THE line between town and country feels blurred as the electric gates to Ness Walk swing open. The multimillion-pound hotel is only a short, scenic walk from the city centre and minutes from cultural hub Eden Court, yet on arrival the feeling of “getting away from it all” is unmistakable.
AT first glance it might not be obvious how the chanting and colourful banners outside Vancouver Public Library relate to some rather less lively evidence sessions about census questions at the Scottish Parliament. But the protests in Canada a week ago are part of the same global debate about identity as last month's discussions about whether Scots should be required to declare their biological sex.
A single act of ejaculation is not nearly as physically transformative as growing a new human inside one’s own body then giving birth
Drama teachers report spending parents’ evenings trying to counter the perception that their subject is a waste of timetable space
WITHIN days we should learn what type of nerve agent was used, and whether the victim is expected to recover from the attack – but it’s likely to take much longer for the full geopolitical consequences to become clear. I’m talking, of course, about the latest plot development in Homeland, the US espionage drama that started from the premise of “you don’t need to be mad to work for the CIA, but it helps”, and has been running with it for seven series.
IT was pleasing to read the letter from Gary Smith, head of news at BBC Scotland, in which he responded to the Wee Ginger Dug’s criticism of our national broadcaster for not giving due prominence to the Scottish Government’s report on the economic impact of Brexit (Letters, January 18). What pleased me was not the content of Mr Smith’s letter, but the fact that he was prepared to spring so very quickly to the defence of his news editing team at BBC Scotland in how they report our Scottish political news.
I WAS interested to read Shona Craven’s article (Women must not be silenced in the debate on gender identity, The National, January 19).
THE recent and much touted comparisons between Burns and Weinstein are invidious (Letters, January 17). The poet had close but largely platonic friendships with women of all ages. Moreover, to label as rape the events described in the notorious “horse litter letter” is to over-simplify a relationship of great complexity. When I was researching my novel The Jewel (published by Saraband in 2016) Jean Armour emerged as a strong woman with an abiding affection for her husband.
THE Scottish Government yesterday published a very concise and in-depth analysis of Scotland’s situation with regard to the Brexit debacle, and what impact it will have (FM bid to protect ‘future generations’, The National, January 16). They analysed the different scenarios and all of them illustrate that our nation will suffer very serious negative consequences if we are not pulled out of the UK.
