Say the name George Soros to any die-hard Republican and they’ll probably recoil in disgust. The Hungarian-born billionaire has donated billions to progressive causes throughout his life and is the subject of wide-ranging, unfounded conspiracies spread by conservatives. Soros has been falsely accused by the right of everything from paying people to participate in the 2017…
Read moreThe tax haven hidden in plain sight – England's farmland
The words “tax haven” tend to conjure up images of palm-fringed Caribbean beaches and whitewashed buildings covered in the brass plates of shell companies. What might surprise many is that there is a tax haven sitting under everyone’s noses, here in England. It’s all perfectly legal and above board too. That tax haven is farmland….
Read moreAcademics come out on strike against austerity in Estonia
Recent academic strikes in Tartu and Tallinn show that staff in Estonian universities have the determination to fight for a long overdue increase in funding. The strikes at Estonia’s two centres of higher education and research were a direct response to a state budget announcement in which the higher education sector was once again sidelined….
Read moreJoane: Plastic is killing us in the Amazon
How much more plastic waste could the Amazon basin take before collapsing? How much more unconscious aggression? How much more environmental degradation? A plastic bag, a polyethylene bottle, a piece of polyurethane… these are all ordinary, cheap, disposable objects. Their daily use is measured in billions of units throughout the planet. However, after one single…
Read moreTax-funded research by Rees-Mogg’s ERG must be released, tribunal rules
The European Research Group is one of the most powerful forces in British politics – and also one of the most secretive. The cadre of pro-Brexit Tory MPs, led by Jacob Rees-Mogg, refuses to even say who its members are. But now documents produced by the ERG and given to Parliament’s standards watchdog will be…
Read moreBeing a hyphenated Palestinian: an identity game of hide and seek
“You have such a beautiful, unique name – where does it come from?” asks a woman enthusiastically, with a bright and engaging smile. “My name is etymologically Greek, but its usage spread to Arab countries. I am half-Palestinian – my father is Palestinian,” I answer candidly, inviting my companion to continue our exchange. The woman’s…
Read moreTweets of the Week: Tiger’s special delivery, Bryson’s stunned reaction and Poulter trolls Fox
There were big wins for Matthew Wolff and Jon Rahm in an eventful week in the golfing world. But here are some of the things you may have missed, and some of the quirkier moments from the world of golf dished out in the Twittersphere over the past seven days. Steve Elkington Critiques Brandel’s Swing…
Read moreAppeal for a Democratic Europe, July 3, 2019
We, European citizens, having voted for women and men with political agendas, do not accept that our elected representatives should be deprived of the power to choose – or at least to guide the choice – of the President of the European Executive. We know that the governments in council have long ago and behind…
Read moreJohn Daly denied the use of a cart at this year’s Open Championship; Daly releases statement
John Daly’s request to be allowed to use a cart at next week’s Open Championship was denied over the weekend by the R&A after “careful consideration”. Daly, who has an ailing right leg, had been granted the request to use a cart earlier this year at the PGA Championship, but will now be forced to…
Read moreHow the United Nations is quietly being turned into a public-private partnership
A new corporate and government marriage quietly took place last week when the leadership of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the United Nations (UN) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to partner with each other. While this MOU is proudly displayed on the WEF website, it is nowhere to be found on the UN…
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