Society

Friday

Mark Daniell

Picking sides for Euro 2008

In the absence of any Home Nations presence in the upcoming Euro 2008 football championships, there’s been plenty of talk about which teams we Brits should support. I suspect many will have been scouring family trees or revamping tired old prejudices in a desperate attempt to give a hoot about what will happen. Personally, I find it difficult to forget past footballing harm inflicted on England, and could never bring myself to support the perpetrators. As such, this condition rules out Portugal, Germany, France, Romania and, well, if you go back far enough, pretty much anyone (except maybe Spain). Which doesn’t leave a whole load of choice. Perhaps, then, there’s

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Will South Africa act over Zimbabwe?

Robert Mugabe’s Zimbabwe is as dependent on South Africa as Ian Smith’s Rhodesia, and The LA Times editorial board has a good example of how South Africa could force Mugabe to back down if it wanted to: Mugabe is beyond hope, but it’s worth attempting an international pressure campaign against his chief enabler, South African President Thabo Mbeki. “Zimbabwe is not a province of South Africa,” Mbeki famously answered those who have urged him to curb Mugabe’s excesses. That’s true. It’s more like a protectorate of South Africa. South Africa supplies food, fuel, money, remittances and electricity to its neighbor. The electricity runs Zimbabwe’s vital platinum mines, in which South

The Spectator

How to get hold of the Spectator 180th Anniversary issue

We’ve had quite a few people asking how to get hold of the special Spectator 180th Anniversary issue, other than from off newsstands (priced £4.95).  You can do so by either phone or e-mail.  Here’s the info from our subscriptions team: Subscriber?  Call the order hotline now to receive the special subscriber price of only £3. Simply call 0800 031 90 19. Living overseas? Order your copy today for only £4.95 plus p&p. Simply call +44 141 22 66 703. Otherwise, e-mail 180th@spectator-business.co.uk to get your hands on a copy.

Thursday

Alex Massie Alex Massie

Blair’s Appealling Modesty…

I’d have more respect for the Tony Blair Faith Foundation if it had a different, less egotistical, name. (And, if truth be told, if it were led by a different, less sanctimonious, person). To wit, as he told Time last week: He can, no question, come across as a bit cocksure in the rightness of his judgments. But he swims in deep waters. He is convinced, he told me, that in the rich world, “without spiritual values, there is an emptiness that cannot be filled by material goods and wealth.” He understands that faith is what gives meaning to the lives of billions, and he passionately believes that the world

Alex Massie Alex Massie

The Madness of Crowds

Recalling the weirdness of the Ron Paul Revolution, Julian Sanchez risks a peek at Hillary’s equally delusional supporters and sagely concludes that all this: should be at least a little unsettling to people who want to view politics as this kind of wonderful deliberative process by which we all reason together, harnessing our collective wisdom to choose wise policies. There seems to be a stronger case for thinking that politics us makes us crazier together than we are seperately: E pluribus, unhinged. Indeed so. But them’s the breaks, ain’t they?

Alex Massie Alex Massie

What do they know of cricket who only play it well?

It is not, right now, saying much to observe that Kevin Pietersen is England’s best batsman. His century against New Zealand today has not been the stuff of legends but it has at least rescued England from the perilous position they had put themselves into at 86/5. But if Pietersen is England’s best batsman, we must hope that he is also be their most ignorant. How else to explain his prediction that Monty Panesar “will be the best finger-spinner the world has ever seen”? Of course there’s no reason to suppose that test cricketers might also have some appreciation for the the game’s history. But it would be nice to

Fraser Nelson Fraser Nelson

A classic underclass problem?

What’s the cause of knife crime? The government has today focused on tightening laws etc. But if Charles Murray were here today, he’d see this as a classic underclass problem. He has three tests for an underclass: births outside marriage, jobless young men and violent crime. In 1997, 37% of children were born outside marriage – this is now projected to be 44.2% (strip out immigrants and it would be 50.1%). In 1997, 15% men were economically inactive (ie, not in work or seeking it). Now in spite of those 3m new jobs it is 16.5% – the highest in the history of these islands. Finally, violent crime was 650,330

James Forsyth James Forsyth

It might not be right for Dannatt to go public, but he is right

One can question the propriety of General Sir Richard Dannatt speaking out about serviceman’s pay in The Sun but it is hard to disagree with him. “You look to see how much a traffic warden is paid and compare that against what a private soldier gets paid. “If you compare a police constable on overtime, I think you will find that an individual serviceman gets quite a lot less.” A soldier’s starting salary is £12,572 a year, rising to £15,677 as a Level 1 private. A traffic warden’s basic pay is £17,000. Dannatt is also right that Britain urgently needs to spend more on the military. If we wish to

Peter Hoskin

In the latest issue

We’ve just uploaded the content from the latest issue of the magazine. And I’d strongly recommend you read Matt’s interview with Jacqui Smith, on the hot topic of 42-day detention. Says Smith: “I don’t think the government could fall over this …. I think if it was turned into a vote of confidence there would be massive support of the government, I don’t think it would be a problem.” Do you agree? As always, have your say in the comments section. Elsewhere in the magazine, Rod Liddle has his say on the community support officer who threatened two Christian evangelical ministers with arrest for handing out Gospel literature in a

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Hillary bows to the inevitable

“Senator Clinton will be hosting an event in Washington, DC to thank her supporters and express her support for Senator Obama and party unity.  This event will be held on Saturday to accommodate more of Senator Clinton’s supporters who want to attend.” This terse statement from the Clinton campaign indicates that the Clintons have accepted what became crystal clear on Tuesday night: the Democratic primary race is finally over. I doubt that I’ll see in my lifetime another campaign that twists and turns as much as this one did. That it went on so long is reflective of both the strengths and weaknesses of the two candidates. Hillary’s tenacity, her

