Did MAGA create the Ceuta crisis?
Sixty-thousand people — roughly the population of Loughborough. That is how many migrants just forced their way into the Spanish town of Ceuta, a coastal…
The Ukraine War’s big lie
It has become something of a seasonal ritual. Every summer, Brussels launches a fresh propaganda offensive on Ukraine — and this year is no different. “The tide is turning”, Commission…
Did Homer have a woman problem?
When an enormous Hollywood blockbuster is extruded, the actors cast in it are employed to put on a sage voice and discuss its importance. Lupita Nyong’o took up the challenge…
Farage’s Clacton reckoning
In politics, triumph and tragedy run close together. When Nigel Farage decided to resign from parliament and force a by-election in Clacton he clearly thought he had pulled a masterstroke…
A cancellation novel’s lunar sequel
The year 2011 saw the release of two movies — one, an auteurist masterpiece by Lars von Trier starring Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg; the other a low-budget think-piece starring…
Meta glasses are for perverts
Kylie Jenner asks her brand-new Meta glasses what the weather is like in New York City. Another Kylie Jenner, from inside said glasses, responds: “It’s around 68 degrees … light…
JD Vance’s convenient Catholicism
JD Vance was the first real writer to appear on a winning presidential ticket since Woodrow Wilson in 1912. Each embodied the fashions of his age. Wilson owed his cerebral…
America: land of the cheats
“Ball don’t lie.” This phrase, originally attributed to NBA star Rasheed Wallace, comes from American basketball culture and implies that, no matter what the referees or back-office bureaucrats do to…
Meet Ulster’s young Orangemen
There’s a party atmosphere in Carrickfergus. Thousands of spectators line the streets, and the screeches of children fight for attention over a chorus of tin whistles. The town is closed…
Blue Labour’s last chance
Calling Blue Labour a faction would be an insult to factions. Where some Labour tribes organize internally in their local parties, wield influence in the trade unions, prepare slates of…
Taylor Swift: feudal princess
Our chronically leaky national governments could learn a thing or two about from Taylor Swift’s wedding planners. Rumors swirled for weeks in the run-up. New York streets were closed off.…