He says dismissively, 'I don't relate to children particularly, or even young people any more - there's no basis for conversation.' I ask what attracted him to his present wife, Valerie, and he says, 'Well, you'll see when she comes down.
One of the most sophisticated, so far, is the "Common Word", a letter sent last October to Christian leaders by 138 Muslim scholars.On a note of gentle provocation, it asked whether the commandments of Jesus to love God and one another could be a basis for conversation between the two largest monotheistic faiths.
However, it was not given as a basis for "conversation" at that time, but rather he said that anyone who had not already completed the reading of that list by 18 would certainly never be able to become a great poet, because the list was a basis for that.
Oh, Dave Pacific: you comment on everything, but add nothing; you write much, but read little; you throw around data, but misinterpret them; you accuse every author of prejudices, but do not realize your own; you demand attention, but give no basis for conversation.
An agreed basis for conversation is being sought by the UK's Northern Ireland Secretary of State Theresa Villiers, who called the whole crisis "a sign of a complete breakdown in the working relationships within the executive".
There will never be a definitive answer to what digital tools are best for children, but these new learning ratings from Common Sense Media provide a good basis for conversation and improved understanding.
That is surely a sound basis for future conversations across the disciplines, and for publicising evidence-based answers to historical questions about science.
These offer a basis for constructive conversations about the value of big-time sports in higher education.
But at least it was a reasonable basis for a conversation and is far better than its most prominent competitors.
