Conflicts in the New Year

Foreign Policy issues for 2012.
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/12/27/next_years_wars?page=0,2#.TvsJcLI7arc.twitter

Ireland and the EU

"Why did the eurozone governments pressure Ireland to ask for the bailout?"

Economic analysis from the Austrian School of Economics regarding the current economic climate in the EU and in particular the treatment of Ireland's economic problems.

http://mises.org/daily/4876

EU Unemployment Rates

Infograph charting the unemployment rates across Europe, which have risen from a low of 6.8% in 2008 to 9.7% now. This site also contains a breakdown of unemployment rates by gender and nationality so we can see that Spain is suffering the worst rates in Europe and, in general, women are more likely to be unemployed than men.

http://www.iiea.com/blogosphere/the-eu-unemployment-infographic

Rethinking American Governance

Interesting article attempting to redefine the parameters of fascism and include the growing governmental power of consecutive American administrations, including FDR and Nixon. This is an look at the power of the state, with a clear slant in the direction of libertarianism.

http://mises.org/daily/5634/Americas-Unique-Fascism

Antibiotic Resistance

Worrying trend with regards to the growing resistance to existing antibiotics on the market in Europe.

http://www.nature.com/news/antibiotic-resistance-marching-across-europe-1.9413

Depositions from 1641

Depositions taken from victims of the inter-communal massacres which took part in Ireland during the War of the Three Kingdoms.

http://1641.tcd.ie/

Real Change

The governmental changes in Europe and the wide-spread belief that the system is broken, now perhaps real change is not only possible, but absolutely necessary.

http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/boskin18/English

Monti To The Rescue?

Italy, and indeed Europe, holds its collective breath as Mario Monti takes the increasingly unsteady Italian reins.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2011/11/20/can-monti-save-italy-the-trouble-with-technocrats.html

Modern Genocide

Interesting interview with Dr. David Hamburg, author of "Preventing Genocide: Practical Steps toward Early Detection and Effective Action" regarding the issue, and the preventablity, of genocide.

http://www.thirteen.org/openmind/history/can-genocide-be-prevented/1841/

Sharp Shift in the World Order

The slow death of the Euro gives China and the USA the opportunity to call the shots.

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/finance/ambroseevans-pritchard/100013198/america-and-china-must-crush-germany-into-submission/

Peace Declared

US forces to begin final withdrawal from Iraq, with the last day of 2011 as the endpoint for the 'Occupation'.

http://www.thenation.com/article/164087/after-nearly-nine-years-war-and-occupation-america-withdraw-all-troops-iraq

Letter to Mohammed Bouazizi

As the Arab spring becomes the 'American Fall', this article recalls the actions of the man who provided the spark for it all.

http://www.salon.com/2011/10/18/mohammed_bouazizi_ows/singleton/

Nobel Intentions

Nobel Peace Prize split three ways.

http://www.theworld.org/2011/10/nobel-peace-prize-shared-between-three-women/

However controversy surrounds the role of the Nobel Prize Committee in the awarding of the prize to Liberian President Sirleaf.

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2011/10/did-nobel-committee-award-liberias-sirleaf-to-help-her-win-reelection/246357/


This isn't the first controversy the Nobel Peace Prize has been in as some of the past recipients are testimony to.


http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/10/06/the_ignobels?page=0,0

The Holy Land and the UN

Abbas at the UN in New York

Israel and Palestine put their cases to the United Nations.

http://www.tnr.com/article/tel-aviv-journal/95307/netanyahu-un-speech-peace

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-palestinians-israelis-20110924,0,6115616.story

The Fall and Rise of Iceland

The reaction of Iceland to their economic crisis should be an example to the rest of Europe, especially smaller economies like Ireland.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/weekend/2011/0924/1224304661287.html

Europe's Woe is China's Chance

European economic problems offer China, with it's cash reserves, a chance to step further up the ladder of world trade dominance. A massive investment into Europe by China seems to have short term benefits for both regions but is it an attractive proposal?

http://shadow.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/09/16/chinas_investing_woes

Race Relations Still Sore Subject in Europe

Protests against Roma in the Czech Republic from Spiegel Online

Recent developments in Europe with regard to two specific minority groups, Muslims, in this case in the Netherlands, and Roma, in this case in the Czech Republic. The Burka ban in the Netherlands mirrors a similar ban in force in France.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,786495,00.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/netherlands/8765673/Netherlands-to-ban-the-burka.html

