Cockup or conspiracy? The fourth in the series of Spectator articles on wind droughts pointed a finger of suspicion at the meteorologists for failing to issue wind drought warnings. Was it just bad luck and bad judgement that accounted for the failure of the meteorologists to notice wind droughts? Or did it suit them to…

Australia is on the cusp of a surge of private investment in climate initiatives, according to the new chairwoman of the Climate Council, well-known businesswoman and philanthropist Carol Schwartz. “What’s exciting now for business is that we have a government that’s very supportive of initiatives to address climate action, and we have businesses that are…

The dark side of J K Rowling Thanks to Bettina Arndt for ventilating a side of J K Rowling that escaped my attention up to date. Rowling makes no attempt to hide her blinkered view about women’s vulnerability. A blog two years ago revealed that key to her concern about trans activism was her belief that women’s…

Barry Humphries leaving us is a sad event. In my view he was he was the best comedian ever. I’m not talking about duos (e.g., Laurel and Hardy, Amos and Andy) or sit comms (e.g., Fawlty Towers, Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm) or sketch shows (Monty Python’s Flying Circus, Little Britain, The fast Show) or Joke…

The Jizya is an Islamic poll tax that was levied on those who would not convert. The Jizya was designed to both penalise and humiliate the non-believer. For their tribute the non-believer both buys protection from the overlord and submits themselves publicly before the Collector of the Jizya. In this way, the unbeliever – and…

Penton (1904-1951) is forgotten because he died in mid-career. He almost certainly would have been the standout editor and commentator through the 1950s and the 1960s., flying the flag for classical liberalism and especially free speech. Fortunately there is an excellent biography by Patrick Buckridge and a short version on line. He was born in…