Just the power to charm
Modernity and Blairism

Suggestion Box
What should I throw at John Reid today?

Too idle to read the Bible? It’s in a blog

There is a body of opinion – let’s call it the “consensus” – that only Chelsea or Manchester United can win the Premiership in 2007. Within that consensus, of course, there are shades: from “catastrophic” that Man Utd should win, to merely very, very bad that Chelsea do. Surely no good citizen can disagree. Well, they can. Because we have a group loosely called the “Redblue-deniers”. Some think there’s only a chance, a small one not worth worrying too much about, that Chelsea or Man Utd will prevail; and that anyway, the emotional pain of that eventuality could be offset by laying a reverse forecast on the title. Most, though, seem convinced it will be Reading’s year.

Now, let’s take my imaginary great-aunt. She knows nothing at all about football. Read More

Richard Dawkins
Where rudeness meets religion

Relativities: local and global
When income differentials matter, and when they don’t

Economics and Social Policy roundup

We’re constantly bombarded with news that suggests the global economy is enjoying an indefinite growth spurt. Britain is in year 15 of a boom, China and India are the economic super powers of the future, America grows steadily despite all Bush’s attempts to the contrary. Even in continental Europe, which we’re told is well on the way to humiliating economic decline, average annual growth is still something like 2%. There may be bad years, and for heaven’s sake don’t mention sub-Saharan Africa, but on the whole we’re all climbing up, up, up towards wealth unimaginable to our forefathers.
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Something you can do when you’re dead
Misdiagnosis and the case for compulsory autopsy

Waste Not Want Not
Where’s the beef with the “public sector rich list”?