Books reviewed: Beebology, or the history of the ‘British Bastard Corporation’

Margaret Thatcher hated the ‘British Bastard Corporation’, as her husband liked to call it. Coverage of the Falklands War was an inevitable flashpoint, with Thatcher raging against reporters’ references to ‘British’ forces rather than ‘our’ troops. The tabloid press sensed an opportunity to put the boot in, with the Sun wheeling out the tiredest of tropes by… Read More Books reviewed: Beebology, or the history of the ‘British Bastard Corporation’

Dilip

Peter A Smith: How a decades-long boom in licit opioid production was fueled by Tasmanian-grown poppies

Heading into the highlands of Tasmania, some 250 miles south of the Australian mainland, narrow black-topped roads meander through a wide river valley bounded by distant mountain bluffs. Two-track paths splinter off into grassy pastures, past skeletal trees bleached by sun and drought. All along the way, small signs dangle from wire fence lines: Danger Prohibited… Read More Peter A Smith: How a decades-long boom in licit opioid production was fueled by Tasmanian-grown poppies

Dilip

The good news – Karnataka: Belur temple continues tradition of starting festival with Quran recitation / Hindus protected mosque during Ramnavmi procession in Bihar / ‘This is Hindustan’: Hindu woman protected Muslim shopkeepers during riots in Rajasthan

“Reading excerpts from the Quran is a tradition but this year, there was a confusion as the temple authorities had initially issued a notice barring Muslim traders from setting up stalls. However, the endowment department took the suggestion of various priests and decided to go ahead with the tradition,” an official from the Endowment department… Read More The good news – Karnataka: Belur temple continues tradition of starting festival with Quran recitation / Hindus protected mosque during Ramnavmi procession in Bihar / ‘This is Hindustan’: Hindu woman protected Muslim shopkeepers during riots in Rajasthan

Dilip

Jonathan Haidt: Why the past 10 years of American life have been uniquely stupid

NB: Yes, however the stupidity is not confined to the USA… DS The story of Babel is the best metaphor I have found for what happened to America in the 2010s, and for the fractured country we now inhabit. Something went terribly wrong, very suddenly. We are disoriented, unable to speak the same language or… Read More Jonathan Haidt: Why the past 10 years of American life have been uniquely stupid

Dilip

Incredibly, current climate pledges could keep heating below 2C – but our work isn’t over

The battle to get countries and companies to sign up to net zero is being won. Now let’s keep pushing for more ambitious targets. he climate crisis is often seen in binary terms. Precise temperature targets – limiting global heating to 1.5C or 2C – imply decisive moments of victory or loss. Headlines warn that… Read More Incredibly, current climate pledges could keep heating below 2C – but our work isn’t over

Dilip

Thawing permafrost is roiling the Arctic landscape, driven by a hidden world of changes / Researchers identified over 5,500 new viruses in the ocean

Across the Arctic, strange things are happening to the landscape. Massive lakes, several square miles in size, have disappeared in the span of a few days. Hillsides slump. Ice-rich ground collapses, leaving the landscape wavy where it once was flat, and in some locations creating vast fields of large, sunken polygons. It’s evidence that permafrost,… Read More Thawing permafrost is roiling the Arctic landscape, driven by a hidden world of changes / Researchers identified over 5,500 new viruses in the ocean

Dilip

मौन मोदी के नाम भारत के मन की बात #SakshiJoshi

मौन मोदी के नाम भारत के मन की बात Our contributors are our viewers. Please Support independent journalism so we can bring you unbiased news without any pressure. Subscribe to SAKSHI JOSHI on youtube and facebook, like and share our video reports. comment more and more to expand its reach. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuBoI5YHbqY follow me on Twitter… Read More मौन मोदी के नाम भारत के मन की बात #SakshiJoshi

Dilip

Constitution-makers did not envisage a monolithic government: M.K. Stalin

The founders of our Constitution did not create a unitary, monolith government. The powers and functions were separated into three, and they were placed under the State List, the Concurrent List and the Union List. After the passing of the Panchayat Raj Act, local self-government bodies were given rights, and the powers were devolved. Hence,… Read More Constitution-makers did not envisage a monolithic government: M.K. Stalin

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