Trump, Greenland and the Polar Silk Road

Any planned US annexation of Greenland would give America almost total control over an increasingly vital trading route. The US government’s recent abduction of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro has drawn widespread condemnation from those who see it as a breach of international law. These events have been followed particularly closely by the people of Greenland,… Continue reading Trump, Greenland and the Polar Silk Road

The silent coup of American public discourse

September 20, 2025, Seattle, Washington, USA: People gather outside of KOMO-TV's headquarters, the Sinclair Broadcast Group-owned ABC affiliate television station in Seattle, to protest ABC's suspension of the Jimmy Kimmel Live! late-night show earlier in the week after threats by FCC chair Brendan Carr and US President Donald Trump, seen in Seattle, Washington. Demonstrators held signs in support of Jimmy Kimmel and the 1st Amendment-protected right to free speech. Some signs also urged a boycott of Disney and ABC. (Credit Image: © M. Scott Brauer/ZUMA Press Wire) (Newscom TagID: zumaglobalsixteen661102.jpg) [Photo via Newscom]

On 13 January, Mark Zuckerberg announced the appointment of Dina Powell McCormick as president and vice chairman of Meta. Powell McCormick — who previously served on Meta’s board of directors and was a key advocate for deeper ai integration across the company’s platforms — brings an extensive background as a senior finance executive. Her appointment,… Continue reading The silent coup of American public discourse

What would Betty Friedan make of the 21st-century tradwife?

The alluring title of Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique serves as a successful façade for the book’s rather morose themes. 15 years following her graduation from the all-female Smith College, Friedan constructed a questionnaire for her classmates — now all wives and mothers, but once equally academics. Despite the domestic reverie that had been portrayed… Continue reading What would Betty Friedan make of the 21st-century tradwife?

All roads lead to Rome — the White Rabbit meme and Gen Z’s ironic search for meaning and completion

It is a regular, boring and average night at my house, and I am in bed, doomscrolling as always on my phone on Instagram. My eyes are heavy, and my thumb is on autopilot as the lingering thought in the back of my mind says to me, “I should really be going to sleep right… Continue reading All roads lead to Rome — the White Rabbit meme and Gen Z’s ironic search for meaning and completion

Blessed are the obedient — women, worship and the architecture of conformity

“A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man; she must be quiet.” — 1 Timothy 2:11–12 There is something almost admirable in the efficiency with which religion has managed, across time and geography, to persuade women to defend systems… Continue reading Blessed are the obedient — women, worship and the architecture of conformity

Has the United States become an evil empire?

At a podium in front of the National Association of Evangelicals on 8 March 1983, Ronald Reagan delivered a line which would become synonymous with the US’s view of the Soviet Union for the rest of the Cold War. Reagan called on the evangelicals not “to ignore the facts of history and the aggressive impulses… Continue reading Has the United States become an evil empire?

The current state of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement—ICE

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) remains one of the most debated and scrutinised federal agencies in the US. Established in 2003 under the Homeland Security Act of 2002 following the 11 September attacks, ICE consolidated immigration enforcement and customs investigative functions previously housed in the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) and the US Customs… Continue reading The current state of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement—ICE

Oil, sanctions and sovereignty—the ongoing conflict between Venezuela and the United States

The conflict between Venezuela and the United States is not a conventional war, but rather a prolonged political, economic and diplomatic standoff rooted in ideological differences, contested elections, sanctions policy, energy geopolitics and regional security concerns. Over the past decade, tensions have intensified, eased at moments and then resurfaced—particularly around Venezuela’s electoral legitimacy, US sanctions,… Continue reading Oil, sanctions and sovereignty—the ongoing conflict between Venezuela and the United States

Responsibility laundering: how democracies outsource border violence

Border externalisation—the outsourcing of migration control to states beyond a country’s borders—has quietly become a defining feature of modern border policy. Marketed as “partnerships” and “capacity building, ” it in fact creates a transnational system of delegated violence, where accountability evaporates and suffering becomes someone else’s problem. The EU–Libya arrangement reveals this with brutal clarity.… Continue reading Responsibility laundering: how democracies outsource border violence

The Rohingya Crisis From My Bedroom 

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Nausea was spilling like soup in my eyes around 1 am, as I turned in bed.  It was the Monday night I had just finished marking 2100 MCQs and 42 mini essays. Meanwhile, I got an urgent email from two of my students, saying they had 24 hours to apply for a Rohingya student scholarship… Continue reading The Rohingya Crisis From My Bedroom