October 18, 2022 · 1:56 am

Kandy and Its Vistas from “Villa Rosa”… and Beyond

Juliet Coombe, deploying the title “Kandy The Kingdom of Kings & Fiery Tests of Faith” …. with highlighting imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi

 

 

Galkande Hill, winding its way up from Kandy’s old town centre, is the perfect place to train for the Pekoe Trail, explore Kandy and enjoy the breathtaking views overlooking the magnificent Mahaweli River, watched over by the Gohagodha, Halloluwa and Yathihelgalle mountain ranges. If you stay at Villa Rosa bungalow you can also enjoy the stunning Hantana mountain range, where Indiana Jones and The Temple Of Doom was filmed.

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October 18, 2022 · 12:33 am

The Western Bloc’s Double Standards: “Human Rights” as Missiles

Kalinga Seneviratne, in Daily News, 15 October 2022, where the title runs thus: “Exposing Western Double Standards through Weaponizing Human Rights”

The recently concluded 51st session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva exposed once again the double standards of the global human rights agenda.

West’s failure to get a resolution adopted at the UNHRC on October 6 on further investigation into the violation of human rights of the Muslim Uighurs in the North-Western region of Xinjiang Province in China reflects the international community’s scepticism of weaponizing human rights.

 

 

 

 

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October 16, 2022 · 1:45 am

The T20 World Cup kicks off: Schedule & Essentials

Himanshu Agrawal, in ESPNcricinfo, 15 October 2022, with this title “All you need to know about the Men’s T20 World Cup 2022”

Less than a year after Australia won it for the first time, we’re all set for another edition of the tournament. We’ve put together some FAQs for you

So, another T20 tournament, eh?
Yes, but this is the big one. Sure, the BBL-IPL-PSL-CPL-BPL-Hundred (we must be forgetting a couple) are big deals too (some bigger than others, admittedly), and soon there will be at least two more – the SAT20 and the ILT20 – to add to the list. Don’t forget the Asia Cup as well. But this is the cup that counts for more than all the others.

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October 14, 2022 · 1:27 pm

Carlyle Perera: Captain Marvellous … Led University to Sara Trophy Triumph in 1962/63

Merril Gunaratne, in The Island,  9 October 2022, with this title  “Carlyle Perera: Doyen of University Cricket”

Dr. Carlyle Perera of St Joseph’s College and University of Ceylon who died a few days ago was a gifted cricketer, well known in cricket circles in the 1950’s and 60’s. He left his imprint on University cricket by winning the Saravanamuttu cricket trophy in 1962-63. It was a unique achievement, for not only did he wrest the trophy from the monopolistic control of established clubs, but also created a record by achieving a feat unrivaled before or after by the University.

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October 14, 2022 · 1:34 am

Snap! Striking Snaps by an Amateur on Holiday … & at Home

Sometimes, even an ordinary camera in an ordinary amateur hand can strike pictorial gold. I present here some striking photos taken on spec with an ‘everyday camera,’  that is, an “Olympus Digital camera”,while vacationing in Sri Lanka and elsewhere over the years.

 Twilight Catch? Fishermen casting net at sealine near Negombo …. I was at the prow of a hired boat which had travelled along one of the canals towards the sea and took this snap as our boat landed on the beach 

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October 13, 2022 · 6:09 pm

Julia Margaret Cameron’s Classic 19th Century Photographs

Michael Roberts presenting an Arbitrary Collection of the pioneer camerawoman and de facto female ‘suffragette’ … Julia Margaret Cameron nee Pattle (1815-1879)

Julia in her prime

Julia in 1870

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October 13, 2022 · 10:24 am

Japan: Foreign Policy Subterfuges …. Unlimited!

Brian Victoria, in Countercurrents, 9 October 2022, where the title runs thus: “Japan: Fooling all the People!”

Many if not most readers will be familiar with the following saying attributed to Abraham Lincoln: “You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” While this saying may hold true in most situations it’s most definitely mistaken in today’s Japan, for the government, with the enthusiastic support of the media, has found a way, ever since the Korean War of 1950-53, to convince the Japanese people that North Korea and China are Japan’s implacable enemies, ever ready to strike Japan should it remove itself from the “nuclear umbrella” so generously provided by the United States.

 

 

 

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October 12, 2022 · 5:23 pm

Julia Margaret Cameron: Her Journeys, Camerawork & Gravestone at Bogawantalawa

George Braine, in The Island, 10 October 2022, where the title reads thus: “Irrepressible Julia Margaret Cameron at peace in Bogawantalawa” … with highlighting imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi

Some years ago, my sister, BIL, and I drove to the Dimbula area, visiting Anglican churches and graveyards looking for evidence of our ancestors. At the quaint St. Mary’s Church, Bogawantalawa, we found the grave of my grand uncle, Frank Wyndham Becher Braine, who died on March 9, 1879, at only 11 months. We may have been the first family members to visit his grave in more than a 100 years.

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October 11, 2022 · 8:47 pm

England’s Cricketing Scenario: A Balanced Appraisal

Mark Nicholas in ESPNcricinfo, 10 October 2022, with this title “Cricket is changing, but not for the worse” …

Factfulness is the last book, posthumously published, by Hans Rosling, the prolific Ted Talk lecturer. It focuses on ten reasons why the modern world, with all its imperfections, is a better place than we realise. It is the story of “the secret miracle of human progress” and provides an indispensable guide to critical thinking. The more of it I read, the more I began to think how much of the analysis and resultant clarity might apply to cricket.

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October 11, 2022 · 7:12 pm

The Russians land on the Moon in Colombo 

Fair Dinkum, an original essay, with highlighting imposed by The Editor, Thuppahi

In August 2022, under coercion from India, the Sri Lankan authorities denied a Chinese research vessel entry into Hambantota port for provisions and refuelling. India falsely accused the vessel of being a spy ship without a shred of evidence. China requested the Sri Lankan authorities reverse its decision and in good faith, China disclosed the activities of the ship to the Sri Lankan authorities, reassuring them the ship was not a spy ship tracking India’s intercontinental missile. Sri Lanka quickly reversed its decision, and a grand ceremony was organized to welcome the Chinese vessel and its crew with Presential staff attending, speeches, and performances of low-country dances, almost like it was the first moon-landing.

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