A Persistent Contrarian

In yesterday's Sunday Times of Malta, I reviewed Mario T. Vassallo's book 'Godfrey Pirotta: Il-Politika ta’ Ħajti.':

"Of course, it would be misleading to say that I agree with every position enunciated by Pirotta. We belong to different intellectual and political traditions. He embraces a quasi-dogmatic, partisan left-wing creed with an intense dislike of every ideal that does not correspond to his own. Some arguments are misconstrued, while, on other occasions, he can use broad strokes to discredit and deflate those who do not share his views. Nonetheless, the opinions he presents are still worth engaging with.

And there is much to engage with. For example, Pirotta rightly questions the link between rampant materialism and the erosion of values. He is indignant at the role of personal favours in the electoral process; he stays clear from contesting elections for fear of compromising his integrity. He is concerned about Malta’s skin-deep engagement with political arguments. He places great emphasis on truth and justice. Yet, he also values a good sense of humour – a pivotal ingredient to engage with the political world. On this, one can’t help but nod in agreement."

The full review may be read by clicking here.

The book may be purchased online by clicking here.