The Sudanese Horror

The continuing tragedy of Sudan and the apathy of the international community. The consequences of not holding the perpetrators of War Crimes to account is creating a cycle of impunity which is destroying millions of lives.

http://dissentmagazine.org/atw.php?id=549

The Trends of Ill Health

Excellent graphic displaying the growing gap in income levels and the relationship between productivity and reward in the USA.


http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2011/09/great-prosperity-1947-1977-vs-great-regression-1981-present/

India in the Middle

Increase in Indian Middle Class spending power

The seeping down of political power to Middle India: Can the middle class transform the biggest democracy in the world?
http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2011/09/indias-great-middle-class-moment/244424/

In The Aftermath of Mayhem

As the debate over the English riots turns into a rather clunking blame game the issues at the root of the problem are in danger of being swept away in a tide of retribution. Many view the governmental an judicary response to the disturbances, especially the rather harsh penalties handed down to those convicted of inciting rioting on facebook, as kneejerk and unhelpful. These sentences are overloading an already stretched legal system and criminalising many who were mere opportunists. On the other hand there ae those who argue that if the state insists on being mother and father to the population, on controling and providing for every aspect of the life of the population, then it must also punish as a parent would. Parental punishment must be meted out hand in hand with some form of rehabilitation or reform, without which it is a self defeating exercise. It may also be argued that enough state finance has already been spent on a population set who have displayed consistant anti-social actions, the latest of which erupting into the recent riots. Whatever the future governmental polict, one thing is clear: this is the chance for the coalition government to make a stand against those who consider themselves outside and above civil society, offering them a path of reintegration, reeducation or, indeed, further punishment.  

'Why' is the Hardest Question to Answer for the World Media.

In the aftermath of the English riots, newspapers all over the world are turning to talking heads to give their opinion on why these riots took place, how they started, why they escalated and what can be done remedy the situation, from punishment to reform. The general consensus on the key question for the coalition government seems to be getting at the root of the disaffection rather than reacting to the results of the outburst. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/14/world/europe/14looters.html?_r=1&pagewanted=2

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/europe/Why-London-was-burning/Article1-733105.aspx

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2011-08/14/content_13108272.htm

http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,779624,00.html

Shining a Light on History's Forgotten People: Justinian the Great, Byzantine Emperor 527-5655

The belief that the Roman Empire died with the demise of Romulus Augustulus and the fall of Rome to Odoacer in 476 is a myth too often propagated and dangerous in its assumption that this year is the beginning of a sort of Dark Age for Europe, an era where no great men emerged, and no great deeds were done. Rome did indeed fall, and the decline of the Western Empire was long and terminal, with disputes over succession, the growing emboldening of frontier tribes who now made up a sizable portion of the Roman Army, and monetary issues combining to rot the core of the central power.  But Pax Romana did not fall, nor did the Eastern Roman Empire, with the continuity of Roman ideals, laws, customs (albeit with a rather Greco element to them), and most importantly, military prowess still controlled from the New Rome at Constantinople in modern day Turkey. This empire was to continue, in shape or form, until the fall of the great city to the Turks in 1453, and it saw few greater Emperors than Justinian I, who reigned when strength was needed most, immediately after the fall of Rome.

Justinian I

When Justinian came to power the extent of the Empire’s lands was the Mediterranean coastland from Greece right the way around to Libya, with vast swathes of Anatolia and the region around the Black Sea as well as mainland Greece, leading to Bulgaria. The rest of Rome’s possessions had been divided among various barbarian tribes, with Spain falling to the Vandals and the Visigoths, Italy succumbing to the Ostrogoths and the Lombards and the Adriatic Coast being divided between different ethnic groupings. Indeed, even in Constantinople, political intrigue was rendering the Eastern Empire, which would come to be known as the Byzantium Empire, weak and ineffective, certainly in regards to its responsibility to the territorial integrity of the Latin lands. Born not of aristocratic blood, Justinian had to make up for his lack of political and familial connections by being hard working and surrounding himself with brilliant men and women. One of his greatest triumphs just before becoming Emperor was choosing a worthy match in his wife Theodora, who would provide him with excellent counsel for a large part of his reign.

