I am always suspicious when members of government begin to denigrate lawyers, and even more so when this happens alongside what seems to be a concerted attempt to reshape the relationship between government authority and law. This is not because lawyers are not worthy of criticism; of course they (we)Continue Reading
The amount of money spent on US elections eclipses the annual total economic output of some small countries. The total spending by candidates, political parties and independent campaign groups in the 2016 race was US$6.5 billion – comparable to the GDP that year of Monaco, Kosovo or Liechtenstein, and moreContinue Reading
As COVID-19 cases have risen sharply in large parts of the north of England, local leaders have united to challenge government policy. Representatives from across the north have come together questioning the government’s decision to impose local lockdowns in their region. They have particularly criticised central government for failing toContinue Reading
Is time up for WeChat in the US? Boumen Japet/Shutterstock Chinese Americans are waiting nervously to hear whether the Trump administration’s efforts to ban the app WeChat in the US will be successful. Donald Trump issued an executive order on August 6 placing the Chinese-owned app in the firing line,Continue Reading
After a brief return, freedom of movement has been once again withdrawn from people who live in the north of England. For residents of Manchester and Newcastle, meeting people from other households is once again prohibited, and in Liverpool, pubs and bars have been closed entirely except if they operateContinue Reading
aelitta/Shutterstock UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson recently suggested that coronavirus infections are higher in the UK than Germany or Italy because Britons love freedom more, and find it harder to adhere to control measures. Unsurprisingly, this view has attracted a lot of criticism. Some have argued that Germany and ItalyContinue Reading
As the US election campaign nears its end point, one thing about the result is certain: a lot of people won’t vote. Turnout at the 2016 US presidential election was only 60.1% – even without a pandemic. In 2020 there is a risk that COVID-19 will further undermine turnout. TheContinue Reading
Nagorno-Karabakh is engulfed in the flames of war. Half of its population has fled, while the remaining families cower in basements as artillery and drones destroy their houses and cultural institutions. A ceasefire on October 10, agreed after ten hours of negotiations in Moscow between the warring sides of ArmeniaContinue Reading
By awarding the 2020 Nobel peace prize to the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP), the Nobel committee said that it wanted to “turn the eyes of the world to the millions of people who suffer from or face the threat of hunger”. Among its reasons for awarding the prize wereContinue Reading
Shutterstock Scientific analysis of COVID-19 is dominated by medical and pharmaceutical questions of vaccines and risk minimisation. But meanwhile, social scientists must track the emerging social orders where new conventions and senses of self and kinship are forming. They are finding that a brand new coronavirus culture is emerging, andContinue Reading
