital sentence. Both stations are still closed down."
Professor Rappert notes "that the Secretariat of the 2006 Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development (an instrument which the UK sits on the coordinating group of) estimates that "between three and 15 times as many people die indirectly for every person that dies violently." (Rappert, Ibid.) In 2007, Les Roberts told us that an ORB poll revealing that 1.2 million Iraqis had been murdered since the 2003 invasion seemed "very much to align" with the 2004 and 2006 Lancet studies he had co-authored. (See our media alert)
And why, anyway, is it important to focus on civilian deaths by violence? The key question for international law is how many civilians have died as a result of illegal American and British actions, as a result of the collapse of social infrastructure – health systems, sewage systems, water supplies, electricity supplies, and so on – caused by the US-UK invasion. IBC focuses only on direct deaths of civilians by violence as reported by the media (and, in recent years, other sources like morgues).
The absurdity is such that the New York Times felt able to report last month:
"Caracas, Venezuela — Some here joke that they might be safer if they lived in Baghdad. The numbers bear them out.
"In Iraq, a country with about the same population as Venezuela, there were 4,644 civilian deaths from violence in 2009, according to Iraq Body Count; in Venezuela that year, the number of murders climbed above 16,000."
We asked Ziad Obermeyer, a public health researcher at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation in Seattle, Washington, for his opinion on the New York Times comparison:
"Government statistics on deaths in Venezuela are quite accurate, at least according to a recent UN report (Mathers et al, Bulletin of the World Health Organization 83:3, 2005), making the number of 16 000 murders quite plausible. Media reports in Iraq, on the other hand, are widely recognized as an absolute minimum, with most other estimates several times higher. Comparing data from such different sources is unlikely to yield any clear insights into the true magnitude of differences." (Email to Media Lens, September 1, 2010)
In his interview with Blair, Marr expressed views that shared, rather than challenged, Blair's view of the world. He referred to Blair "successfully intervening in Kosovo and, later, Sierra Leone". The war in Afghanistan, Marr argued, was "another war, another piece of nation-building…" So that war, and by implication the Iraq war they had just discussed (hence "another") was "a piece of nation-building", rather than a war crime.
Blair said Britain should threaten Iran militarily "if they continue to develop nuclear weapons." Marr failed to remind Blair that there is currently no credible evidence that Iran is developing nuclear weapons. Marr asked: "Are you actually saying that we should threaten them militarily if they are determined to develop nuclear weapons?"
Blair said: "If necessarily militarily… I think there is no alternative to that if they continue to develop nuclear weapons and they need to get that message loud and clear."
It really doesn't matter why Blair is promoting Perpetual War. It could be that he believes he has been chosen by the Creator to fight Evil. More likely, he is a Machiavellian driven to do whatever furthers his political and financial interests – a cynic who gambled and lost on the Iraq war.
We believe that, in a different society – one in which vested interests did not benefit from the promotion of illusions and violence – Blair would be exposed so brutally, so often, by the media that he would quickly become an object of ridicule and disappear from sight.
SUGGESTED ACTION
The goal of Media Lens is to promote rationality, compassion and respect for others. If you do write to journalists, we strongly urge you to maintain a polite, non-aggressive and non-abusive tone.
Write to Andrew Marr
Helen Boaden, the BBC's director of news
PROJECTILE DYSFUNCTION – IRON DOME, ISRAEL, TRIDENT, AND THE MEDIA
20th May 2010 Alerts
Last week, the BBC reported Barack Obama's request to Congress for $200 million in military aid to assist Israel's construction of a short-range rocket defence system, Iron Dome. The funding will be in addition to →
THE ART OF LOOKING PRIME MINISTERIAL – THE 2010 UK GENERAL ELECTION
28th April 2010 Alerts
On April 15, news media broadcast the first of three live, 90-minute "prime ministerial debates" between Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg, the leaders, respectively, of the Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties. By →
NUCLEAR DECEIT – THE TIMES AND IRAN
14th January 2010 Alerts
On December 14, The Times announced that it had obtained documents about Iran's nuclear programme that revealed "a four-year plan to test a neutron initiator. This is the component of a nuclear weapon that triggers →


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2012 World Series of Poker Day 5: Force, Zeidman Win Gold; Negreanu at Event #5 Final Table
With five tournaments playing out in the Rio on Thursday, it is a grind trying to keep up with all the action. Luckily, we're giving you a run down right here, to get you up to speed. Event #3: Heads-up No-Limit Hold'em/Pot-Limit Omaha and Event #4: Seven Card Stud Hi-Low 8-or-Better both awarded bracelets to Leif Force and Cory Zeidman. Daniel Negreanu made the final table of Event #5: $1,500 Pot-Limit Hold'em. Joe Tehan, Aaron Jones, and Marvin Rettenmaier are leading the final 112 in Event #6: $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em Mix-Maxed. Last, in Event #7: $1,500 Seven Card Stud, Chau Giang and Sam Grizzle found themselves among the top 10 leaderboard for the day.
