100 years ago, in early August 1922, the barricades of Parma repelled Mussolini’s hordes…

Yorgos Mitralias At least during the interwar period, when there was a confrontation between the left and the fascists, it was always the fascists who won. And unfortunately, most of the time without meeting a real resistance. However, there has been one important exception. That of the Italian revolutionary Guido Picelli, who, the first and… Read More 100 years ago, in early August 1922, the barricades of Parma repelled Mussolini’s hordes…

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Vasili Arkhipov (1926-1998), the man who prevented nuclear war

First posted on October 27, 2012 The decision not to start world war three was not taken in the Kremlin or the White House, but in the sweltering control room of a submarine. The launch of the B-59’s nuclear torpedo required the consent of all three senior officers aboard. Arkhipov was alone in refusing permission.. … Read More Vasili Arkhipov (1926-1998), the man who prevented nuclear war

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Book review: Coffee With Hitler by Charles Spicer – polite society v the Nazis

Alexander Larman When Hitler rose to power in the early 1930s, public reaction in Britain was not that of unalloyed horror. Instead, it lay somewhere between disinterest, snobbish, if inaccurate, contempt (“the man’s a house painter!”), and, in some circles, quiet satisfaction that a vigorous reformer had shaken up his country in an apparently effective and… Read More Book review: Coffee With Hitler by Charles Spicer – polite society v the Nazis

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‘There is nothing for us’: Pakistan’s flood homeless start to despair

Hundreds of thousands of homes are under water in Sindh province. Locals have no food and say the state has abandoned them by Shah Meer Baloch in Dadu After several attempts, Zameer Ali, his son and his brother were finally heaved on to the deck of a wooden boat. Early that morning, the exhausted 48-year-old had waded… Read More ‘There is nothing for us’: Pakistan’s flood homeless start to despair

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Britain’s New Prime Minister Is Still in Thrall to the Empire

By Kojo Koram Mr. Koram is the author of “Uncommon Wealth: Britain and the Aftermath of Empire.” LONDON — “Do we confront this moment with honesty,” asked Rishi Sunak, one of the two candidates running to replace Boris Johnson as prime minister of Britain, “or do we tell ourselves comforting fairy tales?” The answer, from the Conservative… Read More Britain’s New Prime Minister Is Still in Thrall to the Empire

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Burning forests for energy isn’t ‘renewable’ – now the EU must admit it

Greta Thunberg and others Next week the future of many of the world’s forests will be decided when members of the European parliament vote on a revised EU renewable energy directive. If the parliament fails to change the EU’s discredited and harmful renewables policy, European citizens’ tax money will continue to pay for forests around the globe to… Read More Burning forests for energy isn’t ‘renewable’ – now the EU must admit it

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Brutal lockout in New Zealand mill town a stark portrait of capitalism’s failed hopes and broken promises

Morgan Godfery In 1948, when my Koro (grandfather) was born, the town of Kawerau was little more than a strip of old homesteads on the road between Rotorua and Whakatane. It had a Presbyterian church and a marae, but the nearest school and store were in the next town over – a 10-minute drive through… Read More Brutal lockout in New Zealand mill town a stark portrait of capitalism’s failed hopes and broken promises

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Scientists hope ‘world’s loneliest tree’ will help answer climate questions

Eva Corlett It is regarded as the “loneliest tree in the world” but the Sitka spruce on uninhabited Campbell Island has been keeping good company of late – with a team of New Zealand researchers who believe it could help unlock climate change secrets. The nine-metre tall spruce holds the Guinness World Record title for the “remotest… Read More Scientists hope ‘world’s loneliest tree’ will help answer climate questions

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Basudev Chatterji

Nayanjot Lahiri I first met Basudev (lovingly called ‘Robi’) Chatterji in 1978 when I was an undergraduate student and he a lecturer at St. Stephen’s college. Over the years, he appeared in various avataras in my life –  as a mentor, as a friend, later as a colleague. Apart from university corridors,  I met him… Read More Basudev Chatterji

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