The word for today is… talisman (noun): 1 : an object held to act as a charm to avert evil and bring good fortune 2 : something producing apparently magical or miraculous effects Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : The English language may have borrowed talisman from French, Spanish, or Italian; all three include
Paul Frijters Gigi Foster Michael Baker brownstone.org Paul Frijters is a Professor of Wellbeing Economics at the London School of Economics: from 2016 through November 2019 at the Center for Economic Performance, thereafter at the Department of Social Policy Gigi Foster, senior scholar of Brownstone Institute, is a Professor
righttolife.org.uk A Norfolk couple, who refused to abort one of their children to save the other, have shared their joy as the twin brothers are still going strong 17 months later. Ashley and Kate Butcher were offered an abortion after a 12-week ultrasound revealed their twin sons’ umbilical
Jonathan Miltimore fee.org Jonathan Miltimore is the Managing Editor of FEE.org. His writing/reporting has been the subject of articles in TIME magazine, The Wall Street Journal, CNN, Forbes, Fox News, and the Star Tribune. Bylines: Newsweek, The Washington Times, MSN.com, The Washington Examiner, The Daily Caller,
The word for today is… flippant (adjective): 1 : lacking proper respect or seriousness 2 archaic : glib, talkative Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Flippant is believed to come from flip, which, in turn, is a supposed imitation of the sound of something flipping. The earliest senses of the adjective are “nimble” and
The word for today is… beleaguer (verb): 1 : besiege – a town beleaguered by an army a beleaguered city 2 : trouble, harass Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : English speakers created “beleaguer” from the Dutch word belegeren in the 16th century. “[Military men] will not vouchsafe . . . to use our ancient terms belonging to
Laura Rosen Cohen brownstone.org Laura Rosen Cohen is a Toronto writer. Her work has been featured in The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, National Post, The Jerusalem Post, The Jerusalem Report, The Canadian Jewish News and Newsweek among others. She is a special needs parent and also a
Caleb Wheeler Cardiff University Dr Caleb H Wheeler is a lecturer in law at Cardiff University in Wales where he teaches torts and criminal law. Dr Wheeler’s first book, The Right To Be Present At Trial In International Criminal Law was published by Brill in 2018 and he is
The word for today is… enigma (noun): 1 : something hard to understand or explain 2 : an inscrutable or mysterious person 3 : an obscure speech or writing Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : A person who is described as an enigma is a bit of a mystery. You never know what that person
The word for today is… palisade (noun): 1a : a fence of stakes especially for defense b : a long strong stake pointed at the top and set close with others as a defense 2 : a line of bold cliffs Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Palisade derives via French from the Latin noun
The word for today is… rankle (verb): 1 : to cause anger, irritation, or deep bitterness 2 : to feel anger and irritation Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : The history of today’s word is something of a sore subject. When rankle was first used in English, it meant “to fester,” and that
The word for today is… milquetoast (adjective): 1 : of a person : timid, meek, or unassertive 2 : lacking in character or vigor Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Caspar Milquetoast was a comic strip character created in 1924 by the American cartoonist Harold T. Webster. The strip, called “The Timid Soul,” ran every
The word for today is… ostracize (verb): 1 : to exile by ostracism 2 : to exclude from a group by common consent Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : In ancient Greece, prominent citizens whose power or influence threatened the stability of the state could be exiled by a practice called ostracism. Voters would
“She may be young but she only likes old things, and modern music it ain’t to her taste”— Death Cab for Cutie, “Monday Morning” — Death Cab for Cutie, “Monday Morning” In record-collecting circles, we often joke about what we call “Ebay Prices”: people on Ebay who’ve vaguely heard
Some time ago, I was browsing through an antique shop when, to my delight, I chanced upon an old bakelite radio. This is almost exactly the same as the one my family used to have! I told the proprietor. “What colour was it?” she asked. When I told her it
The word for today is… fomite (noun): an object (such as a dish, doorknob, or article of clothing) that may be contaminated with infectious agents (such as bacteria or viruses) and serve in their transmission Source : Merriam -Webster Etymology : Disinfectant on your hands keeps us healthier and fomites no longer
