Monthly Archives: March 2017

Cat-Owning Journalists Lecture Married Man…

Posted on March 31, 2017 by bsixsmith

Vice President Mike Pence has caused controversy by saying he does not eat alone with women other than his wife and he does not drink alcohol outside of her presence. Me, I thought the second claim was the weird one. … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Sex, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Sad Old Man Syndrome…

Posted on March 27, 2017 by bsixsmith

I’m perversely fascinated with the Twitter biography of leave.EU communications director Andy Wigmore. Where to start? I thought only ageing masochists called themselves “bad boys” – and if he thinks Trump feels anything more than vague insecurity about his hair … Continue reading →

Posted in Britain, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

NLSJ, Motherhood Edition…

Posted on March 26, 2017 by bsixsmith

One aspect of the neoliberal subsumption of feminist ideas is the demeaning of motherhood. Raising children, it is often argued or implied, is not enough for one’s existence to be meaningful. One must also work. That is true for some … Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Neither Forgiving Nor Forgetting…

Posted on March 22, 2017 by bsixsmith

Sinn Féin, under the leadership of Adams and McGuinness, pulled off a neat trick, earning praise for their role in ending Northern Irish violence while escaping blame for having caused it in the first place. It makes a lot sense … Continue reading →

Posted in Britain | 4 Comments

Poundshop Patriotism…

Posted on March 15, 2017 by bsixsmith

In some ways, the idea of a Royal Yacht is an effective metaphor for Britain. We have all but given up on the Royal Navy, once a symbol of British innovation, adventurousness and power, but we might invest in a … Continue reading →

Posted in Britain | 4 Comments

On Inevitablism…

Posted on March 15, 2017 by bsixsmith

The socialist author and academic Mark Fisher, who died earlier this year, wrote an engaging little book called Capitalist Realism which argued that neoliberalism has sustained itself by propogating the belief that there is no alternative to its ideas and … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Rhetoric, Uncategorized | 7 Comments

Hitchens, Hell and Hashish…

Posted on March 9, 2017 by bsixsmith

I am a big admirer of the Mail on Sunday columnist Peter Hitchens. He helped as much as anyone to make me a conservative. I read him, as a progressive, to be outraged by his opinions on gays and immigrants, … Continue reading →

Posted in Britain, Media, Uncategorized | 3 Comments

How French Intellectuals Lost Their Faith…

Posted on March 3, 2017 by bsixsmith

My new piece for Quillette… As the Socialist government of François Hollande slumps into obscurity, the favourites in this year’s French presidential elections are a liberal, Emmanuel Macron, a conservative, François Fillon, and a national conservative, Marine Le Pen. Amid … Continue reading →

Posted in Europe, Literature, Uncategorized | 5 Comments