Event #3: Heads-up No-Limit Hold'em/Pot-Limit Omaha
All eyes were on Annette Obrestad as she attempted to become the first woman to win an WSOP open event since Vanessa Selbst in 2008. In the first round of matches, Obrestad played against Jason Koon, who proved too much of a challenge. Before her final hand, she had traded in both her rebuy lammers and was sitting on nearly 405,000. She raised to 16,000, Koon reraised to 42,000, and she reraised all-in. Koon quickly called with
and Obrestad showed down
. The board ran out
and her pair of tens were not enough to take her to the finals, so she left eighth place with $28,409.
Leif Force started off his day by defeating Andy Frankenberger. Force and Frankenberger got all their money in with
respectively. The board bricked out and Frankenberger was eliminated.
Force then defeated Julian Powell without even cashing in any rebuy lammers. On the last hand of the match, Force got it all-in with
against Powell's
giving Force the dominant two pair and the victory.
In the final match, it wasn't looking good for Force, but that all changed rather quickly when he doubled up twice in succession against Koon. On the final hand of the tournament, Force tried to get Koon off his hand by going all-in on a
board. Koon didn't fold though, and both players showed up their hands. Force was holding
for just a pair of eights, and Koon held the
for two pair and an open-ended straight draw. The turn was the
to give Force a monster set of outs. The river brought the
to give Force the winning flush and the bracelet.
Koon earned $126,660 for his second-place performance, and Force took home a cool $207,708 and a bracelet for first place.
To see who else Force played to make it to the finals, check out our live reporting blog.
Event #4: Seven Card Stud Hi-Low 8-or-Better
Xuan Liu lead the remaining 23 players who returned to the felt on Thursday to battle for gold. Mike Sexton was also still in the field, and looking to improve on his second-place finish from last year. He began the day with 54,000 in chips, but couldn't find much momentum.
In his last hand, Sexton brought in for the full 8,000. Michael Mizrachi raised to 16,000. Sexton made a hesitant call, and check-called a bet on the turn. Mizrachi took the lead on fifth street and led out, putting the pressure on Sexton and his stack of 23,500. Sexton finally committed himself and made the call. Sexton showed up
for a pair of sevens and Mizrachi held
for two jacks. Sexton didn't improve on fourth or fifth street and was eliminated in 15th place for $6,532.
Xuan Liu also couldn't close the deal and was eliminated in sixth place by Michael Mizrachi. Mizrachi had the bring-in, Liu raised, Mizrachi reraised, and Liu called off her last 37,000. Liu ended up with
, giving her two pair that she picked up on fifth street, but Mizrachi held
for a two pair that he picked up on sixth street, and Liu hit the rail earning $29,985 for sixth.
Cory Zeidman walked away with the bracelet after Mizrachi, Bradon Shack-Harris, and Yerron Bendor were all eliminated by Chris Bjorin to get to heads-up play.
On the final hand of heads up play, Zeidman held
. Zeidman's pair of kings were able to hold up against Bjorin's straight draw and Zeidman walked away with $201,559. Bjorin took home $124,838 for second place.
To see the rest of the action for Event #4, check out our live reporting blog.
Event #5: $1,500 Pot-Limit Hold'em
Only 71 players from the original 639-player starting field returned on Thursday in Event #5. Among them were Terrence Chan, John Juanda, Nam Le, Antonio Esfandiari, Steve Brecher, and Daniel Negreanu. Of that group, only Negreanu remains as he attempts to win his fifth Word Series of Poker bracelet. Also still alive at the final table are Tommy Vedes and Jonathan Aguiar. Leading the way is Bryan Pellegrino with 790,000 in chips.
One of the most important hands of the day for Negreanu happened against Pellegrino. Pellegrino raised to 23,000 from middle position, Negreanu reraised to 63,000 from the cutoff. Pellegrino potted and Negreanu quickly moved all-in for 146,000. Pellegrino called, and unfortunately for Negreanu, Pellegrino held
. Negreanu was still live holding
and the board ran out
to give Negreanu a miracle king on the turn to double up.
