Writing and Speaking

It is not every day one finds the author of a book about murder himself implicated in a triple homicide. In our part of the world, however, it could simply mean that the ‘suspect’ was too snoopy for his/her own good or simply stepped on some VIP’s toes...

Experts disagree over the exact date when the houbara bustard might join the ranks of the spectacled cormorant, caspian tiger and woolly rhinoceros — but most agree that it is probably headed that way. The houbara has been projected as an aphrodisiac...

An aspiring beauty queen’s agenda typically involves an impassioned plea for world peace perhaps to score better with the jury. The homily remains a moving sound bite; the coronation makes a lovely ‘photo-op’.
Political pageantry is our version of such contests. Most promises made during the campaign trails are minimal in terms of any meaningful dialogue, rhetorical in principle with little relevance to reality. And such oblique vows are expected to win seats...

It is no longer a toss up between ‘will they?’ or ‘won’t they?’ Not when it comes to terrorist strikes in 2007. Analysts are more likely to have turned, albeit grimly, to pinpointing the ‘where’, ‘when’ and speculate about the ‘who’. The recent bombing...