Archive for February, 2010

By Mark Hoerrner It’s not the first time a parent has decided to teach her child about the birds and the bees, but it’s likely that in past cases, most of the discussion has been purely hypothetical. In the case of Rebecca Arnold, she wanted to take her daughter’s sexual learning to a practical level—by...
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For some, a watch is a functional tool for telling time; for others, it is a vital fashion accessory. Fragrance, for some, may be the scent of the shampoo and soap he/she used that morning; for others, it is the essence of who they are and how they wish to be noticed. For those...
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For most of us, just hearing the word “cancer’ sends a chill up our spine. The thought of receiving such a diagnosis causes spiraling thoughts of funeral plans and decisions about who will raise our children. For most, it’s a wake up call to begin living differently. It makes life rich when you get that...
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The release today of the movie Puffball is timed to honor the impending 80th birthday of its distinguished director, Nicholas Roeg. But the screening date also marks another cinematic anniversary: it’s exactly 35 years since Roeg’s masterpiece, Don’t Look Now, introduced what remains one of the most celebrated movie sex scenes: an extended, fragmented,...
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It was intended to be a radical departure in global news coverage, and few could argue that in this, at least, it succeeded. Iran’s new state-run English-language 24-hour news channel, which launched yesterday, was aimed at viewers in the US and Europe, its director said. But despite the clipped English tones of its anchorman,...
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On Bondadagur, or Husband’s Day, the menfolk of Iceland are spoiled by their wives and girlfriends, who serve them with traditional delicacies such as ram’s testicles and sheep’s head jelly, a recipe for which is handily included in the latest online edition of Iceland Review, alongside the latest bulletins on the economic meltdown. Icelandic women,...
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For most of us, just hearing the word “cancer’ sends a chill up our spine. The thought of receiving such a diagnosis causes spiraling thoughts of funeral plans and decisions about who will raise our children. For most, it’s a wake up call to begin living differently. It makes life rich when you get that...
Read more »

Even the Iraqi government today admitted that it could barely trust its own interior ministry police. Speaking on the BBC’s Today program, Hoshyar Zebari was frank in spelling out the shortcomings of the interior ministry, well-known for its infiltration by Shia militias from the Mahdi army and other groups. As Mr Zebari pointed out, yesterday’s brazen...
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Forty years ago the crooner Frankie Vaughan visited a post-war Glasgow housing scheme, Easterhouse, to try to broker a peace deal between the gangs. Next to his famous slurring of Give Me the Moonlight, it may be the thing he is best remembered for. You can watch the black-and-white newsreel on YouTube. There is...
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No one ever turns down a rugby trip to Rome in spring. At Heathrow on Thursday afternoon, men wearing plastic centurion’s helmets and Julius Caesar costumes stood at the check-in desks, fiddling self-consciously with their togas while their cheeks burned. The England team, who disappointingly chose to travel in their normal leisure gear, can...
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