The biggest pot of the tournament so far happened between Pellegrino and Thom Werthmann near the end of the day. With the board reading
Werthmann and Pellegrino raised, and potted until all the chips were in the middle, creating a pot worth 750,000. Pellegrino showed
and Werthmann showed
. Werthmann was ahead, but the
on the turn changed everything, leaving Werthmann drawing dedad. After that hand, Werthmann was down to just 12,000 chips, and Pellegrino was the chip leader. In the final two hands of the night, two players were eliminated. James Mackey was sent to the rail in 11th place, and then Werthmann was dispatched in 10th to end the night.
Action will resume Friday at 1400 PDT (2200 GMT), and we'll be watching this event intently as Negreanu goes for his fifth gold bracelet.
To see all the action as it goes down, make sure to follow our live reporting blog.
Event #6: $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em Mix-Max
Day 1 of the $5,000 No-Limit Hold'em Mix-Max event was a moving day. Over 409 players register for a shot to win the $480,564 first prize, and on Friday, only 112 will return. Among them is Joe Tehan, who leads the way and has Aaron Jones and Marvin Rettenmaier[/B] close behind. Also still alive in the event is Daniel Negreanu, whose double-dipping ways have him coming back with 8,400 chips.
Yevgeniy Timoshenko, Phil Ivey, Phil Hellmuth, Andy Frankenberger, Jason Mercier, and Jean-Robert Bellande were among those who did not make it to Day 2.
Ivey was eliminated when his pocket nines couldn't hold up against
. Ivey got it all-in and the flop rolled off
. The turn and river bricked for Ivey and his tournament ended.
Hellmuth hit the rail after his pocket aces were cracked. In the hand, Hellmuth raised to 1,300. Hiren "Sunny" Patel reraised to 2,850, then Hellmuth popped it to 4,850, and Patel jammed, forcing Hellmuth to call off the remainder of his stack. Patel showed jacks and Hellmuth and his aces were way ahead until the flop where a jack hit. Hellmuth couldn't find any help on the remaining board and was eliminated.
To see who else is still playing for gold, and who didn't make it, as well as continuing live coverage, check out the live reporting blog.
Event #7: $1,500 Seven Card Stud
A field of 367 entered the $1,500 Seven Card Stud event on Thursday. After the damage and destruction of Day 1, Chau Giang and Sam Grizzle emerged in the top 10, both with over 30,000 in chips.
Barry Greenstein, Fabrice Soulier, David Williams, Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier, and Jonathan Duhamel[/B] have also moved on to Day 2. It took two hours for the first player to be eliminated from the event, then the eliminations began to occur at a much faster rate. Among those to hit the rail were Matthew Hawrilenko, Frank Kassela[/B], Jon "PearlJammer" Turner, Chip Jett, Cyndy Violette, Richard Ashby, Owais Ahmed, Dan Kelly, and David Bach.
The chip leader going into Day 2 is Rogerio Sousa. He amassed 41,000 in chips over the course of the day and will look to continue his reign at the top when the players restart 1400 PDT (2200 BST) on Friday.
To see all the action as it happens be sure to stay tuned in to our live reporting blog.
On Friday, Event #5: $1,500 Pot-Limit Hold'em will play down to a winner, Event #6: $5,000 No-Limit Mix-Maxed will play down to heads-up play and Event 7#: $1,500 Seven Card Stud will attempt to reach a final table. The new event on the docket is Event #8: $1,500 Omaha Hi-Low Split 8-or-Better, which will begin at 1200 PDT (2000 BST).
To make sure you don't miss any of the action, check out all the major hands from all the events in our live tournament reporting blog.
Kristy Arnett caught up with Xuan Liu on Thursday and called the clock on her. What does Liu know about Diablo III? What's her favorite book? Find out all that and more in the video below.
Follow PokerNews on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news.


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What the Volkswagen scandal reveals about the EU?
Posted by Máté Csicsai | Feb 8, 2016 | Europe, Political & Institutional Affairs | 0 |
The scandal duly dubbed as Dieselgate, which erupted last September when US authorities found that Volkswagen cars were equipped with a special software to cheat emission tests, does not only raise serious doubts about the ethical conduct of one of Europe's flagship companies, but also highlights a whole range of structural problems that paralyse the EU.
