The NYRB continues, for the present anyway, to interest me more than the TLS. I share a couple of thoughts from the former.
First, the business of sexing up photographs to make a point was well underway during the American Civil War. Sexing up, through economical with the truth to downright dishonest. From which we take away the thought that the camera started lying almost from its inception.
Second, it gives a lot of space to constitutional matters, some of which arrive here. See for example 10th October 2012 in the other place (http://www.pumpkinstrokemarrow.blogspot.co.uk/), where I report on the quaintness of the government of one's country being in the grip of a very short document written two hundred years ago. At least most of our ancient rules are not written down, which makes it a bit easier to bend them a bit when push comes to shove.
But then, contrariwise, a letter (I think) in the same mag. pointed out that while having the constitution might be a bit of a pain, it did at least give citizens some basic protection action the encroachments of the executive. Not having the thing looked a lot worse than having it. Which, as it happens, is about where I have arrived at with our monarchy, having started life as a hard core republican. Citizeness Windsor to report for latrine cleaning duties immediately.
No comments:
Post a Comment