Reading
What an amazing life.
September marked the 23rd anniversary of al-Qaeda’s 2001 attacks on the United States, which left nearly 3,000 people dead. For the two decades since then, I’ve been writing, often for TomDispatch, about the ways the American response to 9/11, which quickly came to be known as the Global War on Terror, or GWOT, changed this country. As I’ve explored in several books, in the name of that war, we transformed our institutions, privileged secrecy over transparency and accountability, side-stepped and even violated longstanding laws and constitutional principles, and basically tossed aside many of the norms that had guided us as a nation for two centuries-plus, opening the way for a country now in Trumpian-style difficulty at home. Even today, more... Read more
A customer walks out of the troll store without buying a troll.
ERIC: What the fuck did you say to him?
HARPER: He wanted a Firefighter Troll. I said we’re out of stock.
ERIC: Is this kindergarten? Do you need a juicy box?
Harper’s eyes well up.
ERIC: When a customer asks about a Firefighter Troll, you tell him we have a Firefighter Troll, and it comes with a Dalmatian Troll and a plush Firefighter Troll Fire Truck, and it will all be ready by MONDAY. You better be running down the street to get him. Go, go, go!
Harper runs out the door.
ERIC: Our budget is one thousand dollars for raw materials for the trolls. We’re on a KNIFE’S EDGE here with these Scandinavian troll dolls that we craft with LOVING CARE.
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A dinner party at Yasmin’s house.
The Spectator, 13 January 2024 Monetarism, with which his name is associated, has long defined economic policy. But what would Friedman have made of the banking collapse, so soon after his death in 2006? The Keynesian economist Nicholas Kaldor called Milton Friedman one of the two most evil men of the 20th century. (Friedman was … Continue reading Milton Friedman – economic visionary or scourge of the world?
The backdrop to Rachel Reeves’ budget yesterday is a country riven by vast and growing inequality, rising poverty and falling incomes for most. According to a recent report by Oxfam, the top 1 percent in Britain has more wealth than 70 percent of the population combined. The UK’s wealth gap, a measure of the difference between the […]
My latest book has so far have been published in three different places under three different titles. In the UK (hardback November 2023, paperback November 2024). It was entitled “The Machine Age” An Idea, A History,. A Warning. In Germany it was published in April 2024 under the title: Werden Wir Ersetzt: Vom Fortschrittswahn zu … Continue reading Books
Analysis of 12 years of the Register of MPs' Interests appears to show an acceleration of generosity from the Premier League since plans for a new football regulator were announced
Project Syndicate 18th of September, 2024 “Shortly after taking office, the United Kingdom’s new Labour government announced the discovery of a massive shortfall in public finances. While much of the political debate has centered on the size of this fiscal hole, the real culprit is the set of arbitrary rules that British governments have imposed on themselves … Continue reading Britain’s Illusory Fiscal Black Hole
Project Syndicate 21st of August, 2024 “Even though recorded performances provide some valuable benefits, most people prefer live events. That is because the audience is part of the production, and the two sides exchange energy and the gamut of human emotions in a way that would be impossible in any other setting.“ SALZBURG – While … Continue reading The Enduring Appeal of Live Performance
There is only one acceptable end to the war in Ukraine. And it doesn’t involve giving Kyiv the weapons it would need to entirely drive Russia out Aug 14, 2024 “The nation must clearly speak with one voice,” declared Baroness Neville-Rolfe, then Conservative minister of state at the cabinet office, on 20th February 2024. No … Continue reading Nato’s folly
- by Philip Goff
- by David Russell
As the anniversary of Hamas' 7 October 2023 attack on Israel nears, the Muslim Association of Britain urges the UK not to be on the 'wrong side of history' and to act now
The Government is accused of failing to rule out new fossil fuel projects, and in some cases potentially cheering them on, in updated national plan
I work at a very large University. I am the parent of a child who has just started secondary school, and of one in the middle of their primary school journey. I am currently taking what in the UK is called a Level 2 Adult Education course. In all four of those domains – and […]
In a pivotal 12 months, the master planners transformed the judiciary, positioning it to deliver corruption-legalizing precedents.
The reflexive rationalization of the Trump voter: I don’t like everything he says but I just like his policies. What policies you say? They rarely have a specific answer. Here an example of one of his allegedly great policies they love so much: That’s Trump being asked a very specific question about a very specific policy and he answered with a long whine about how he was named Michigan Man of the Year (a lie) and how the fake news unfairly denied it. That’s Trump’s policy. Whining about being treated badly, complaining about immigrants and foreigners and bragging about how well he gets along with dictators. That’s pretty much it. What’s not to love?