The very fact that these malicious practices could take place in Europe in the first place, as well as the subsequent and ongoing efforts to handle the issue, have showcased perfectly a series of systemic institutional weaknesses that vitally need to be addressed if we are to have a well-functioning European Union. The scandal may well be looked at as a symbol of what needs to be done in order to have a healthy single market with a fit-for-purpose decision-making mechanism, as opposed to an EU where unclear competencies lead to finger-pointing and Eurosceptic populism.
The European Parliament has decided to set up an inquiry committee into the scandal, and it has narrowly rejected in February on an objection to a controversial implementing act, which would introduce real driving emission tests. All agree that new, on-the-road testing methods are needed to avoid fiddling with test results, but the measure in question will also impose transitional NOX exhaust limit values to allow for adjustment to the new tests and for potential statistical errors. The implementing regulation, which passed Parliament's scrutiny by a tight margin, will allow manufacturers to exceed NOX limits, adopted already back in 2009, by 110% until 2017 and 50% from 2017 to 2019.
Mythical comitology and finger-pointing
One of the main issues the scandal raises is that of the obscure comitology procedure. While most of the EU legislative procedure is far more transparent – even if more complicated – than law-making in many national capitals, the comitology committees composed of national experts most definitely add an element of obscurity to it. While these bodies were called to life to specify technical elements of the law; we are yet again faced with a situation when the outcome is the result of behind the scenes political deal-making by national delegates. It is no secret that the final transitional values are quite significantly different from the proposal of the Commission, which already tried to take account of widely differing national views. The procedure, which should function as a forum of experts to adjust technical details based on the latest scientific evidence, has been turned into a place where national interests clash behind the scenes. It is hard to argue that allowing the more than twofold excess of legally binding targets adopted over six years ago is not a political compromise and changing of the very meaning of the law.
And that brings us to the second point: pointing a finger at the European Commission. Thanks to the complexity of EU legislative procedures and the lack of awareness about them in Member States, it is already too easy for populist Eurosceptic politicians to blame the EU, "Brussels", or the "technocrats" of the Commission for everything. Add to that the perception of a comitology decision as the Commission's autocratic rule-making, and we have the perfect case for an anti-EU campaign. But in reality it was exactly the Member States that blocked a more ambitious deal in a supposedly expert procedure, even amidst the stirred up public opinion that followed the finding that at least one of the major car producers has been lying to them and making profits on endangering human health. National capitals could easily decide to do so as a result of the lack of transparency and the fact that the agreement is now treated as a Commission decision: and indeed it is now up to the Commission alone to try and defend the compromise of the Member States. EU and national competences are already often unclear, and twisting the procedures according to political rationale will only contribute to creating a situation when nobody shoulders the responsibility at the end.
Poor implementation, no enforcement
There is no evaluation of any European policy without underlining serious shortcomings in implementation, even years after adoption of the legislation. The Commission as the guardian of the treaties is then routinely criticised for not enforcing legal obligations, but in reality it has no measures to do so. They can of course launch an inquiry and eventually take the case to court, but by the time it is settled (mostly by last minute implementation), the wrongdoers have already gained years to carry on with business as usual and often create unfair competition as a result.
The situation is essentially the same in the Volkswagen scandal. There has been binding EU law for lowering emissions from passenger cars, and there have been provisions to overhaul testing methods that were long known not to be trusted. But the law was not properly enforced. The explanation is simple: we have EU-wide rules, but most often we do not have EU-wide enforcement authorities. There are 28 national authorities that are tasked with ensuring that new cars on the market meet the emission limits: there is no one central check or even a European oversight body. In a situation when those who fail to implement or strictly enforce rules end up with a market advantage with little to no consequences, national authorities might not even be interested in providing proper oversight, knowing it would put national industry at a disadvantage. This paradox brings us back to finger-pointing, as the Commission is then set to take the blame for not enforcing legislation, while it is equipped with no means to do so and the duty of implementation lies on the national level in the first place. At the end of the day the problem is very similar to the one behind the Euro crisis: we have common rules and common structures, but the responsibility of enforcement is scattered.
The handling of the scandal in general, and the ever-lasting procedure for setting up on-the-road emission tests in particular, has shown how part of the EU procedures and structures are outdated, not corresponding to the level of common law-making that integration has produced. To have a fully functional and effective acquis communautaire, we need more transparency, and above all clearly established competencies and procedures that entail responsibility. Furthermore, it is only with creating explicit European enforcement tools that we can overcome the continuous clash of national interests as well as the resulting implementation issues, ending up with European laws that make differences to the lives of European citizens.
