The Gay Marriage Question
The abominable human rights questions being raised over gay marriage will fall on deaf ears until we start asking the right question. Equality has never been the issue. There’s some bizarre notion that members of the clergy come out in a rash when confronted with same-sex marriage, wielding their crucifix and throwing holy water at the door to protect the church against a new ‘fad’ that is sure to fade in the same way the punk rock movement’s brand of...
ARE IMMIGRANTS A DRAIN ON THE UK?
By Valentina Magri A missed goal and a missing report. They are the main drivers of a revitalised debate over immigration in the UK. The missed goal concerns net flow of migrants. According to recent data over migration in the UK, David Cameron is unlikely to meet his migration target of under 100,000 migrants by 2015. The Office for National Statistics estimated a net flow of 212,000 migrants to the UK in the 12 months to September 2013 (compared to...
Bibi and Obama’s Failed Marriage
By Lock Bailey If opposites truly do attract, then there could be no better chemistry than that of US President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. Unfortunately, opposites make the poorest couplings in foreign relations—and Bibi and Obama prove this true. Obama is quite left and Netanyahu is quite right, to understate these antipodal leaders. Netanyahu showed favor in Republican nominee Mitt Romney in the 2008 elections, for example (years earlier the two of them worked in The...
Brazil: moving in the wrong direction
By Artur Salles Lisboa de Oliveira, writer for Exame The Brazilian economy benefited significantly from the commodities boom throughout the 2000’s, allowing it to keep a strong inflow of capital which led to rising reserves and currency stability. Despite these favourable conditions, authorities didn’t succeed in promoting economic growth by addressing crucial issues such as infrastructure bottlenecks, high energy costs and excessive bureaucracy. Instead of tackling these aspects, the government exhibits a strong inclination to replicate the failing policies of...
Clickbait
By Jack Peat, Editor We looked into the internet phenomenon known as Clickbait; we didn’t expect to uncover this mindblowing secret! Ten reasons why posting content to an online audience differs from attracting readership in the real world. Ok, perhaps we don’t have ten, but we do have one thing; your attention. You see, the internet is like a vast ocean home to a unique ecosystem of animals without properties of the material world. In the same way marine creatures...
DOES THE UK STILL NEED INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY?
By Valentina Magri International Women’s Day – observed by the UN General Assembly since 1977 after it invited member nations to unite in eliminating the discrimination against women – was celebrated this weekend with great success, but some still question the need for such a day in contemporary British society. Gender gap in Britain The gender gap is measured at an international level by the World Economic Forum (Wef), which carries out a measure called the Gender Gap Index. Its value...
Will We Commit a Syrial Offense?
By Lock Bailey One may criticise the United States' involvement in other countries and in other regions' affairs and do so justifiably. Yet often within the very same condemning breath one may also plead for the United States' involvement and intervention in another area of the world. The Civil War in Syria is one such tragedy that yells such ambivalent commands to the doorstep of the White House. The Syrian Civil War rolls steadily on - this month marks the third...
We Are The 99%…Aren’t We?
By Adam Walker, Economics Correspondent Since the global recession struck we have cut society into two vastly unequal groups as a means of pigeon holing blame. The one per cent - those with a total household income that exceeds £300,000 annually – have become targets in the financial downturn. The credit crunch in 2007, the Icelandic Banking crisis in late 2008 and the Eurozone Sovereign Debt crisis in 2010 have all at one point referred back to this section of...
SAVE THE LAST PENCE
By Valentina Magri The Bank of England (BoE) gave us both good and bad news during the presentation of the last inflation report in February. The good news: the UK will be one of the fastest-growing advanced economies, with a GDP growth equal to +2.6 per cent. The bad news: this growth relies too much on consumer spending. Indeed, the inflation report shows that consumption contribution to GDP have risen from 0.4 percentage points of the second quarter of 2013...