No Fear
The day after Nelson Mandela’s 95th Birthday, Harry Noad offers some thoughts on his legacy.
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Meaning Something by Marriage
This is a momentous article: I’m changing the meaning of the word “article” – indeed, of writing itself. Or so some opponents of same-sex marriage would have it. Often heard in debates about the proposed legislation is the objection that it changes the meaning of marriage. Those who offer this argument, let’s call them ‘semanticists’, […]
Continue ReadingDebate: Oxford Students should be pursuing social justice projects whilst at University
[yop_poll id=”6″] Proposition – Tyler Overton Here are some facts about injustice: according to UNICEF’s 2012 report on child mortality, 1 in 9 children in Sub-Saharan Africa die before age five (as opposed to 1 in 152 in developed regions). Over a billion people still live on less than pound a day. And, more […]
Continue ReadingSyria’s tragedy: A changing revolution
Hezbollah’s involvement in Syria has become more pronounced over the last week. On April 30th, its leader- Hassan Nasrallah- declared that he would not allow Syria “to fall into the hands” of Western backed extremists. Four days later, Israel bombed a reported shipment of missiles sent by Assad’s government to support the Lebanese guerillas. The […]
Continue ReadingBolivia will take no more American drug money
In a speech this May Day, the Bolivian president Evo Morales announced that he would expel the US Agency for International Development (USAID) from his country. The response from the American government has been shocked, bordering upon outraged, but their message is clear: this will harm Bolivian people more than it will harm them. It […]
Continue ReadingGreat, why not just give us another gift, Gove?
With the latest governmental plans to open a free boarding school in Sussex and the scandal surrounding fee estimates, the issues of funding education and the difference between academies and free schools has fuelled the open fire all over again. The utopian but dreary child of Adonis and New Labour, the Academy, free from local […]
Continue ReadingWho’s Hugh’s for looking stupid?
St Hugh’s hasn’t had a good year of it. First the controversy over rejected postgrad Damien Shannon and the rules on financial guarantees, and now the scandal involving freshers blacking up to portray ‘Ni**as in Paris’ for a ‘Song Titles’ bop. For a college that likes to characterise itself as Wadham’s slightly less cool little […]
Continue ReadingMalcontent… on Inter-Collegiate Rivalry
I realised the extent of inter-college rivalry even before I even arrived at Oxford. On a tour around my college, a current student announced, “all the colleges are pretty much the same, but we’re the best”. It’s a ridiculous statement for any intelligent person to make, but I ignored it – maybe they were a […]
Continue ReadingThe public deserve better than any party offers them
Local elections are, as a rule, not the most exciting moments in politics. Despite the many and varied ways that councils have to make life difficult (and, of course, the very real and useful work done), the scale of the actions involved tends to limit genuine interest to politics fanatics, NIMBYs, and community organisers. On […]
Continue ReadingSpies need to be left out in the cold…
Edward Lucas, the International Editor of The Economist, talks to Michael Scott about Russian spies, corruption, and why Britain needs to stop joining in.
Continue ReadingA Brief Conversation with Lord Turner
Michael Scott talks to Lord Turner, the former head of the Financial Services Authority.
Continue ReadingWe’re missing all the ‘right’ jokes
Stewart Lee was wrong, right-wing comedy can exist, and Oxford is a great breeding ground for it.
Continue ReadingThe music of a people who will not be slaves
Music has perhaps thrown up the biggest controversy over the death of Thatcher, but we all need to move on.
Continue ReadingDebate: “The Oxford examination system is a good measure of a student’s ability”
The paper’s first debate of Trinity, as everyone begins to gear up for exams. But could the university not be assessing us better than this?
Continue ReadingThe government must acknowledge its failures
Margaret Thatcher’s death has distracted us from this government’s benefit cuts and has lead to many voicing their approval when they might not have done beforehand.
Continue ReadingThe plank in Britain’s own eye
William Haig’s crusade against sexual violence abroad is a noble campaign, but this government should be tackling the issue at home with the same level of gusto.
Continue ReadingThe joke isn’t funny anymore
Nuclear war and global annihilation aside, there may yet be some hope for the Korean Peninsula
Continue ReadingYes, it’s more than just a fair-y story
The logic behind Fairtrade, and why it can change the world.
Continue Reading“Hindu mythology is Machiavellian”
An interview with Sanal Edamaruku on religion and rationality in India
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