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I'm answering this in case someone else will have the same question in the future . I found a python implementation (unfortunately it's not documented and I'm. Bellman, Richard; Kalaba, Robert; Wing, G. Milton. Invariant imbedding and variational principles in transport theory. Bull. Amer. Math. Soc. 67 (), no. Bellman, R. E.; Jacquez, J. A.; Kalaba, R. Mathematical Models of Chemotherapy. Proceedings of the Fourth Berkeley Symposium on Mathematical Statistics.
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It would be great to be able to use FixedPoint again because of same stopping rule. If I could choose an algorithm things would be easy. Thanks, everything works fine. When the algorithm is used to find shortest paths, the existence of negative cycles is a problem, preventing the algorithm from finding a correct answer. I inspect each item individually, package professionally and respond promptly to inquiries.
This the answer that was accepted for the arrangement problem of a library: Each iteration of the main loop of the algorithm, after the first one, adds at least two edges to the set of edges whose relaxed distances match the correct shortest path distances: I operated an open full-service used and rare book store in Knoxville, TN from to It consists of the following steps:.
Resume making your offerif the page does not update immediately. Back to home page. Learn More – opens in a new window or tab Any international shipping and import charges are paid in part to Pitney Bowes Inc.
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If there are no kalab cycles, then every shortest path visits each vertex at most once, so at step 3 no further improvements can be made. Dynamic Programming and Modern Control Theory.
Other offers may also be available. Bellman-Kalaba algorithm optimization Ask Question. His first improvement reduces the number of relaxation steps that need to be performed within each iteration of the algorithm. Sign up using Email and Password. I am trying to implement Demoucron's algorithm which is very similar to this bbellman and have the same stopping rule.
Sell now – Have one to sell? Graph algorithms Search algorithms List of graph algorithms.
This computes the shortest path between one given node and all the other nodes in the graph. Also, this isn't working for any given graph. Learn More – opens in a new window or tab. Is there a difference between Belman-Ford bellmna this? The Bellman—Ford algorithm may be improved in practice although not in the belllman case by the observation that, if an iteration belpman the main loop of the algorithm terminates without making any changes, the algorithm can be immediately terminated, as subsequent iterations will not make bellmqn more changes.
When the starting distance matrix is D1 and the matrix size is 12×12 the final matrix should have number bellmwn least D12 but in each step number of matrix index is duplicating, so in this case there are 4 iterations needed to finish the algorithm from the starting matrix D1 in sequence into: Consider a moment when a vertex's distance is updated by v.
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Shatta Wale allegedly shot by gunmen in East Legon
In a post circulating on social media, Ghanaian Dancehall Musician Charles Nii Armah Mensah popular as Shatta Wale has been allegedly shot by unknown gunmen at East Legon this evening.
The Musician is said to be in a critical condition and is currently being admitted to an emergency unit at a hospital (yet to be known) in Accra after the incident.
This piece of information was shared in a screenshot by one Nana Dope on Snapchat. He said the gunmen are on the run.
He however has asked Ghanaians to keep the Shatta Wale in their prayers.
This news comes weeks after Bishop Stephen Akwasi popularly known as Jesus Ahuofe revealed that doom awaits Shatta Wale.
Jesus Ahuofe in an interview with Nana Romeo disclosed that Shatta will be shot on October 18th, 2021 which is today.
READ ALSO Sarkodie surprises Dr. Osei Kwame Despite on his birthday - performs Happy Day song


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Catholicism, History, Theology
Paperback, Cloth
Paper $16.00Cloth $28.00
The Past as Pilgrimage
Christopher Shannon and Christopher O. Blum
In The Past as Pilgrimage: Narrative, Tradition, and the Renewal of Catholic History, Catholic historians Shannon and Blum challenge the secular bias currently prevalent among professional historians, and argue for the compatibility of faith and reason in the study of the past. Inspired by the understanding of tradition developed in the work of philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre, the authors first critically examine both the internal contradictions and the enduring faith commitments of secular objectivity, then proceed to explore various traditions of Catholic historical thinking capable of synthesizing the technical advances of modern history with distinctly Catholic historical narratives. Their argument seeks to foster a conversation about the ways in which Catholic historians can integrate their faith traditions into their professional work while still remaining open to and engaged with the best of contemporary, non-Catholic thinking and writing about history.