He came to power in 527 having being both Consul and Commander of the Eastern Armies and he needed both political and military skills to hold his Empire together and reunite both parts of the former Roman lands. His first military actions saw him send his army east to secure an ‘Eternal Peace’ with the Persian Sassanid Empire, leaving his army free to focus on the Mediterranean. In 533-534 his forces reconquered large parts of North Africa, defeating the Vandal King and taking land as far away as Gibraltar. The following years his fleet retook Sicily and landed in Naples and Rome, hoping to crush the Gothic Kingdom, which was in the middle of a dynastic struggle. By 540 Rome and Ravenna had been taken and the Gothic King was in chains in Constantinople. All of this was made possible by a number of factors, including weaknesses in the Barbarian kingdoms, and the professionalism and organisational capabilities which was inherent in Roman legions, even those of the Eastern variety. But above all Justinian had an ace in the pack, his star General, Belisarius, was the key to the retaking of the Empire. His name was famous, a moral boost to the legions and a blow to their enemies, he was even spoken of as the equal of Julies Caesar himself, and Justinian found himself both reliant on, thankful for and jealous of the warrior. Belisarius was even offered the crown of the Western Empire by the King of the Goths at Ravenna and turned it down out of personal loyalty to Justinian and the Empire.  Taking Italy proved much easier than keeping it and Justinian spent much of the rest of his reign consolidating his Western lands and pushing his Eastern frontier.

Justinian's Empire

Justinian’s major reform was in the legal realm with the reform of the old Roman law codes and the introduction of a body of legislation which became known as the Code of Justinian which is the basis for much of European law today, as it is in Russia. Theodora’s influence is all over these pieces of legislation with a number of progressive tracts on the rights of women, widows, and prostitutes. Justinian was a strong supporter of Orthodoxy in the Church and in the Empire and he attempted to unite various Christian and non-Christian groups under the Imperial umbrella, as well as trying to keep Imperial religious practices in keeping with the Pope’s instructions.

Justinian also deserves recognition for the scale and beauty of some of the buildings commissioned and built during his reign, including the splendid Hagia Sophia. There was a church building spree under Justinian and some of the finest buildings in the world at the time were constructed giving Constantinople the look of the real centre of Imperial power in the Western world. He also built fortifications along the Eastern borders of the Empire in order to strengthen the defence of the empire, and this is telling in the sense that it shows where he thought the real threat to Imperial power lay.

Justinian is a forgotten man both in Western European history, but also in Eastern European history. He was probably one of the most successful of all Roman Emperors, deserving of his place with Augustus and Constantine, yet because he never ruled from Rome he is brushed under the carpet. The fact that this civilisation, this European Empire, survived and, at times, thrived, after the ‘fall of Rome’ is too often airbrushed put of the passage of European and with it the legacy left to us by great men like Justinian.  

The Day China Took Over

The downgrading of the United States credit rating is not in itself a big deal, it is, however, symptomatic of a wider trend whereby the Americans are seen to be a failing power, unable to manage wither it's foreign or domestic financial affairs, never mind lead the world. In contrast, China has been flexing it's economic muscles since the start of the current economic downturn and is now in a position to not only claim to challenge the US position as world hegemon but indeed to put forward it's case as the senior partner in a symbiotic relationship between the two giants. 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/financialcrisis/8684245/China-cant-and-wont-save-the-world.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-14430598

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/07/business/global/china-a-big-creditor-says-us-has-only-itself-to-blame.html

http://blogs.forbes.com/kenrapoza/2011/08/06/the-post-western-world/

Eliminationism

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7cZuhqSzzc

PBS documentary accompaniment to Daniel Goldenhagen's book Worse Than War about Genocide and Eliminationism  with particular focus on the Holocaust and Rwanda and the role of the general population in each slaughter.

Mind The Gap

“the rich are different from you and me.”

An article regarding the growing inequality gap in America and the reasons those in the know give for it

http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/11633/let_them_eat_megabytes

An Ever Closer Transfer Union

"The heads of government decided that Greece, Portugal and Ireland would only have to pay approximately 3.5 percent rather than 4.5 percent interest on their emergency loans. At the same time, countries like Italy, Cyprus and Belgium will have to pay much higher interest rates on the money they have borrowed to help bail out these countries. "Taking out expensive loans and extending cheap ones -- that's a clear sign of a transfer union," Fuest says".

