Let’s begin with a discomforting fact often forgotten in recent years: ‘free market’ capitalism is not necessarily the best friend of democracy. Since the early years of the 19th century, especially during periods of economic stagnation and mass unemployment, the...
Read MoreFinally. The finest hour. The day for which all brave and self-respecting Britons have long been waiting. Referendum Day. The pub happy hour when the proud People living under the Union Jack seize their once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make things better....
Read More‘Few Chinese, myself included, really knew what rock 'n roll was back then. But we knew it was something that gave out energy. It was music with a message.’ ‘I performed at Tiananmen Square in 1989, 15 days before the crackdown....
Read MoreMoney, Capitalism and the Slow Death of Social Democracy John Keane, University of Sydney The following thoughts on money, markets, capitalism and the future of democratic politics were prepared for the ‘Come Clean’ public forum, to be held in the New South...
Read MoreTheDailyPakistan.com José ‘Pepe’ Mujica may not be a household name beyond the pampas and ocean shores of Uruguay, but his thoughts on power, politics and sobriety, captured in the remarkable video that follows, surely are of special relevance for politicians and...
Read MoreThe Flemish historian and writer David Van Reybrouck has recently triggered a minor sensation in the Low Countries by insisting that Western democracies are suffering so much election fatigue (electoral democracy is ‘killing’ democracy, he says) that what is now...
Read MoreTaiwan’s President-elect Tsai Ing-wen Hong Kong Free Press Greeted by the fizz of fireworks, flags, honking horns and a jubilant throng of tens of thousands of citizens, president-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) took to the stage last Saturday, in front of her national...
Read MoreThe Paris carnage makes clear that the so-called ‘war on terror’ doesn’t work Eddie Mulholland “War in the heart of Paris” screams the headline of Le Figaro. Scenes of carnage, troops on the streets, politicians speaking, sirens in the background, terrified people...
Read MoreThe Masses, by Mexican muralist José Clemente Orozco (1935) The widespread belief that religion is plainly bad for democracy is misleading, or so the following dialogue on religion tries to illustrate, with reasons and examples. Conducted in Melbourne by the distinguished...
Read MoreIsraeli soldier from an ultra-Orthodox Jewish unit in training (2005) The widespread belief that religion is plainly bad for democracy is misleading, or so the following dialogue on religion tries to illustrate, with reasons and examples. Conducted in Melbourne by the...
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