April 2006
Oddly Enough
by mikepowerTired of playing second fiddle to men in conservative Saudi Arabia, five women decided if you can't beat them, join them.
March 2006
Comment is free: Decline and fall
by mikepowerBush's foreign policy has failed ignominiously in Iraq, but where does that leave the liberal imperialists?
Why the intelligent design lobby thanks God for Richard Dawkins
by mikepowerAnti-religious Darwinists are promulgating a false dichotomy between faith and science that gives succour to creationists
'Serious neglect' in police custody death
by mikepowerFour police officers present when a black paratrooper choked to death in custody were guilty of the 'most serious neglect of duty', police watchdog says.
The going rate for killing a 13 year-old school student is NIS 80,000.
by mikepowerA Givati Brigade officer will receive NIS 80,000 in compensation from the state after he was cleared of all charges in relating to the death of 13-year-old Palestinian girl, Iman Al Hamas, in the much-publicized "confirmed kill" affair.
Gender pay gap: what's it worth?
by mikepowerGirls may well opt for arts degrees over engineering, but that's not because nobody has told them that engineers earn more than academics - it's because the 'male' professions have fallen out of favour even among men.
Guardian: Death of a professor
by mikepowerThere is now a systematic campaign to assassinate Iraqis who speak out against the occupation
February 2006
Iraq's death squads: On the brink of civil war
by mikepower Most of the corpses in Baghdad's mortuary show signs of torture and execution. And the Interior Ministry is being blamed.
Her story: 'Beautiful madness' by Alexander Linklater
by mikepower Psychiatric drugs restored Nia's sanity and destroyed her beauty, and she doesn't mind. A disturbing story of psychosis and its treatment
'The great divide' by Chakravarthi Ram-Prasad
by mikepowerCinema, literature and other aspects of western culture are increasingly open to Asian influence. Not so western philosophy
Living with mum
by mikepowerA new generation of young British men are putting off leaving home well into their 20s, government statistics reveal today.
US troops taught Iraqi gestures
by mikepowerThe US military has funded a computer game to teach its troops how to use and decipher Iraqi body language.
Jasem al-Aqrab: The Basra video should lay to rest a scurrilous lie
by mikepowerSince April 2003, the people of Basra have consistently been bemused by reports that they and their city enjoy a state of calm and stability under the command of the British forces, in contrast to the north of Iraq and the so-called Sunni triangle.
End of a shabby charade
by mikepowerThe unexciting truth about yesterday's terrorism vote is that it is unlikely to make much difference one way or the other.
Making bad law worse
by mikepowerCreating a new offence of glorifying terrorism is hypocritical and a threat to legitimate debate
Cato Unbound: Theodore Dalrymple: Is “Old Europe” Doomed?
by mikepowerI wondered what happened to old Theo after he retired. I think he moved to France which, given his views on Europe, seems a strange choice. Why not Louisianna or Texas?
Bush defended (see below) Letter to the Editor: Judge Bush on his results
by mikepowerGeorge W. Bush has an undergraduate degree from Yale University, a graduate degree from Harvard, was two-term governor of our second-largest state and a two-term President of the United States. Mr Bush qualified to pilot a modern jet fighter...
Times Online: The President is a dolt – so how can America be such a success story?
by mikepowerWhile America has been run by one of the most doltishly ineffectual governments in history, it has forged ever further ahead of Europe in terms of wealth, science, technology, artistic creativity and cultural dominance.
January 2006
Gore Is Right by Paul Craig Roberts
by mikepowerFormer vice president Al Gore gave what I believe to be the most important political speech in my lifetime, and the New York Times, "the newspaper of record," did not report it. Not even excerpts.
Independent: Palestinian with Aids barred from Israeli hospital
by mikepowerA Palestinian Aids patient has been denied permission to leave Gaza for treatment in Israel despite warnings by senior Israeli clinicians that the case is urgent.
Newsvine - Court Bars Tirade on Malaysian Web Site
by mikepowerKUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA — A court told a disgruntled car owner he cannot chronicle the alleged defects of his Malaysian-made Perodua and his tirade against the car maker on a personal Web site.
Guardian: Official US agency paints dire picture of 'out-of-control' Iraq
by mikepowerAn official assessment drawn up by the US foreign aid agency depicts the security situation in Iraq as dire, amounting to a "social breakdown" in which criminals have "almost free rein".
US Supreme Court Ruling a Relief for Some Patients
by mikepowerCharlene Andrews, who has terminal breast cancer, has not yet asked a doctor for the fatal dose of barbiturates that would enable her to take her own life.
News Hounds: Humanitarian Award For Rupert Murdoch: Sheesh!
by mikepowerNews Corporation chairman Rupert Murdoch received the Simon Wiesenthal Center's Humanitarian Laureate Award. The award recognises Mr Murdoch's support for Israel.
Foreign Affairs - A Natural History of Peace - Robert M. Sapolsky
by mikepowerContrary to what was believed just a few decades ago, humans are not "killer apes" destined for violent conflict, but can make their own history.