24 September 2015 DECLINE AND FALL? by Neil Tidmarsh This week, the EU struck yet another blow against democracy in Europe. An EU ‘qualified majority vote’ has imposed compulsory immigrant quotas across the zone (though not in Britain, which has an ‘opt-out’). In other words, the giants France and Germany have forced the smaller countries… Continue reading Issue 21: 2015 09 24: DECLINE AND FALL
Category: Comment
Issue 20: 2015 09 17: Corbyn sets the stage
17 September 2015 Corbyn Sets the Stage by John Watson As the Corbyn circus roars ahead it is worth reflecting for a moment on how it is to be melded into a coherent opposition. There are already disparate views within the shadow cabinet on a wide range of issues. The shadow defence secretary favours Trident.… Continue reading Issue 20: 2015 09 17: Corbyn sets the stage
Issue 20: 2015 09 17: Brave New World for the Labour Party?
17 September 2015 Brave New World for the Labour Party A Day to Remember A View from the Left by Don Urquhart Everyone remembers where they were on 11th September 2001 when the destruction of the World Trade Centre was beamed round the world. For George W Bush and the Military Industrial Complex it was the… Continue reading Issue 20: 2015 09 17: Brave New World for the Labour Party?
Issue 20: 2015 09 17: A cruel and ugly truth
17 September 2015 A cruel and ugly truth by Neil Tidmarsh One of the most interesting things I read this week was a letter to the Guardian from Leslie Brent, Emeritus Professor, University of London. As one of the Kindertransport children of 1938-39, he is urging a more generous response to the current refugee crisis.… Continue reading Issue 20: 2015 09 17: A cruel and ugly truth
Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Time is running out in the Middle East
10 September 2015 Time is running out in the Middle East by John Watson Very hesitantly, with a weather eye on the immigration figures and the population forecasts, the Government reacts to public pressure to confirm that it will take refugees after all. A climb down perhaps, a change in direction certainly, but not so… Continue reading Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Time is running out in the Middle East
Issue 19:10 September 2012: Labour Leadership Notes
10 September 2012 Labour Leadership Notes by Don Urquhart A few thoughts from the left as the Labour leadership election approaches a final reckoning. Easy as ABC Alastair Campbell has coined the acronym ABC (Anyone But Corbyn) to summarise his advice to the Labour leadership electorate. The ABC crew flood the internet with self-congratulatory emails.… Continue reading Issue 19:10 September 2012: Labour Leadership Notes
Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Notes from North of The Wall
10 September 2015 Notes from North of The Wall by Antoninus ‘If the Scots want independence, let them go.’ How many saloon bar conversations have included this glib judgement over the last few years? The truth is, notwithstanding the unremitting noise of Scottish nationalists, most Scots have never said they want to leave the Union.… Continue reading Issue 19: 2015 09 10: Notes from North of The Wall
Issue 18: 2015 09 03: Appointments with Death
3 September 2015 Appointments with Death By John Watson Prosecutions for assisting or encouraging suicide are very rare indeed and Sir Keir Starmer’s remark that during his tenure as Director of Public Prosecutions (2008-2013) there was only one of them says much about the way in which the strict letter of the law has been… Continue reading Issue 18: 2015 09 03: Appointments with Death
Issue 18:2015 09 03: Oh Lord
3 September 2015 Oh Lord by J.R. Thomas “Whom the Gods wish to destroy, they first make mad”. If this applies to institutions, then maybe it explains what is going on with the House of Lords. Britain’s second parliamentary chamber is now the second largest in the world, with 882 members, surpassed only by that… Continue reading Issue 18:2015 09 03: Oh Lord
ISSUE 18: 2015 09 03: To Russia with Love
3 September 2015 To Russia, with Love by Neil Tidmarsh This week, Vitaly Milanov has been making headlines again. Mr Milanov is the St Petersburg city councillor, member of Mr Putin’s ruling United Russia party and Orthodox Christian activist whose “anti-gay propaganda law”, forbidding the promotion of gay and lesbian lifestyles to minors, was… Continue reading ISSUE 18: 2015 09 03: To Russia with Love
Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Tianjin: It Tolls For Thee
27 August 2015 Tianjin: It Tolls For Thee By John Watson Children with a taste for philosophy used to ask each other a difficult question. “Which would you prefer,” they would say, “the death of someone close to you or the deaths of 1 million foreigners?” That was of course a trap. Any child would… Continue reading Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Tianjin: It Tolls For Thee
Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Biding Their Time
27 August 2015 Biding Their Time by J R Thomas The front runner is pulling yet further ahead – but with an uncompromising personality, some unfortunate history coming out of the woodwork and a lack of popularity among key parts of the party machine, doubts are starting to be expressed even among loyal party members… Continue reading Issue 17: 2015 08 27: Biding Their Time
Issue 17: 2015 08 27: El Dorado’s Ghost
27 August 2015 El Dorado’s Ghost by Neil Tidmarsh Gold! Innately beautiful, never tarnishing, durable, malleable, relatively scarce – is it any wonder that it’s always been mankind’s standard measure of all things, from aesthetics to economics? At the same time, is it any wonder that a gold coin will almost inevitably have its… Continue reading Issue 17: 2015 08 27: El Dorado’s Ghost
