Earlier in the
week, I shared some of the new musicians of whom I became fond during my
travels in Central Europe and Central Asia between 1991 and 2010 – the discoveries
being possible simply by virtue of the cheapness of the CDs – a fraction of the
price I was used to in the UK.
Gavin Bryers
- composer and performer - was one
of these and I offer today for your delectation
George Scialabba
is one of my favourite essayists and has just published a typical piece here – on George Orwell
selecting this interesting excerpt
”In the past every tyranny was sooner or
later overthrown, or at least resisted, because of “human nature,” which as a
matter of course desired liberty. But we cannot be at all certain that “human
nature” is constant. It may be just as possible to produce a breed of men who
do not wish for liberty as to produce a breed of hornless cows.
The Inquisition failed, but then the
Inquisition had not the resources of the modern state. The radio, press
censorship, standardized education, and the secret police have altered
everything”.
Other Scialabba
material -
And Dr Campbell’s Thursday video
on what’s happening globally on Covid-19
The next post
will explore the question whether the world is in the grip of a “moral
panic” and the role of sceptics
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