Wednesday

James Forsyth James Forsyth

A ticket to defeat

Picking Hillary Clinton as his VP would be fatal to Obama’s chances. It is hard to imagine a move that could cause him more damage. First, it would make him look weak—as if Hillary had forced him into making a concession to her. Secondly, it would undercut his message that his candidacy represents change and the future. If this wasn’t enough, it would also motivate the Republican base like nothing else. NBC are reporting that Hillary does want to be his running mate. (Personally, I expect she must just be running through the gamut of emotions and we won’t know what she really thinks for at least 24 hours or

Fraser Nelson Fraser Nelson

The rebirth of inflation

Many years ago, Roger Bootle wrote a book called ‘The Death of Inflation’ which was a brilliant guide to understanding the economics which were to dominate all major countries in the Brown years. We need a book called ‘The Rebirth of Inflation’ to explain the years ahead. Your savings strategy, property strategy and shopping trends will all be affected. The Daily Mail today unpacks energy inflation, and had the boldness to splash with this hugely important story. There are also huge questions around food inflation being asked in Rome today involving the harm inflicted by biofuels, the challenge of feeding China and India and a new look at GM food.

James Forsyth James Forsyth

What now for Obama and McCain?

If John McCain or his supporters had any doubts about the challenges ahead, they should have been removed last night. Obama once more demonstrated that he can hit the rhetorical heights at will, turn out a crowd whenever he needs and pose as a unifying figure, hovering above normal politics even while taking partisan jabs at his opponent. By contrast, McCain’s speech appeared defensive and uninspiring. Obama might have rather limped across the finished line – he has been consistently out-campaigned and out-performed by Hillary Clinton since the end of his February hot streak – but he will be a formidable general election opponent. The aircraft hangar campaigning of the

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Obama: I will be the nominee

Hillary Clinton might not have conceded last night but Barack Obama now has the delegates he needs to be the nominee. He declared himself the nominee last night despite Hillary Clinton’s refusal to drop out. His immediate challenge is to usher her off the stage and re-unite the party. He started that task with generous praise for her last night and a speech that hit the Democratic high notes.  

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Obama will have enough delegates to formally claim the nomination once the Montana and South Dakota results come in

NBC’s delegate count shows that following the flurry of super delegate declarations for him today, Obama is only 11 away from having an absolute majority of delegates. Considering that there are 31 up for grabs in Montana and South Dakota, Obama is pretty much certain to reach that mark before the end of the night.  According to the prepared remarks that have leaked to Drudge, Obama will declare himself the nominee this evening. He will, though, sweeten the pill for Hillary and her supporters with effusive praise for the Clintons.

Matthew Lynn

Will the wisdom of Warren Buffett translate into German?

Matthew Lynn wonders whether the world’s greatest investor will be able to pick winners in continental Europe the way he has for more than four decades in the US If Warren Buffett had not become famous as the world’s richest man — a career choice that trumps most alternatives — he could still have carved out a niche for himself as a writer of homely lessons in economics and business. The Sage of Omaha, as Buffett is known for his uncanny knack of calling the markets right, has always been able to explain his decisions in simple language. Buffettisms such as ‘Rule No. 1: Never lose money. Rule No. 2:

Richard Northedge

The great box-ticker takes charge

The Financial Services Authority has had only two chairmen since its creation in 1997, and as the Northern Rock debacle happened on the watch of the second incumbent, Sir Callum McCarthy, the model for his replacement is inevitably the original holder, Sir Howard Davies. On that basis, Adair Turner — Lord Turner of Ecchinswell — ticks all the boxes. Both are former McKinsey men; Turner followed Davies as director-general of the CBI; Turner is a visiting professor at the London School of Economics, where Davies is now director. Both sit on the board of Paternoster, a private company that buys out corporate pension funds. Their kids even attended the same

Jonathan Beckman

The intelligentsia head south

Adam Thorpe set his previous novel, Between Each Breath, in Hampstead. He moves in his latest to the liberal intelligentsia’s summer hunting ground, the south of France. Nick and Sarah Mallinson, two not quite successful enough Cambridge historians, decamp on their sabbatical to Languedoc with their three young daughters. Their house is rented from the Sandlers, a mercenary pair of art dealers; the husband, Alan, took advantage of the invasion of Iraq to bag a number of archaeological artefacts by dubious means. Intent on completing neglected books and home-educating their children, the Mallinsons’ time dissipates into distraction and peacekeeping between warring kids. Meanwhile, the decidedly weird handyman, Jean-Luc, tends the

Tuesday

Alex Massie Alex Massie

Our Legislators at Work

An occasional series in which we dare to take a look at what’s actually happening in the Scottish Parliament. Not, I warn you, for the faint of heart or the easily enraged. Now, yes, it’s true that most MSPs are well-intentioned, even kindly, souls concerned with the public good. But this takes them to some strange places. Consider these questions from “Health and Wellbeing” questions last week (what an awful title for a government ministry incidentally, one that explicitly endorses the idea of nannying adults)…

Alex Massie Alex Massie

OK, so maybe the lunch queue isn’t totalitarian, but…

Gene Healy draws attention to this Bill Clinton quotation from 1997*:And it’s hard when you’re not threatened by a foreign enemy to whip people up to a fever pitch of common, intense, sustained, disciplined endeavor. But that is what we must do, my fellow Americans. That is what we must do.I don’t mean to pick on Bill Clinton here since, after all, Barack Obama and John McCain would each agree with the sentiment expressed by Clinton here. So too would George W Bush who, accepting his party’s nomination in 2000, lamented the lack of “purpose” *Of course, many of the American right would say that the US was threatened in