The current trend in the economic transfer of resources in Europe is evidence of the evolution of the EU away from a Union of 'Equals' and towards a Transfer Union.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,777671,00.html

Who to Blame?

http://cdn.theatlantic.com/static/mt/assets/jamesfallows/assets_c/2011/07/debt_chart_wh_0-58731.php

Looking for a scapegoat or getting to the root of the problem? Who and what caused the debt? Rebuffing the idea that Obama's 'spending binge' was the sole or even primary reason for the current crisis.

http://www.tnr.com/blog/jonathan-chait/93159/what-caused-the-deficit-reply-megan-mcardle

United States of Parasites?

Vladimir Putin attacks 'Dollar Dominance' and the negative impact Americans frivolous spending is having on the world economy.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/01/us-russia-putin-usa-idUSTRE77052R20110801

The Debt Ceiling Debate

What has been learned in Washington from the debate between the Democrats and the Republicans over the Debt Ceiling. 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/post/the-debt-ceiling-fight-what-we-learned/2011/08/01/gIQA94dbnI_blog.html?hpid=z1

What Next for Europe

The recent and most brutal evidence of a European clash of civilisations which we have recently witnessed in Norway is a new chapter in a worrying trend towards the introduction of the gun into affairs of immigration, integration and social inclusion. Europe has a long history of integrating different cultures into its lands, creating states containing many different ethnic groups and nationalities all living under the banner of Liberal Democracy but this latest attack has highlighted a key issue which Europe as a whole has failed to deal with. The post religious, post nationalist European ideals of what makes a nation-state are extremely vague with borders eroding and religion no longer a unifying factor, what is a Europe? Is there a European identity? Many who hold the view that Europe is white and Christian view the newly arrived non-white, non-Christian immigrants to their country as a major dilution of their sense of cultural identity. What’s worse is the perceived lack of action by certain Liberal governments, who seem content to appease the left wing and Brussels by allowing communities of foreign nationals to grow in their countries.  These actions, and the continued ‘War on Terror’ have stoked the fire of the rhetoric of the European right, whose members need not look too far back in history for their own inspiration, nor need we to see what they are capable of. What next for Europe, can we continue to ignore this problem or is it time to allow ourselves to take pride in having strong, yet inclusive, national identities once more. Or do we, like the USA, attempt to assimilate all by painting a stars and stripes on all new arrivals and making them American. Or do we, as some senior politicians have suggested, close the borders, instigate border controls, re-erect our fortresses and worry about our national identity only when this option has run it’s course? 

Europe's Home Grown Horror

Utoeya Island

The inexcusable acts of an educated killer whose views, if not methods, are shared in pockets across a continent unsure of it's place or future.

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Europe/2011/0724/Norway-mourns-ponders-impact-of-terror-attacks

The Pacific Century

Obama and Gillard

A realistic look at the shifting axis of world power from the Atlantic to the Pacific
http://www.theeuropean-magazine.com/40-goerlach-alexander/308-the-pacific-century

Where is The Best Life For You?

Excellent interactive chart using the statistics from the OECD Better Life Index.

http://www.oecdbetterlifeindex.org/

Counting the Cost of Conflict

Political upheaval and protest has had a huge knock on effect on the already fragile economies of some Arab states.

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/07/22/the_arab_recession

The Demise of the Newsmakers

Whoever controls the media, controls the mind. 

Jim Morrison 

The break-up of News International gathers speed, with two of the three major party leaders in support of curtailing Murdoch's power.

http://www.politics.co.uk/news/2011/07/17/miliband-and-clegg-manoeuvre-to-break-up-murd

Problema

http://documentarystorm.com/problema/

Recent documentary film by Ralf Schmerberg documenting a variety of reactions to 17 key questions affecting the world today

Africa Today

Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity, it is an act of justice.

