Understanding the Concept ‘Pogrom’ Via CS Lewis

Vox Populi

Wow Michael, …. referring here to the TPS essay.

An Act of Consciousness Raising: The Concept ‘Pogrom’ and its Extension to Sri Lanka

I find myself in complete agreement with you. We live in an age of genocide inflation or concept creep, where the definition of a word expands so broadly it loses its original meaning. To call the July 1983 violence a genocide is inappropriate; if left unchecked, we would indeed be forced to “invent another concept” just to describe much more extreme, systematic atrocities.

Romanians remove corpses of Jewish victims deported from Iași following pogrom

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Pauline Hanson = A Right-Wing Racist Threat

A NOTE FROM A DINKY-DIE AUSSIE FRIEND

Michael, I don’t know if you saw Pauline Hanson’s National Press Club speech yesterday, but here is what she declared will happen if she becomes prime minister at the next election:
  • The end of multiculturalism: To be replaced by monoculturalism, which is a code word for a return to the White Australia policy.
  • Abolishing SBS.
  • Ending free access to the ABC: Transitioning it to a subscription-based model.
  • Banning Islamic migration: Explicitly blocking people moving to Australia from Muslim countries.
  • Slashing immigration: Attacking immigration levels as a “catastrophe” and blaming them for the housing crisis.
  • Scrapping green energy: Labeling climate change a “hoax,” canceling renewable subsidies, and pushing for nuclear power.
  • Targeting transgender rights: Classifying transgender awareness and education in schools as a “dangerous ideology.”
  • Scrapping the “Welcome to Country”: Removing it completely from official events.

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The War Iran Won and America’s Major Strategic Defeat

Desert Wanderer … with highlighs imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi

It’s official. The US lost the war against Iran, as reported in The New York Times and The Atlantic. Any newspaper that says it was a stalemate is simply spreading propaganda. 
It is astonishing that a country like Iran, with a modest military, could defeat the US—which deployed three aircraft carriers to the region, tried to destroy Iran, attempted to decapitate its leadership, and sought to execute a regime change operation, only to fail on all counts and push the global economy to the brink of catastrophe.

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Encouraging Biodiversity in Sri Lanka

A NATIONAL TRUST LECTURE in Colombo, 23 June 2026

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SOAS Special Collections in London Are NOT For Circulation….

Herewith the Text of An Email Memo received by The Editor, Thuppahi  on 17 June 2026

Dear Michael Roberts,

I have received your email regarding the Lynch journal held at SOAS Library. I must ask you not to distribute the copies of the journal that SOAS Library supplied to Ranjan Dias Jayasinghe. Following UK copyright law, these copies were supplied to Ranjan Dias Jayasinghe for research for a non-commercial purpose or private study only, and they may not be shared with others.
By all means let others know that we hold the journal here. Anyone is welcome to use SOAS Library. If you believe that other libraries may have an interest in the material, please do suggest that they speak to us directly rather than sending copies of material held at SOAS without our knowledge. We would be happy to speak to them. The making and circulation of copies should go through the appropriate channels here at SOAS and should follow UK copyright law.
Best wishes,
John Langdon
Head of Special Collections,…..
Special Collections, SOAS Library
SOAS University of London
Russell Square, London, WC1H 0XG
TEL +44 (0)207 898 4180
special.collections@soas.ac.uk
www.soas.ac.uk/research/library/special-collections

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A Kiwi Reading of the Lankan Womens’ Victory

Valkerie Baynes in ESPNcricinfo, 17 June 2026, with this headline “Ecstasy for Nilakshika and Nuthyangana as New Zealand drop the ball”

“We’re creating chances and no one means to drop them, but we’ve dropped a lot,” Melie Kerr says after New Zealand’s tally of missed chances rises to nine after two games

Kaushini Nuthyangana had a good day behind stumps, New Zealand vs Sri Lanka, Women's T20 World Cup, Southampton, June 16, 2026

Kaushini Nuthyangana had a good day behind stumps  •  ICC/Getty Images

Jamie Siddons‘ clenched jaw and fierce stare had said it all before the words came out; he was “pretty confident” his team would play a “hell of a lot better” next game after their 87-run defeat at the hands of England on the opening night of the T20 World Cup.

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Sri Lankan Women Snatch Fighting Victory from Kiwis in UK

(19.4/20 ov, T:151) 153/5

SL Women won by 5 wickets (with 2 balls remaining)

nilakshika-silva  Player Of The Match
54* (37)
Cricinfo’s MVP …………., SL-W
68.55 ptsImpact List

Nilakshika, Nuthyangana stun NZ to seal famous win for Sri Lanka

Nilakshika Silva produces finest international innings to beat defending champions New Zealand in thriller

Andrew Fidel Fernando    Andrew Fidel Fernando ... 17  June 2026, 2:43 AM (7 hrs ago)
Nilakshika Silva celebrates Sri Lanka's famous win, New Zealand vs Sri Lanka, Women's T20 World Cup, Southampton, June 16, 2026

Nilakshika Silva celebrates Sri Lanka’s famous win  •  ECB via Getty Images

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Tamilnadu dislodged Caste & Religion from the Heights of Politics

S. Ramasundaram, whose title reads “How Tamil Nadu severed religion and caste from politics” …  .https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/how-tamil-nadu-severed-religion-and-caste-from-politics/article71106370.ece

Tamil movies and Tamil Nadu politics are an inseparable jodi that has largely been of benefit to the State socially and economically.

Joseph Vijay, actor and founder of the recently floated Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), assumed office as the new Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu last month. One cannot help but be reminded of how M.G. Ramachandran or more popularly known as MGR, also a highly successful actor, took charge as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu in 1977 and went on to win two more consecutive terms, until his death in 1987. He was the first actor-turned-CM in India.

New Delhi, India – May 27: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief C Joseph Vijay arrives at Tamil Nadu Bhavan in New Delhi on May 27, 2026. (Photo by Arun Kumar/ The India Today Group via Getty Images)

 

Tamil Nadu chief minister C. Joseph Vijay attends the launch of Singappen Special Task Force, an elite all-women police unit formed to strengthen women and children safety in Chennai on June 9, 2026. (Photo by R. Satish BABU / AFP via Getty Images)

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Controversy Atop Conflict in India-Lanka A Match at Dambulla

The ESPN Headline, 15 June 2026, reads thus:Sooryavanshi, Halambage in heated exchange after Super-Over finish”

Tempers flared after Sri Lanka A edged India A in a Super Over in Dambulla.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi goes aerial, Sri Lanka A vs India A, 1st match, One-day tri-series, Dambulla, June 9, 2026

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi couldn’t get the job done for India A in a tense finish  •  SLC

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Vishen Halambage were involved in a heated exchange that led to physical contact on the field after Sri Lanka A beat India A in a Super-Over finish in the one-day tri-series in Dambulla.

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A Heist: Windies Steal Win Via Big Hitting & Sharp Fielding

Madushka Balasuriya, in ESPNcricinfo,  15 June 2026

West Indies 170 for 5 (Rutherford 54*, Powell 33, Hetmyer 32, Hasaranga 2-17) beat Sri Lanka 169 (Wellalage 43, Joseph 5-33) by five wickets>
There are heists, and then there are heists, and the one at Sabina Park on Sunday will live long in the memory of those who watched it. For 16 overs of the chase, Sri Lanka had looked in total control of their defence of 169. But in a frenzied finish, West Indies ransacked 60 runs off just 22 deliveries to complete the chase with two balls to spare.

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