America's turn: new wars, special forces

A shift in the United States's military strategy in the direction of "remote control" involves greater reliance not just on armed-drones but on special forces.

Where there is no will there is no way: will Syria be the next Halabja?

The final balance of the war has not yet tipped against the regime and, if and when it does, no ‘red-line’ will stop Assad from using chemical weapons on a scale that would make Halabja look like a small incident. Will Obama prevent another tragedy? 

Lebanon tempts fate

While a protracted civil conflict in Lebanon is unlikely, a clash between Hezbollah and Israel is only too feasible.

 

Champagne for Serco shareholders, 23 hour lock-ins for Serco prisoners

Serco shareholders gather in the City of London today to celebrate financial success. Just across the river, Britain's newest private prison HMP Thameside, run by Serco, is failing.

The upcoming EU-US and EU-Canada trade deals have serious implications for the NHS

After the government pushed through its widely opposed privatisation regulations it is time now to focus on the big trade deals and look to the G8 meeting in June. There is a reason the public are being told nothing about them - because they won't like what they hear.

A republican call for a basic income

Republicanism offers a persuasive guide to the political shaping of markets. A basic income could be the foundation of a democratic republican economy that frees all citizens from the commodification of labour.

The Eurozone crisis: no way back

Creating a common currency area means replacing indifference by cooperation and conflict. In this sense the Eurozone crisis might not be a deadly challenge to the whole European construct, but rather become a further step towards a European society.

Return to national currencies? Not so fast!

Oskar Lafontaine, the former Die Linke chairman and a figure of the German left, has recently called for a return to national currencies. But while frustration with the euro is widespread, his solution doesn't make sense from an economic, political or even moral point of view.

Debate: Britain and the EU – Is the UK leading the way or running away?

Watch the debate with Graham Watson MEP (ALDE Group Leader) and Martin Callanan MEP (ECR Group Leader), moderated by Peter O’Donnell, covering many of the key issues for debate. What would Britain actually lose?

G4S asylum-housing fiasco descends into farce

Things aren't going well in the UK's new asylum housing 'market' that is dominated by the world's biggest security company. Now G4S threatens to evict an asylum-seeker because G4S has failed to pay her rent. Are public services safe in its hands?

Turkey’s Syria quagmire takes a new turn

Among the many questions raised by the recent attack, Turkey has been accused of intentionally neglecting border security to allow the Free Syrian Army and international jihadists to use Turkish soil along the border as a base.

China: what we think we know is wrong

There's been too much lazy categorisation. It's time to get microscopic about power in China, says Kerry Brown.

Bulgaria’s elections: change we disbelieve in

A mixed result offers some satisfaction to all of Bulgaria's largest parties. But signs of escape from the country's political and economic troubles are elusive, says Dimitar Bechev.

Marriage as symbolic resistance: a story of Ethiopian Muslim activism

While the Kality inmates were supposed to be broken through incarceration and character assassination, they have manifested their hope through their colourful marriages.

The new normal: housing and protest in Britain

Action is stirring in response to the country-wide housing crisis. Severe shortage and cuts to housing benefits leave the UK struggling to put roofs over heads. Some local authorities and tenant groups are trying to rebel; they need concerted support.

The Golden Country: the organic myth of the British constitution

The nostalgic appeal to ‘the spirit of 45’ is embedded in a long myth of ‘public services’ propagated by the culture of Britain’s unwritten constitution.

The best way to defend the UK's role in the EU is to be honest about its failings

Nigel Lawson's provocations on the EU question raise some important points. It is no longer tenable to trot out the same tired arguments for the Union. It has very serious failings. A positive account of the UK's membership must address them head on.

BRICS: let’s talk about labour

A conversation about what development means and how to improve transnational cooperation between countries in the South cannot build a serious platform without the participation of organised labour.

Bahrain's rights, Britain's failure

Britain's lack of support for freedom of expression in Bahrain is a flawed and self-defeating policy, says Nicholas McGeehan of Human Rights Watch.

Metronome

A short film exploring emerging social tensions within Athens' public spaces (8 mins).

This week's editor

Heather McRobie


Heather McRobie is a regular contributor to 50.50