Nelson Mandela

An indication of some of the problems still facing the African continent as another new state is created. With civil conflict, disputes over territiry, natural disasters and general economic and political mismanagement throughout the region, these links look at both the geographical scale of the African continent and some of the primary reasons for it's current woes.

http://world-poverty.org/povertyinafrica.aspx

http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/interactive/2011/jul/11/a-political-history-of-africa-interactive

http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/2010/the-true-size-of-africa/

Behind Enemy Lines

A British soldiers account of the 'Troubles' in Northern Ireland

http://www.historytoday.com/patrick-mercer/northern-ireland-troubles-holding-ring

90 Years of the Communist Party

Mao in 1939

Marking the 90th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party and looking at the impact the organisation has had on China and the world. Is China in a better position now than it was 90 years ago, and, if so, is this because of or despite the Communist Party?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/8610531/China-Communist-Party-celebrates-90th-anniversary.html

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/07/01/aint_no_party_like_the_communist_party?page=0,0

China-US Relations in South East Asia

US and China continue to clash in the South China Sea over the perceived spheres of influence of both governments. China has launched its clearest warning yet that it is running out of patience with the US.

http://the-diplomat.com/new-leaders-forum/2011/06/26/china-plays-nationalism-card/

South Sudan Secedes

The impending secession of South Sudan and the impact on the people of particular disputed areas, and indeed the international community.

http://www.towardfreedom.com/africa/2379-toward-secession-the-future-of-south-sudan

Integration in the Netherlands

"The integration will not be tailored to different groups"

The Netherlands to introduce a new bill on multi-culturism in which the Dutch society "takes

a central role" and the previous policy of a parallel societies within the country is abandoned.  

http://www.hudson-ny.org/2219/netherlands-abandons-multiculturalism

The Gender Imbalance Timebomb in Asia

"Sex selection starts with the urban, educated middle-class and filters down"

Gender selection and Asia's missing girls.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/06/21/gender-selection-abortion-crisis-in-asia-india-u-s.html

Where is the Water?

Infographic on the availability of access to clean water in the world.

http://www.good.is/post/infographic-lack-of-clean-water-access-worldwide/

Monroe in Asia

The differing versions of hegemonic powers in the world: the Free-rider, the Strongman, and the Constabulary models, and how the Monroe Doctrine applies them to China, India and the USA in Asia.

http://the-diplomat.com/2011/06/15/monroe-doctrines-in-asia/

Italians Finding Their Voice

"On June 12–13 Italians voted “yes” on four referendums in a resounding defeat for the Berlusconi government. It came just two weeks after the center-right was roundly voted down in municipal elections across Italy, and was a blow that even some of Berlusconi’s own colleagues think the prime minister cannot survive. But it was more than that. This was a vote that went far beyond parochial Italian politics: a vote in which citizens had their say on how to manage natural resources and energy policy, a vote against the neoliberal axiom that “private is better,” against industry lobbies and powerful insiders with euro signs in their eyes, against the view that some of us are more equal than others."

http://www.thenation.com/article/161440/direct-democracy-italy

Tyranny in the National Conscience?

Was the brutality of the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia a result of radical Agrarian Marxism? Or of a desire to build a rural utopia? This article argue that the seeds of the worst of the atrocities were alive within the psyche of the nation and it's people, from 'fatalistic Buddism' to a traditional disdain for urban life.

http://historytoday.com/tim-stanley/contrarian-question-identity-0

The Problems Continue

Is the European Currency saveable?

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/can-europe-rescue-its-single-currency-2299737.html

Equal Rights for All, Regardless of Sexual Preferance

Despite strong opposition from some African and Muslim countries, the UN has passed it's first resolution

endorsing equal rights for gays, lesbians and transgendered persons.

http://slatest.slate.com/posts/2011/06/17/un_gay_rights_un_passes_landmark_gay_rights_resolution_despite_s.html

http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/un-backs-gay-rights-979851.html

If Boys Will Be Boys, What Will Girls Be?



Huma Abedin and Hillary Clinton

 The attitude towards male politicians alleged dalliances would shift sharply if the perpetrators were female, argues this article.

http://www.good.is/post/why-do-female-politicians-avoid-sex-scandals-one-word-sexism/

Did You Know?

We are living in exponential times; a video run through of some revealing facts about the development of the modern world.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUMf7FWGdCw

Reevaluating First Principles

Democracy Journal series on the first principles of governance, the idea of government, the legitimacy of government among other items.

http://www.democracyjournal.org/19/6783.php

Death and Statistics

Article on the exaggeration and inflation of death tolls in natural disasters and war zones.

""This is a historic disaster," she said. "We have never been confronted with such a disaster in the U.N. memory. It is like no other." The problem with such over-the-top rhetoric is that it requires a willful suspension of disbelief and no small degree of historical amnesia"

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/06/09/grave_inflation

Eurotech: Lagging Behind?