Advance Praise for The Past as Pilgrimage
"Shannon and Blum argue that Christian historians need to rethink how they perform their craft, less subject to positivism and isolated from other disciplines, and more attuned to the big questions. Throughout they remain attentive to their responsibilities as both researchers and teachers. They are passionate about their thesis, will surely provoke a range of responses, but have added an important voice to the debate about the vocation of the Christian historian."
— Rev. James L. Heft, S.M.
President, Institute for Advanced Catholic Studies at the University of Southern California
"Taking as their starting point Alasdair MacIntyre's understanding of the inescapably tradition-grounded character of all forms of knowledge and moral inquiry, the authors argue that it is high time to look past the stale and exhausted forms into which so much professional historical writing has settled. Instead they seek to restore the dignity and scope of historical writing by envisioning it a kind of pilgrimage, a way of deepening and keeping faith with the common life of the Church. A provocative and reverent book, which deserves a very wide readership."
— Wilfred M. McClay
Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty, University of Oklahoma
"The authors show that all history is written from a particular worldview, and when the Catholic worldview is precluded, other philosophical or covertly theological perspectives take its place — much to the detriment of the Church, which depends upon historical narratives for its communal flourishing. Exhibiting the wise judgment, erudition about the past, and narrative skills that comprise good historical writing, this gem of a book offers a brilliant fresh start for Catholic historians. Future historians will point to this book as a classic text that accomplished for the field of history what MacIntyre accomplished for philosophy. A must read."
— Matthew Levering
Perry Family Foundation Professor of Theology, Mundelein Seminary
"The Past as Pilgrimage is a bold call to recover a distinctly Catholic historical imagination and to chart an alternative conception of the historian's craft–one that views historical inquiry as much more than a professional enterprise. Shannon and Blum's manifesto will challenge and inspire historians who find Enlightenment historiography impoverished. And it will surely anger others for whom a different understanding of the historian's craft is unthinkable."
— Donald Yerxa
Editor, Fides et Historia
"Drawing on Catholic thinkers ranging from Augustine and Newman to Balthasar and MacIntyre, Shannon and Blum challenge the dogmas and functionally atheistic methodologies that shape most contemporary historical work. In doing so, they underscore the importance of a crucial and often neglected intellectual task: rescuing the writing of history from the delusion that we can provide an account of the past, our own and all humanity's, without reference to God."
—Michael Baxter
Visiting Associate Professor, Catholic Studies, DePaul University


A series of 50 podcasts have been made by The founder of Triple P, Matt Sanders, along with others. These cover a variety of current topics like "Technology in the Home" and "Disciplining Another Person's Child". To take a look at these titles and many more, click here.


I suppose watching the movie "Pay It Forward" inspired me a little. I won't spoil the movie for you and I suggest you watch it (Kevin Spacey, woo!) The idea, however, is simple and beautiful. You find three people and do something good for them, something that they can't do for themselves. It doesn't even have to be someone you know. It doesn't have to be huge. It doesn't have to be anything in particular other than giving something that the person can't get or do themselves. The idea, then, is that you tell them not to pay you back, but to pay it forward... to find three of their own people.
I know that it's silly and it won't work and that some people will ultimately take advantage of you. Who cares? The fact is, everyone can change the world, even if only a little bit.


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Articles, reading
Is This The Real Life? Why I Don't Like Fantasy
February 19, 2018 February 19, 2018 Richard Holliday
It comes to some shock when I say to my reader friends that I have a distinct dislike of fantasy fiction. As a reader and writer who is certainly a lot more comfortable dealing with plot-heavy genre fiction as opposed to more highbrow, high-concept literary work (that's not to say I'm opposed to literary work; just not at the expense of plot, but that's a whole other blogpost) my disdain and difficulty with fantasy may come as a shock.
High fantasy is where I struggle the most, and I know exactly which book it is that both, I think, set the example for the genres worst and compelled me to be hostile (and that's being generous) toward fantasy on the whole to the point where now I don't attempt it:
The Lord of the Rings.
I have one endearing memory of Lord of the Rings: an English class at secondary school where we had to bring in a book to read – a wonderful idea, in hindsight. But I brought in Lord of the Rings and I literally fell asleep reading it. Incidentally, I fell asleep watching the first two movie adaptations and never bothered with the third.
But The Lord of the Rings I feel is so archetypal of fantasy, especially high fantasy, and is so influential a work on that entire genre that I feel it's hard to decouple a fantasy book from thoughts of it. And I find that subconscious comparison that's always present does stunt and colour my suspension of disbelief toward fantasy books that, more often than not, I find I simply have no patience for them.
