The contents here are my favourite writings since the 1980s, some rescued from newspaper print files, but most first posted online.
These include:
• Lots of politics and social commentary: my favourite articles on culture and trends, Quebec/Canada society, UN affairs and world history.
• Literary and historical essays — the Enlightenment role in the American Revolution, and how the French set the stage for US defeat in Viet Nam.
• Reports from the field on today’s United Nations: missions to Africa and Southeast Asia, the story of Dag Hammarskjold’s amazing career, and more about UN World as viewed by its staff.
• Sports galore, with several profiles of Canadiens stars and a first-hand look at baseball in Cuba
• Plenty more to come this year, with “classic” print features on Berlin 1984, the life and legacy of Jean-Paul Sartre, and the tone-deaf Montreal Anglo media in the 1970s.
Be in touch, as most articles have Reply features.
Thanks to the Toronto Globe and Mail, the Montreal Gazette, Le Devoir, the National Post, UN Special magazine, the Ex Tempore and McGill Observer literary reviews, as well as to Ron Levine, photographer for Prisoners of Age (2000), and Claude Jean Lenoir, editor of Les Lumieres: un defi pour demain (2006).
______________________________________________________________________________________
CONTENTS …. http://davidwinch.website
| Spy magazine at its peak: the Trump card | It was brassy, sharp and unprecedented. Then Spy magazine faded into the 1990s — only to return today as prescient Trump analysts. |
| Elephants in Thailand: new hope after brutal decline | The decline of logging put Thai elephants at risk, as humans abandoned them to their fate. Today conservation efforts and tourism are giving elephants more friends. |
| Sartre: still alive in 2018? | The great writer Jean-Paul Sartre died nearly 40 years ago; does his rebellious and brilliant legacy survive? |
| Census and sensibility | Quebec Anglos need to look closer at realistic head counts before believing the sky is falling. | |
| Havana baseball’s home run | Cuba’s love of baseball is deep and wide. Can its raw charm survive closer relations with America? | |
| Telecommuting and country charms | ‘City’ jobs in country settings are becoming much more attractive with new technology. | |
| Dag Hammarskjold – unknown giant | The legendary UN leader died in mysterious circumstances. Who knows what today? | |
| Central Africa: mission implausible? | UN observation missions are a mix of drama and boredom for staff. A tragicomedy in several electoral acts. | |
| Bob Gainey back on the ice | A star Canadiens player takes the long road through Europe back to NHL management. | |
| Galchenyuk: ready to rise? | The dynamic youngster became an enigma for Canadiens coaches and fans, faster than you can say: trade him! | |
| Big M and the battle vs Bruins | Barstool wisdom always places Ken Dryden at the top of 1971 Habs heroes. Another player deserves some love. | |
| Belle de Seigneur — Geneva romantic rapture | A monster, stream-of-consciousness Swiss novel captures 1930s diplomatic Geneva in its insular splendour. | |
| Bangkok calling: who wants to come? | Lots to love in Bangkok, but will UN staff bet their mortgages or their future there? | |
| Prisoners of Age: old men behind bars | Photographer Ron Levine traces the fates of long-term prisoners stuck in the US system. | |
| Dienbienphu: the French victory that wasn’t | It was not a sure-fire win for the Vietnamese says some analysts, but the historic record tends to prove otherwise. | |
| Les Lumières en Amérique: what France brought America | Did Voltaire, Rousseau and the French Enlightenment predate Paine and the Founders of America? | |
| Montreal tourism in decline? Pundit says yes, stats say no | Politically motivated pundits get the city’s image wrong. Overseas tourists like what Montreal offers. | |