Welcome to The Ironist
ISSN 2817-7363
The Ironist is dedicated to exploring irony wherever it occurs. We have a range of articles, stories and even book reviews which cover historical and contemporary life and events. We welcome you comments, support and submissions.
Running to Catch the Bus
Are you on the proverbial bus yet? Whether it’s the AI bus or just a good old TTC ride across Toronto, we all keep running to catch something. But the real question is: where are we headed? More than fifty years ago, I held a record for running fast in the City of...
A Modest Proposal 2.0
In 1729, Jonathan Swift wrote what might be history’s most horrifying dinner suggestion. He wasn’t hungry, just tired of moral hypocrisy. I discovered Jonathan Swift in school through his masterpiece, Gulliver’s Travels. I was fascinated with the places Gulliver...
Two Tales from India
Peter Scotchmer dives into two great reads- Saroo Brierley's contemporary true story 'Lion' and Rudyard Kipling's classic novel 'Kim' during his own travels through the Indian subcontinent. While in India on family business, I picked up two outstanding books about the...
The Jar with a Face in It
On Homunculi, Algorithms, and the Small Souls We Make Jonathan Bennett follows a thread from alchemy to algorithmic avatars in a reflection on our age-old desire to imitate creation—and the uncanny reflections we’ve unleashed. 19th century engraving of Homunculus from...
Unique Places #2 – The Olive Tree and the Oracle
The writer recently returned from Greece sunburnt, overfed, and spiritually re-aligned by the hum of ancient stones and overly affectionate cats.
Northern Lights and Low Expectations
A humorous reflection on life’s lowered expectations, fine dining dreams gone cold, and existential musings from an Arctic kitchen. There comes a point in every man’s life when he realizes that all the years of carefully curated knowledge, refined tastes, and grand...
Rules and Unwritten Rules
Indifference is not a response in unsettled times Love, not indifference, protects. Here is a Downy woodpecker by Maria Corcacas. This morning, as the ‘dim temple of the Dawn1’ paled the sky, our red-headed male downy woodpecker announced his return with his...
The Joy of Welding #1 – Repairing a Shiva Nataraja
Neolithic Man's discovery, Rodin's insight, and William of Occam's wisdom Imagine Mankind’s awe, when, for the first time, he watched a rock melt in a fire, and out ran a liquid. When it cooled, he saw it was different, and he called it metal. It truly was a...
Unique Places #1 – Windy Troy
I’ve walked many ancient sites, but Troy is different. Homer writes of ‘windy Troy’, and when I stood upon the ruined battlements, looking out toward the sapphire sea, it was constant and strong. I thought of exhausted sailors rowing past Cape Sigeion, and their...