Let's explore a few aspects of fantasy that do nothing for me.
Pacing and Plot
One of the major flaws I saw in The Lord of the Rings for a start is that the plot is glacial. Pages and pages of stuff is there but nothing happens. Tolkien has a gift for lush and detailed worldbuilding but it comes at the absolute expense of plot progress. Frank Herbert does this too in Dune, which reads less like a science-fiction novel and more of a fantasy; the plot moves like molasses and there seems to be a distinct focus on worldbuilding – it's not done subtly but piled on to the degree that it leaves the reader confused – what details are important to retain now and which are mere backstory. And the pacing suffers, fatally. I prefer much more pacier narratives – that's not to say that these pacey narratives have less depth than Lord of the Rings or Dune (which I actually consider a fantasy novel, not science-fiction).
I've also noticed that in some works I've attempted that the story just seems derivative and, ultimately, unworthy of my time, no matter the lusciousness of the characters or world. I was lent Twelve Kings of Sharakhai and I ended up abandoning the book roughly a third of the way in because it was unfolding in an extremely formulaic way – the book established the journey of vengeance the protagonist was embarking upon, and was doing some heavy worldbuilding but I found myself simply not caring to accompany the protagonist on the journey, figuring that, whatever happened, they were going to eventually get aforementioned vengeance and that was that. Yes, that may come across as extremely harsh but that assessment is a direct result of my longstanding antipathy toward the genre; I did not feel I was able to immerse myself in the world enough to allow my suspension of disbelief to fully take over.
Author Voice
Another major flaw I've experienced when approaching fantasy fiction – especially high-fantasy, toward which most of my ire is directed – is that writing a fantasy genre almost imbues the author to adopt an irritating, twee narrative voice which I feel merely gets in the way of comprehending the narrative, which is already a stretch given how I previously said how threadbare the plots seem to be, especially when poorly or glacially paced.
While I get that the authors want to tell the story from the perspective of a narrator immersed and emergent from the universe created therein, it gets old real fast. I recall the most egregious example of this that I recall reading being Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb which borders on the unreadable, hence I abandoned it. Is this a predilection of high fantasy especially? I'd say so; again, going back to archetypes of high fantasy, which are "beardy-weirdy" tales from a pseudo-medieval time period definitely subconsciously encourage this.
Does it always have to be this way? Again, I feel no – there's books of a high fantasy bent that avoid this trap and therefore succeed a lot more with me – The Gospel of Loki by Joanne Harris being a surprising and refreshing example. I'd also say that this is truer of A Game of Thrones which I feel drops a lot of the narrative pretention.
And that's what I feel it is a lot of the time – narrative pretention on the part of the author, who maybe feels they have something to prove when writing a very genre-heavy fantasy book. But that's no excuse to baffle or bamboozle one's readers with some of the purplest of purple prose.
Overwhelming Lore & Magic
The final aspect that I have noticed rubs me up the wrong way is the lore inherent in high fantasy books, especially those that attempt to convey entire new worlds different to our own, is that of lore overload. The Lord of the Rings was a prime example of this, as I touched on earlier – there's so much lore, at expense of plot or pacing, I feel that it's overwhelming. It's hard to pinpoint what's important and what is just backstory, and to drop huge chunks of lore in the middle of chapters ruins the pacing. But it also encumbers the reader with a lot of extraneous information they feel like they need to retain, and that's at the expense of plot comprehension.
What I've noticed is that glutinous blobs of exposition are poor in any fiction, but to which high fantasy seems the most vulnerable and does to the excess. The Lord of the Rings is an example where I feel it is done extremely poorly; A Game of Thrones strikes a much better balance of imparting backstory, when appropriate and to appropriate levels – just mentioning some random character's unseen half-nephew as an aside is no excuse to divert for the next twenty pages on an intricate study of bloodline that goes nowhere. It's about proportion; reveal backstory in layers, not chunks and then it feels less like the novel is a textbook and the reader is expected to sit an A-level in the lore at its conclusion.
And that's not to say that high-fantasy is the only genre to which this is an easy trap to fall into. I've experienced a fair few lore-heavy space operas that indulge in this, memorably Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie, and that heavy-handedness definitely gave me the impression that I was thoroughly confused.
