It is often said that the only constants in life are death and taxes. But history suggests a third certainty—migration. As nations build borders and societies imagine themselves rooted in myths of permanence, humanity has always been in motion. Civilisations rise, expand, splinter and reform; people leave, arrive, return and transform the very places they… Continue reading A funnel in both directions—how global movement mirrors the Age of Empire
People online love to joke that “men used to build things”, usually paired with a photo carousel of the Taj Mahal, Registan Square or Versailles. Behind the humour is a real point. Art once occupied a central place in public life, and the people remembered across empires were often philosophers, poets, architects or scientists whose… Continue reading How the Cold War killed creativity
Russia has quietly built a sprawling billion-dollar network across Central and West Africa. Its secret weapon is a mix of mercenaries, resource deals, and shadowy trading companies that funnel money directly to Kremlin-linked paramilitaries and indirectly to Moscow itself. Wagner Group and now its successor Africa Corps operate at the heart of this system, blending… Continue reading The Kremlin’s African Gold Rush: How Moscow Turns Gold Into Power
As I am writing this piece, Palestinian families, friends and neighbours are gathered in their ancestral olive groves. The small green or black fruits are ready for plucking during the annual mawsim al-zaytoun (“olive season”), which typically lasts from October to November. Once the freshly picked olives are packed into bags and pails, they are… Continue reading Eco-sumud: Olive Harvests as Resistance in Palestine
Of all the New Year’s resolutions to have been put forward by various celebrities, I find Zarah Sultana’s message to be the most hopeful. Her short, sweet and simple tweet didn’t beat around the bush and got straight to the heart of the matter. It read: “My message of hope for 2026. Abolish the monarchy.”… Continue reading Abolishing the monarchy through identity
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
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
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
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?
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
