Jun 1, 2010
CONTENDING FOR THE LIVING Red Pepper, June-July 2010 Back in August, in the wake of BNP success in the Euro-elections, Red Pepper ran a debate about anti-fascist strategy. Although a good start to a necessary discussion, too much of it was polarised between an attack on and a defence of existing strategies and structures. While… Read more
Apr 29, 2010
Comment is free The Guardian 29 April The letter in today’s Guardian from writers and journalists calling for a Lib Dem vote is a particularly dispiriting example of the superficiality of the liberal wing of the British intelligentsia. In forming their opinion, they seem to have relied entirely and uncritically on the picture of British… Read more
Apr 17, 2010
17 April, The Guardian, Comment is free It started on a low – with all three leaders defining “immigration” as a problem and promising “tougher” action – and it didn’t get much better. From the economy to Afghanistan to “law and order” there was an unspoken consensus upheld by a host of unasked questions. In… Read more
Apr 1, 2010
Red Pepper, April-May 2010 CONTENDING FOR THE LIVING While the outcome of the general election may be in doubt, the insubstantial nature of the political frenzy preceding it is entirely predictable. The ping-pong of buzzwords and soundbites, the hunt for gaffes, the formulaic promises to “listen”, the gurgle of briefings and punditry: the dismal spectacle… Read more
Mar 25, 2010
March 29th will see the resumption in an Edinburgh court of an extraordinary trial with disturbing implications for freedom of expression and campaigners for Palestinian rights. Back in August 2008, five members of the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign disrupted an Edinburgh performance of the Jerusalem Quartet, who are promoted and indeed contracted to act as… Read more
Mar 23, 2010
The following article was written in February for the Barts Hospital website. During the three years I’ve been in treatment at Barts for multiple myeloma, I’ve given thanks many times to the NHS and the people who built and sustain it. Since I grew up in the United States and still have close friends and… Read more
Feb 16, 2010
The Guardian, 16 February In my case, the past is literally “another country”. I spent my first 18 years in the US, moved to Britain in 1971, and have been ensconced here ever since. But I applied for British citizenship only a few months ago. It’s been a curious exercise. I’ve spent a good deal… Read more
