A Point of View: Clive James

Nothing could be worse than eternal youth if it meant denying the next generation room to live, says Clive James. Celebrating the scope for human progress, as each generation gives way to the next, he reflects on the energy his own grandchildren give him – yet he does not envy them.

Computerised customer service systems are a modern waste of time says a frustrated Clive James - all he wants is a real person to answer the phone.

Clive James reflects on the media coverage of man-made global warming and stresses the need for minds to be open and the need for a fair hearing for all voices - including sceptical ones.

Living in a democracy can be trying, says Clive James, until you think of the alternatives. A democracy can hope to avoid some of the abuses that even less perfect systems are guaranteed to generate.

It's the spirit in which a game is played which determines whether Clive James likes or loathes a particular sport.

Following the exposure of the identity of Belle de Jour, the author of The Diary of a London Call Girl, Clive James reflects on how her identity makes us think of a litany of brilliant courtesans.

Clive James celebrates the honouring of Battle of Britain commander Sir Keith Park with a temporary statue on Trafalgar Square's fourth plinth – although the achievements of some people stand so tall, he says, a statue in their honour can never match up.

Clive James gives his personal view of the world of drugs and reflects on the seductive allure of illegal narcotics, laying the blame for their attractions at the door of the English romantic poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge and his trip to Xanadu.

Clive James reflects on the postal workers' dispute and gives his personal view of the modern history of labour relations. At the heart of the postal strike is a reminder that the relationship between workers, managers and machines can be difficult.

Scepticism is important in every walk of life, says Clive James, as he criticises extreme reactions to those who are sceptical about man-made global warming.

Despite its drawbacks, democracy is the right system for running a country, says Clive James - it just doesn't stack up as the best way of choosing a professor of poetry.

Democracy is the best hope for achieving justice for women, says Clive James, as he celebrates the election of four women to the Parliament of Kuwait. He also criticises feminists in the West for being slow to support women suffering under tyrannical regimes.

The row over MPs’ expenses is a sign of a healthy democracy, says Clive James, as the public outcry over politicians playing the system gains momentum.

The presence of a Poet Laureate is a good indicator of the British attitude to poetry, says Clive James. The job might be difficult to define but it is nevertheless important, because it is a public acknowledgment that the UK cares about language.

Loft extensions are for ordinary citizens. When the property market gets tough, the wealthy dig down to create the ultimate den, says Clive James – but he thinks it’s a worrying sign that rich people living in the capital are developing a bunker mentality.