This photo of crowded living conditions in New York is from an interesting article by Theo Mackey Pollack in The American Conservative. See also: Little… Read More »Not long ago; or, Little by little (6): New York Tenement, 1889
My off-hand reference to the Roman god Janus at the turn of the year has had me thinking about looking backwards and forwards as fundamental… Read More »Janus: of dogs, of men, of gods
Some things about Black History month: It is not a recent product of early-21st-Century political correctness, but has roots going back to the 1920s; It… Read More »Black History Month: the things we forget and the things we can’t see
I’ve been spending quite a few of my mornings running through the centre of Cambridge. A lot of it is beautiful – especially the colleges.… Read More »Time and money
The July Revolution is the triumph of right in the overthrow of reality. A splendid thing. Right overthrowing reality. Hence the magnitude of the 1830… Read More »Victor Hugo on right, reality and the morality of the past
In an age of polarisation, we need nuanced understanding of people and issues more than ever. What does nuance mean to you? To me it… Read More »In search of nuance
Here’s more from C.S. Lewis on reading old books – this time highlighting their virtues as lenses for helping us to spot and evaluate the… Read More »C.S. Lewis on reading old books
Solon, the great law-giver of Athens, is visiting Croesus, the rich and poweful King of Lidya. After showing off his wealth, Croesus is disappointed when… Read More »Solon of Athens (via Herodotus) on looking to the end
Change – especially change that feels beyond our control – is often unsettling. Will things ever be this good again? When people talk about change… Read More »Worse than this change
“We poor wretches!Why do we love you, World, when you’re running away from us?You keep running away from us,and yet we still love You.” Alcuin… Read More »Alcuin of York on ageing and the human condition