Deepanshu Mohan: American gun violence is the result of an economy aimed at maximising self-interest

Factoring in the value of human life and ethical considerations in economic and social policy making could bring about change. “To allow the market mechanism to be sole director of the fate of human beings and their natural environment… would result in the demolition of society,” warned political economist Karl Polanyi in his book The Great… Read More Deepanshu Mohan: American gun violence is the result of an economy aimed at maximising self-interest

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Young people go to European court to stop treaty that aids fossil fuel investors

Young victims of the climate crisis will on Tuesday launch legal action at Europe’s top human rights court against an energy treaty that protects fossil fuel investors. Five people, aged between 17 and 31, who have experienced devastating floods, forest fires and hurricanes are bringing a case to the European court of human rights, where they… Read More Young people go to European court to stop treaty that aids fossil fuel investors

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Orhan Pamuk on Dayanita Singh’s mesmerising photos of India’s disintegrating archives

What has most drawn me to Singh’s work are the photographs collected in her books File Room and Museum of Chance. In these, we find black and white images of India’s vast state archives, storerooms and registry offices. As we leaf through these books, we become filled with an idea of poetic decrepitude and a… Read More Orhan Pamuk on Dayanita Singh’s mesmerising photos of India’s disintegrating archives

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Richard Smyth: Nature does not care

The English journalist John Diamond, shortly before his death from throat cancer in 2001, wrote that ‘there is really no such thing as alternative medicine, just medicine that works and medicine that doesn’t’. Ecological knowledge might be thought of as similarly indivisible. There are no alternative birds, non-traditional plants, complementary ecologies. More often than not,… Read More Richard Smyth: Nature does not care

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Bharat Bhushan: The nation on Agnipath: Perils of a government that does not listen

The Central government has been caught unawares by violent agitations against Agnipath, its short-tenure recruitment programme to the armed forces. The navy chief is on record saying that he had not expected “protests like this”. Perhaps his counterparts in the Army and the Indian Air Force didn’t either. The government itself is surprised. Yet attempts… Read More Bharat Bhushan: The nation on Agnipath: Perils of a government that does not listen

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Lyn Alden: The credit-based global financial system we have participated in over the past century has to continually grow or die

Several of the major central banks are stuck in a trap of their own making. This includes the US Federal Reserve, the Bank of Japan, the European Central Bank, and others. The credit-based global financial system we have constructed and participated in over the past century has to continually grow or die. It’s like a game of… Read More Lyn Alden: The credit-based global financial system we have participated in over the past century has to continually grow or die

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'Napalm Girl' at 50: The story of the Vietnam War's defining photo / “Because Our Fathers Lied”: Craig McNamara Reveals the Lies of His Father, Robert McNamara

The horrifying photograph of children fleeing a deadly napalm attack has become a defining image not only of the Vietnam War but the 20th century. Dark smoke billowing behind them, the young subjects’ faces are painted with a mixture of terror, pain and confusion. Soldiers from the South Vietnamese army’s 25th Division follow helplessly behind. Taken… Read More 'Napalm Girl' at 50: The story of the Vietnam War's defining photo / “Because Our Fathers Lied”: Craig McNamara Reveals the Lies of His Father, Robert McNamara

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National Herald case: No crime, no FIR, says Randeep Surjewala

Questioning the basis of the entire process, Congress leader and former finance minister P. Chidambaram tweeted: “Will the learned spokespersons for the BJP please answer the following questions: 1. Which is the ‘scheduled offence’ under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) that has triggered an investigation by ED? 2. Which police agency has registered an… Read More National Herald case: No crime, no FIR, says Randeep Surjewala

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