Why does European technilogical innovation pale in comparison to the American output?

http://www.slate.com/id/2296547/

Religion, Politics and the Public Space



Globel Experts Logo



Three interesting articles from the the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations Global Experts project on Religion, Politics & the Public Space.



http://www.theglobalexperts.org/comment-analysis/secularism-rescue-arab-spring

http://www.theglobalexperts.org/comment-analysis/faith-free-speech

http://www.theglobalexperts.org/comment-analysis/private-beliefs-public-change

Empire

Genghis Khan

Analysising the rise and fall of various Empires in history and the common problems that have faced them all.

"In the end, all elites face the temptation to turn extraction into exploitation"

http://www.historytoday.com/harold-perkin/rise-and-fall-empires

The Negative Impact of Journalism

American Propaganda from WWI

A side of journalism we don't often think about: the role of the media  and propaganda campaigns in indoctrinating populations and even inciting hatred and violence against minorities. This article examines the issue of whether the actions of the media can ever be considered to be war crimes, with particular focus on a Kenyan case.

http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2011/05/kenyan-trial-asks-can-journalism-be-a-war-crime/238692/

To Dictate or Not to Dictate?

A further look at the role of the ICC in the prosecuting of the 'war' on Gaddafi, with the view that the body has done more harm than good in the matter.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/after-the-dictators-fall-/2011/06/02/AG57AmJH_story.html?hpid=z3
http://bosco.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/06/06/the_case_for_impunity

Not So Exceptional

A look at the idea of American Exceptionalism, with a particular focus on debunking the very idea of it.

http://spectator.org/archives/2011/03/03/in-defense-of-american-excepti#

Womens Rights

Human Rights Watch Report on the past 20 years of Womens Rights all over the world.

http://www.hrw.org/node/95629

One Nation Under Retrospection

The Founding Fathers of the USA

The faith of the three traditional pillars in the telling of the history of North America

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2011/jun/09/very-violent-road-america/

Food Wars



The rising price of food all over the world and the growing conflict over arable land.



Terraced Rice Fields in China



http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/04/25/the_new_geopolitics_of_food

WWII Revisited and Revised

Article on the trend of revisionism with regards to the history of World War II.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/29/books/review/adam-kirsch-on-new-books-about-world-war-ii.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all

The Kennedy Assassinations

British Pathe newsreel footage of the announcement of the assassination of John F. Kennedy

http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=43794

British Pathe newsreel footage of the announcement of the assassination of Bobby Kennedy

http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=45903

Analysis of the facts concerning both incidents

http://www.voltairenet.org/article165721.html

Ethical Economics

Article on the idea of a 'new economy' and the organization of a 'new economy' movement.

http://www.thenation.com/article/160949/new-economy-movement

Fair Trade: The Facts

Inforgraph showing the benefits of Fair Trade and the leading consumers of Fair Trade products.

Is America Still Relevant in the Middle East?

Robert Fisk's article on the shrinking role of the Obama administration in the Middle East

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/fisk/who-cares-in-the-middle-east-what-obama-says-2290761.html

The Shifting Sands of American History




The Lincoln Memorial

 

What is History but an interpretation of facts for political aim? How can we trust a retrospective analysis of political figures when it's in certain people's interest to push their agenda through the prism of famous, or infamous, historical names and events. This article looks at the way American history is distorted and revised, viewed from one side or the other, how the narrative becomes an active playbook which informs modern policy. The American political obsession with legitimising itself by calling on examples from the past can and has meant that our views of their history are constantly being challenged, especially when viewed by the standards of today, rather than in historical context.

http://www.democracyjournal.org/20/making-history.php?page=1



European Union?

The lack of harmonisation with regards to Europe's collective policy on Libya is clear and prehaps evidence of a bigger problem; the failure to create a clear vision of the role of the European Union in the wider world.

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/libyan_intervention_exposes_european_disunity_20110524/

The ICC and Validating War

The role of the ICC in providing justification for military intervention

http://www.prisonplanet.com/the-fake-icc-the-globalist-strategy-of-tension.html

Australia: Bracing For A Dip?



A Rio Tinto mine in Australia


In it's history, Australia has known nothing but growth, nothing but potential, but this can't continue forever, can it?

http://www.economist.com/node/18719530