Society

A wise man looks at all the facts. The pros, the cons. Weighs up all the arguments. Takes the emotion out of the debate and presents a clear view. Well, hallelujah! Sir Howard Davies’ Airport Commission has reported back that Heathrow is the preferred choice to provide additional aviation capacity by means of adding a third runway. Tell me something I didn’t know! Factually this is a clear-cut argument. London is desperate for more aviation capacity. It has been bursting at the seams for years. This is why a significant number of flights – sure you’ve been on one – have to circle the city awaiting a landing slot at Heathrow

Syed Kamall’s bid to be the Tory candidate in the race to be the next Mayor of London has not got off to a great start. In the face of strong competition from Zac Goldsmith, the London MEP emailed hundreds of Tory activists to win their support. Alas, the chummy campaign missive was addressed to the wrong people. ‘Dear everyone,’ came a swift follow up: ‘Well, you might have noticed that earlier today my team sent out an email from me with the wrong names on. If I called you “John” and your name is “Jane” or vice versa then all I can say is sorry for trying to change your

From ‘Arraying the Nation’, The Spectator, 3 July 1915: The voluntary system has no doubt certain advantages, but under a great strain it becomes the refuge of the slacker—of the lazy man, the selfish man, and the cowardly man, It is a system which reserves all the blows for the willing horse, and allows the unwilling to trot along in cynical security. But though this is our view, and we should not be candid if we did not set it forth, there is no reason per se why the advocate of the voluntary system should be against a National Register. Indeed, if he really believes that the voluntary method will

During the period of the crusades Greeks would refer to western Europeans by the generic term ‘Frank’, derived from the name of the leading barbarian tribe of the west. The word still lives on as a name for white people in Urdu and Hindi – Firangi – as well as Thai and Vietnamese, for whom US soldiers were called Farang (or ‘black Farang’ for African-American troops). According to Norman Stone’s history of Turkey, the word for syphilis in Turkish is likewise derived from Frank (it was also called ‘the French disease’ in 15th century Italy). ‘Frank’ is a useful term that really needs to be brought back to illustrate the

As MPs prepare to consider a private member’s bill to license what is being euphemistically called ‘assisted dying’, in Belgium a young woman with mental health problems has been cleared for euthanasia some time this summer. The Belgium-based outlet DeMorgen outlined the situation of the 24-year-old, identified only as ‘Laura’. Aside from depression and the feeling that ‘she wanted to die ever since childhood’, ‘Laura’ is physically healthy, enjoys coffee, friends and going to the theatre. According to the New Yorker, 13 percent of Belgians who died by euthanasia last year didn’t have a terminal illness — and 3 percent suffered from mental disorders. Belgium legalised euthanasia in 2002.  Since then the

Nicky Morgan is taking the fight against radicalisation into the classroom. On the Today programme, the Education Secretary outlined what her department is doing to support schools in tackling, what she called, this ‘very real threat’. The DfE will release new guidance for teachers today, offering ‘examples and support in how they might look for young people who are risk at radicalisation – perhaps changes of behaviour or things they might say’. But Morgan admitted there is a unclear line between what constitutes a ‘healthy debate’ and upholding ‘British values’: ‘Schools should be a safe space for young people to explore all sorts of ideas, but we have since last year been very clear that schools should also be teaching British

Tesco is in trouble for religious insensitivity. A store in east London had a special Ramadan promotion. Prominently positioned within its offers were Smokey Bacon Flavour Pringles © – and of course, hackles have consequently been raised. It matters not a jot that the re-constituted and hydrogenised potato snack contain no pork products whatsoever – the Smokey Bacon Flavour © is a consequence of some chemical by-product of depleted uranium or deep freezing the underwear of various local tramps, whatever. It’s enough to arouse fury, even if Muslims are prohibited only from eating pig itself, not stuff that might pass itself off as pig. Good. You kowtow to this religion with

Earlier this month, a review published by the Cochrane Library criticised the idea of ‘eating for two’ while pregnant, suggesting that doing so would affect foetal development and increase the likelihood of obesity in the child. At the weekend, the British Medical Association said it plans to revise all previous advice given to pregnant women, and will now inform them that the consumption of any alcohol while pregnant will have a negative effect on the child. Why doesn’t the BMA just come out and say that it doesn’t want pregnant women to have any fun? The continual revision of medical advice to make it fit with our health-obsessed culture is impacting

From ‘Cold-blooded Goodness‘, The Spectator, 26 June 1915: A young person of either sex who is wholly without sentimentality has not as a rule much heart. On the other hand, where practicality so overruns the character as to destroy all the finest feelings, it may still leave the capacity for sympathy not uninjured, but certainly undestroyed. No good child ever lived who did not wish for approbation, but certain good people do grow out of it. Indifference to it is a cold, unlovable virtue; but some quite kind and lovable people are indifferent to the opinion even of those they really like. It goes, we think, with an overweening desire