One point about the lore in high fantasy which also comes to mind is the use of magic – something I generally feel is a narrative crutch and very unsatisfying, unless done correctly. Magic in fantasy should have clear and specific boundaries and limitations, otherwise why have a story with conflict, tension and jeopardy if a well-timed wave of a magic wand can solve the problem? It's a deeply dissatisfying thing to experience when executed poorly and mishandled magic leads to many a deus ex machina. I recently experienced this with The Soul Drinkers Omnibus, which funnily enough is a science-fiction novel of the Warhammer series and it was a magical happening that broke the story for me – an all-too-convenient magical transformation in the nick of time to save a character in a fight… it broke my suspension of disbelief quite madly (I perhaps wasn't well versed in the Chaos mythos but still, it was a poorly-written book anyway) to the point where I abandoned the book.
Now taking all that into account that's not to say I'm averse to the elements of fantasy; I'm really not and I do have an interest in expanding into fantasy that doesn't fall into traps I've outlined I feel are present. But I only have a certain amount of time for reading so I try to make sure I'm always reading well-written, pacey, plot-driven work that's enjoyable. Everything I've outlined just spoils the enjoyment of books for me which is sad.
I recently re-read the first three Harry Potter books and mentioned this to friends while planning this post. They're surprisingly-good books to read as an adult as there's a whole layer of hidden depth that may not be apparent when reading as a child and that was a very pleasant surprise. But what do those books do well, as they're unashamedly fantasy? My answer, considering what I've written above, can only be that they don't fall into the traps I've outlined.
Now I have a ton on my reading plate but I am, on reflection from writing this post, feeling adventurous, so feel free to suggest some great fantasy to me – certainly eyeing up urban fantasy that's a lot more contemporary!
Tagged Article, fantasy, Online Wanderings, Opinions, reading, writing about writing
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2 thoughts on "Is This The Real Life? Why I Don't Like Fantasy"
alicegristle says:
Hi! I mostly agree with you – I find most fantasy shitty at best. However, I also love fantasy, and maybe that's the schism that drives me to write it. :) Ever tried any Gene Wolfe? Can't promise he's the answer to your troubles, but The Knight was good on a very strange level. Also, Angela Carter's later works maybe? Peake's Gormenghast, but it only solves two out of three.
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Japan's National Daily Since 1922
Soccer: Saudi Arabia beats Egypt 2-1 at World Cup
June 26, 2018 (Mainichi Japan)
Saudi Arabia's Salem Aldawsari, right, scores his side's second goal during the group A match between Saudi Arabia and Egypt at the 2018 soccer World Cup at the Volgograd Arena in Volgograd, Russia, Monday, June 25, 2018. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)
VOLGOGRAD, Russia (AP) -- The oldest person to play in a World Cup match gave up a pair of goals Monday, allowing Saudi Arabia to beat Egypt 2-1 in a game between two teams that had already been eliminated.
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Egypt goalkeeper Essam El Hadary, who is 45, took the field for his team's final group match to set the record.
Although he gave up the two goals, he also saved a penalty in the first half.
Salem Aldawsari scored with almost the last kick of the match for the Saudis, shooting from a tight angle inside the Egypt penalty area and poking the ball past El Hadary.
Mohamed Salah had put Egypt ahead in the 22nd minute when he deftly controlled a long ball from Abdalla Said that split the Saudi defense and then lobbed goalkeeper Yasser Almosailem.
It was Egypt's first goal in open play at the World Cup since 1934.
Salman Alfaraj got the Saudis level with a penalty kick in first-half stoppage time after Ali Gabr brought down Fahad Almuwallad in the area. The decision was confirmed after a video review and the penalty was taken in the sixth minute of injury time.
Saudi Arabia finished Group A in third place with three points, while Egypt was last after losing all three of its games.
Almuwallad had earlier missed a chance to equalize when El Hadary saved his penalty. The veteran goalkeeper dived to his right and flicked his left hand up to push the shot onto the bar before it was cleared.
El Hadary was unable to repeat the feat when Alfaraj lined up against him at the end of the half, going the wrong way and having no chance.
El Hadary also made a series of good saves in the second half to deny Saudi Arabia, notably in the 69th minute when he tipped a header from Hussain Almoqahwi over the bar. A minute later, he parried away a goal-bound header from Muhannad Asiri.
El Hadary overtook Faryd Mondragon as the oldest person to play at the World Cup. The Colombia goalkeeper was 43 when he came on as a late substitute in his team's 4-1 victory over Japan four years ago at the World Cup in Brazil.
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