So you decided to take a look

Thank you.

Quick introduction. My name is Simon Barber. News of the Old is an excuse to write about something other than the present, a subject well covered by others.

The folks at substack.com would prefer that I charge you for reading what I have to say on their platform so that they can take a cut in return for hosting my words.

I wouldn’t mind getting paid, either.

But since, at this point, I have provided scant evidence of writing anything you might wish to read, let alone pay for, and seeing that I am doing this in order to be read, I would be both foolhardy and presumptuous to try and put the touch on you.

Happily, the substack.com people understand this.

You can get a regular dose of me in your inbox (or on your phone via the substack app) absolutely gratis and for free. Just type your email in the box below and hit Subscribe.

Don’t be alarmed by what happens next. You will be asked if you’d like to pledge a paid subscription. No need to say yes immediately. Or ever. For the time being, I am simply trying to gauge sentiment.

Like the Godfather asking the undertaker to perform the service of fixing Sonny’s corpse, I may one day ask you to redeem any pledge you may have made, the big difference being that you can always refuse. Simply click Unsubscribe.