World
The forgotten end of the second world war
Two weeks ago, VJ day (Victory over Japan day) celebrated the end of the Pacific War. On 15 August 1945…
The Pope is wrong about Russian imperial greatness
Popes may make claims to infallibility but they certainly make mistakes, and Pope Francis is likely to get a dressing…
How Sinn Fein captured Northern Ireland’s police force
Policing any part of the United Kingdom is a difficult enough task these days. Policing the part of it where…
Might a Tory defeat in 2024 be something to celebrate?
When a party’s own natural supporters decide they have good reason to turn against it then the writing is normally…
What if Biden backs out?
President Biden has declared he’s running for a second term, but it’s far from certain he actually will. His infirmity…
Ukrainian pupils face an impossible dilemma
Today, almost five million Ukrainian pupils have gone to school – in person or remotely. Most didn’t have festive assemblies…
Inside the No. 10 shake-up
Thursday’s cabinet reshuffle may have been minor but the No. 10 shake-up is proving more substantive. Amber de Botton has…
The Tories’ dreadful handling of the school concrete crisis
Pupils are due to head back to school over the coming days, but now it seems that some of them…
GDP revisions show UK economy almost 2% larger than thought
It’s not often that we see a GDP revision as startling as the one published today. In its Blue Book…
The Manchester Evening News’s shameful treatment of a hotel employee
What is the purpose of a local newspaper? Time was, it was to stand up for local people against the…
What Brits don’t understand about life in Russia
When I tell people in England I’ve just returned from several years abroad and they find out the country was…
Talk of a housing ‘crash’ isn’t quite what it seems
House prices dropped more than was expected this month, falling 5.3 per cent compared to August last year. The value of…
Why Iranians don’t hate Israel
One is an oppressive regime that guns down its own people, promotes a radical Islamist theology and hangs gay people…
Is printing too much money the real cause of inflation?
Every month, the Bank of England publishes new data on the flows of money and credit around the UK economy.…
Danielle McGahey should not be allowed to play women’s cricket
Danielle McGahey is set to become the first transgender cricketer to play an official Twenty20 international. The 29-year old Australian-born…
Homelessness in black and white
I stood across the street from Seattle’s City Hall, next to a long line of tents. There were more than…
College-town blues
College towns are “decimating the GOP,” reported Politico in July, the reason being, in part, that “more college students and more faculty…
It’s always Chablis weather
It is very hot here in New England at the end of July. It was hot a week or two…
Elon Musk wants your biometric data, please
Get a sample of your bodily fluids ready: Elon Musk is coming for them. X, the social media company formerly…
Yes, it’s too early for pumpkin beer
The biggest purveyor of misinformation at the moment isn’t a podcast host or a foreign adversary. It’s a brewery. Since…
The sinister online mobbing of Róisín Murphy
In the past they would put a witches’ bridle on women who yapped too much. Any woman judged to be…
What’s the point of forcing murderers like Lucy Letby into the dock?
We all recoiled when Lucy Letby, a nurse of all things, was convicted of killing seven babies in cold blood.…
Will Senator Mitch McConnell step down after his latest freezing episode?
Senator Mitch McConnell appeared to have another elderly moment in Kentucky following an event yesterday, where a question about whether…
Why musicians can’t stand politicians liking their songs
I was amused to hear that Eminem has sent a cease-and-desist letter to the Republican presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy –…
Rishi Sunak’s crime crackdown is too little, too late
Conservative parties everywhere have traditionally been identified with maintaining law and order and cracking down on crime. As part of…
