Feb 10, 2008
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The Hindu, 10 February After twelve days in which the residents of Gaza poured in hundreds of thousands through a small breach in a steel-and concrete wall, Egyptian forces have resealed the Rafah crossing, and Israel’s collective punishment of 1.5 million people continues unabated. As a result of Israel’s blockade, these people… Read more
Jan 13, 2008
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The Hindu, 13 January The world looks on at the US presidential primaries with a mix of hopes and fears, and not a little bemusement. The road to the White House is serpentine, its course laid out by an amalgam of federal and sate law, constitutional interpretation by the courts, party regulations,… Read more
Nov 4, 2007
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The Hindu, 4 November Two remarkable works of contemporary American art have lightened my load in recent weeks. Both are the products of dissident white men in their fifties, deeply versed in their song-writing craft, steeped in American musical traditions and at the same time driven by opposition to current American policies,… Read more
Oct 7, 2007
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The Hindu, 7 October Who’s being invaded by whom? From the headlines in Britain’s most popular newspapers, and statements from politicians, not least government ministers, you’d think the country was about to be swamped by an alien horde, a wave of immigrants threatening its culture, public services and safety. In his speech… Read more
Sep 30, 2007
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The Hindu, 30 September Four miles from my doorstep lies one of Europe’s largest construction sites: 500 acres to be transformed into an Olympic Park and Village in time for the 2012 Games. At the moment, it’s a wasteland. A few hundred tenants have been evicted from a council estate. Nineteenth century… Read more
Aug 26, 2007
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The Hindu, 26 August St. Bartholomew’s Hospital – known to Londoners for generations simply as Barts – has a claim to being the world’s longest-established provider of free medical care to the poor. It was founded by a penitent Norman courtier in 1123 as a priory hospital on the edge of the… Read more
Aug 12, 2007
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The Hindu, 12 August It was a low-key conclusion to the British Army’s longest continuous campaign. On 1st August, Operation Banner, the British military intervention in Northern Ireland, was declared at an end. Some 5000 troops will remain stationed in the area, but with the same duties as troops elsewhere in the… Read more
Jul 28, 2007
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The Hindu, 28 July That the teaching of history is politically disputed terrain will come as no news to Indian readers. Efforts by the Hindu right at the centre and in the states have amply illustrated how the study of the past can acquire an all-too-potent present-day ideological and communal force. In… Read more
Jul 15, 2007
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The Hindu, 15 July The British government response to the failed terrorist actions in London and Glasgow was markedly more measured than in the past. The “war on terror” rhetoric was toned down, there was no threat of yet another round of anti-terror laws, and greater care in speaking about and to… Read more
Jul 1, 2007
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD The Hindu, 1 July It’s rare that a fashion item makes the slightest impression on me, but I have to confess to being childishly delighted by a purchase I recently made over the internet. It’s a tee-shirt emblazoned with CLR James’s ever-pertinent rhetorical question: What do they know of cricket who only… Read more
