December 2010
8 posts
“Universal jurisdiction should be held up as a pinnacle of our legal system, if...”
Universal Jurisdiction and the Case of Tzipi Livni
The request for and issuing of a warrant in the past week for Tzipi Livni, the Israeli Defence Minister during last year’s War on Gaza, by Palestinian Lawyers for Human Rights, has raised significant questions about the independence of the judiciary from the government in the United Kingdom. At a time when the Chilcot Inquiry is in progress, this clash between legal and political forces...
Why Labour's Rise in Membership may not Indicate a...
Over the course of the past two months 30,000 people have joined the Labour Party, but this does not necessarily signal the new dawn that many within the Party would have you believe. In their current Leaderless state it is easy to attack Labour by saying that they are lacking direction and a real purpose, without actually addressing the main reason why this is the case. The ineptness and at times...
Civilised Intimidation - The Left-Wing Threat to...
Tony Blair has said this morning on ‘Daybreak’ that the police have better things to do than provide security for his book signing in London this week. Whilst he may undoubtedly have a point, such a response is becoming ever-more commonplace in the face of intimidating protests staged by left-wing groups. INCIDENTS Over the past year there have been several such protests....
In Bed with the Homophobes
At least once a month, David Cameron (or another prominent Conservative Party member) receives a grilling regarding the Tories membership of the non-mainstream, right-wing EU group. The now-to-be-expected moral indignation of the average interviewer stems from the fact that the group contains a couple of political parties from Eastern Europe, whose members have at some time, made homophobic and/or...
The Lib Dems must change strategy if they are to...
Nobody likes an apologist. So why are the Liberal Democrats apologising for every decision the Coalition takes? Continue on this road and the party is heading toward electoral annihilation. This apologist outlook has stemmed from the strategy the Lib Dems have operated with since 1997, namely, attacking the government from the left. The strategy must be broadly viewed as a success. Only a month...
The Threat of Islamophobia
If the headlines and coverage of the New Statesman is to be believed, Britain, and the world, is locked in the grip of a virulent wave of Islamophobia. Should we believe these claims? Are Muslims around the world being persecuted, are they, as is often heard, on the cusp of a 1939-esque impending racial backlash? It is true that there are high-profile and very real cases of racism directed toward...
The Anti-Fascists & Iraq
Recently, I’ve wondered why it is that so many ardent anti-fascists so vigorously opposed the war in Iraq, after all, fascists don’t come much bigger, or much uglier than Saddam Hussein.
My argument is a narrow one. It is confined to those who opposed the Iraq War and are members of organisations such as the Socialist Workers’ Party, or self-proclaimed anti-fascist groups....