Standard histories of philosophy treat the subject in a methodical and scholarly fashion, attempting to encapsulate the whole business in a short number of volumes. Bertrand Russell’s ‘History of Western Philosophy‘, Freddie Copleston’s ‘A History of Philosophy’ (11 vols.), and Anthony Kenny’s ‘A New History of Western Philosophy‘ (originally 3 volumes) have been ready to […]
The Dream of Enlightenment by Anthony Gottlieb Read More »
It has sometimes been noted that Lanark is a resolutely conservative place. Conservative with a small ‘c’, that is. There are few actual Tories, of course. Instead it is a small town working class conservatism whose rallying cry glories in the phrase ‘it’s aye been!!’. Well, it may have ‘aye been’, but originality is the lifeblood of
Originals by Adam Grant Read More »
The SAS was the brainchild of David Stirling, a languid young Scottish aristocrat. With difficulty he persuaded General Claude Auchinleck, the 8th Army commander in WW 2, to approve a mobile force operating behind enemy lines. The plan was to disrupt communications and infiltrate aerodromes to destroy planes on the ground. He gathered a motley
This book was first published on 4th August 2016. 96 days later Donald Trump was elected President of The United States. For all that time, and ever since Trump had secured the nomination, the Democrats and the ruling elites around the world were smugly confident that a clown like Trump could never be elected. Their
White Trash by Nancy Isenberg Read More »
Stephen Leather (http://www.stephenleather.com/) has been entertaining us for nearly 20 years with his novels of crime, imprisonment, military service, and terrorism. He’s certainly tapped into the zeitgeist because our daily news is saturated with crime, war, terrorism, death and destruction. Every night brings further gory detail about the bloodbath in The Middle East. The appetite for
It’s the seat of the magic lantern show that you’re privy to every day. It’s where your consciousness is generated. It controls the functions of your body. It’s where your personality and memories reside. It’s your brain. And yet what do we really know about this 3.3 pound gelatinous mass inside our skulls? Quite a
90% of my friends have been dead for hundreds of years. They speak to me profoundly in ways that organisms encountered in everyday life do not. By the alchemy of the written word they reach out behind the black cloak of time. Breakfast with David Hume, lunch with Baruch Spinoza, supper with Arthur Schopenhauer, evening
The Beautiful Dead Read More »
As Lanark heads down the road into 2017 pundits in the media will be using phrases like ‘uncharted territory’ a lot. Brexit, Donald Trump and rising populist movements across Europe have shattered the smug complacency of ruling elites. What has given rise to this apparent bursting forth of anger and resentment? Mmm…, I wonder. Perhaps
What is Populism? by Jan-Werner Muller Read More »
If it’s possible to be luminous and dark at the same time then Thomas de Quincey (1785-1859) fits the bill. He always stood aside from the curriculum approved parade of literary greats whom it was our duty to read and revere at school. The A-Level Summer reading list of 150 titles nowhere featured Confessions of
Guilty Thing by Frances Wilson Read More »
