E Y E W E A R, THE BLOG - FREEDOM MEANS BEING UNAFRAID TO WRITE WHAT YOU THINK

Canada stands on guard Nothing in Trump's previous playbook prepared me for his recent threats to take Greenland from Denmark, and indeed, its own citizens, by economic or military force; to potentially invade Panama and take back control of the Canal Zone, and his threats to use economic force to make Canada a "51st state' and erase its "artificial border". Time Magazine yesterday said Trump was playing Monopoly with the world as his board. The USA has been the strongest, sometimes only, superpower, since 1945. It has the world's strongest army, and numerous weapons that can destroy the planet. It has the world's strongest economy. It arguably also has the world's key language, and control of the largest part of the online world. From a completely amoral, ruthless and Machiavellian perspective, it could be far more dominant, and dominating, than it has been - though it has killed millions in wars since 1945, and invaded, bombed or attacked a handful...

I usually write a brief report on the year, from my perspective, at the end of each 12-month cycle - sometimes closer to Christmas, or after. Of late, they've been relatively solemn, and the main message has been gratitude. I have been grateful for the medical care and treatment that has allowed my failing heart to recover somewhat, at least temporarily, and for the chance to live a few more years. I was hospitalised in the summer with Sepsis and was in for many days and it was terrifying, but made it through. I have also been grateful for the love and support of my partner, the hard work and talent of my publishing team, my friends, and those authors and investors that have miraculously helped stave off collapse of BSPG. So it is, this year, that message remains the same. I wish to add a few more things, though -  this past year has been very painful, sad, and filled with some brief good moments of shared memories. I spent several weeks with someone very closely related to me who ...

If you were listening this year, you will know that Beyonce, Sabrina Carpenter, Charli xcx, Taylor Swift, Dua Lipa, Halsey, SZA, WILLOW, Olivia Rodrigo, Gigi Perez, RAYE, Mavis Staples, Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga, Kacey Musgraves, Billie Eilish, Miley Cyrus, Tate McRae, Ava Max, Katy Perry, Loreen, Maggie Rogers, Kim Deal , and a few other great women musicians, each had songs that could easily make any Top 50 list of the best tracks of 2024, as could The Cure and Nick Cave, Kendrick Lamar, Benson Boone , Fontaines D.C. ., English Teacher , and The Weekend . I am about to name 15 others, aside from the artists above, that also stood out for me this year. 1. 'Good Luck, Babe!' - Chappell Roan Utterly haunting, strange, beautiful, and anthemic, this was the song that broke Roan to a wider audience, and it already feels like an evergreen classic - as weirdly poppy and uncannily original as Buddy Holly once was. Given the many great women performers doing top work this year, to come...

Everyone can google IMDB and Metacritic, in about a second, or Variety or Den of Geek or Sight and Sound , and find other lists of the best movies of 2024. Here are 14 out of 20ish I will post eventually, though the final ones may only come in a few months, since in the UK many of the releases are due later in the year (or I have yet to see the movies). Of the films I expect may appear later, some you will have heard of -  A Complete Unknown,  A Real Pain, Dahomey, Flow, Nosferatu,  Sing Sing,  The Brutalist,  The Nickel Boys, and The Wild Robot. Still - each of these 14 listed below is already on many end of year lists, and is, in their own right, a very good or great movie. At least five of the films listed below have a good chance of winning the Oscar for Best Picture in a few months (their list is ten films long) - an asterix indicates the three I currently believe have the best shot. *ANORA - heartachingly sad, side-splittingly funny, sometimes scary, oft...

Christmas Violence Viewers of the streaming film Mary (2024) starring Anthony Hopkins as Herod may be surprised to discover how sadistic Herod was, or that Mary was once a startlingly beautiful young woman who looks very much like Israeli model Noa Cohen , a fine young actor. But those familiar with the Biblical story of "Christmas" - the birth of Jesus - will know that, along with the myrrh, frankincense and gold, and the bright star, comes the most violent and cruel moment (arguably) of the entire Bible, when Herod orders the slaughter of hundreds, maybe thousands, of young children, to try and destroy the risk of a new king entering the world to topple his earthly dominion. The horrible irony, we know, is that Baby Jesus is not coming to take over in that way, and the murders are not only evil, but not even politically required. They simply typify Herod's monstrous wickedness. The Virgin Mary depicted in Christmas Drama It is therefore a curious thing to reflect on th...

  POEM FOR MY MOTHER   I have not done justice to my mother, The sweep of her life, How when young, she was young, In a country, on a farm, and other children, And I will never know their names, I have forgotten to ask so much, How lazy have I been! Now that she is going, Out of this room, where we can see her, Where she can be talked with, now that she is Leaving the scene of all our disputations, All the tomfoolery of this world, and the music She listened to, her cooking, her reading, Her studies at McGill, those meticulously marked Textbooks, the kisses, the childbirth, the sons, Jordan, the colds, the flying to China, The mourning, lovemaking, waking to make instant Coffee, the long discussions about serial killers, About our ancestors, about Uncle Sandy and Port Daniel, the summers, the winters, the cross-country Skiing, the wedding photos, the modelling career, The rages, the laughing, sometimes, the criticism Of certain TV ...