after a war ends there is usually a large rise in taxes

US allies keeping up the fight against freedom - Saudi Arabian blogger Raif Badawi sentenced to 1000 lashes, 10 years in prison, and a fine of 1,000,000 riyal (US$165,000)
- http://e-activist.com

Save the Children's Global Legacy Award given to Tony Blair!
Was the other nominee Abubakar Shekau?

a whistleblower - someone sacked or imprisoned for not hiding their identity when attempting to disclose the illegal activities of their employer

how can terrorism possibly be successful against an enemy which rewards its followers with sex and drugs and rock 'n' roll?

the population of Scotland is bigger than that of most countries

"America didn't fight Iraq - it destroyed it."

an unexpected consequence of the coup in Libya, which was encouraged and supported by the UK, is that Libya is now a centre for immigration into Europe

has the Arab Spring become an Arab bloodbath?

in the last 700 years there has been one female Lord Mayor of London

people supporting the UK Monarchy reminds me of the slaves who fought on the Confederate side in the American Civil War

fighting terrorists with drones is like fighting fire with petrol

Bradley Manning is the true US hero of the War in Iraq; perhaps one day he will be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

The twenty-first century definition of a terrorist state seems to be a state that is outside the control of the USA.

two of the iconic symbols of the C20th: the mushroom cloud and the Mandelbrot

it's a fine line between superstition and not offending the gods

the offices of Al Jazeera in Kabul and Baghdad were both blown up by US missiles - so much for the freedom of the media

Thatcher's Government crushed the miners and closed the coalmines. Today a third of the UK's electricity comes from coal. The UK now imports coal from Indonesia, S Africa, Russia and Columbia.

when i was young, my teachers told me that the reason why the USA and the UK were morally superior to the USSR was that we did not torture people, and we did not imprison people without a trial

how times have changed!

living forever is something which appeals mainly to the young