Author: Jacques René Zammit
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Culture and politics (more Havel)
In this part of an essay entitled “Politics, Morality and Civility”, Havel concentrates on an important aspect in the development of citizenship. It is evident that Havel’s ideal state involves a cultured citizenship – what he calls “civility” in the wider sense of the world. The fundamentals of a state lie in the building and…
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I will, in short, dream for a while
Back in 1992, Vaclav Havel was the President of a reborn Czechoslovakia. The fall of the Wall and the crumbling of the Iron Curtain was still fresh in recent memory and Havel’s new republic was making its way towards the ideal of “Western Democracy”. Fukuyama might be standing round the corner proclaiming the end of…
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A history of violence and animals
The works of a psychopath in Mosta (whether direct or through a hired hand) have tickled the curiosity of the Maltese public. It does not take much for anything to get onto the media these days (as I discovered to my chagrin thanks to a what I thought would be an innocuous Eurovisionjoke involving Gary…
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Tous à poils (the naked truth)
Jean-François Copé, president of France’s UMP party, is currently in the news for his attack on a book that he claims is being suggested for the official primary school reading list. Entitled “Tous à poil” (Everybody naked), this book reminds me of another great bestseller among young kids nowadays (Everyone poops). Part of a wider…
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Crossing the threshold of faith
Criticising the workings of a government or an opposition is what this blog has done with consistent regularity. No matter who was in “power” the line taken from these pages has always been consistent. Also, very consistently, this blog has always managed to ruffle some feathers in some quarters. More often than not it would…
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In the end there was the Word
Minister Mallia will in all probability not resign. He went on record during the “secret” negotiations regarding the IIP scheme that should a residency requirement be included then he would resign from his ministerial position. We are not supposed to know about it because the negotiations were secret but that secrecy, like virginity, cannot be…