Devil’s Advocate

Books, Devil's Advocate, Ideas, New in Ceasefire - Thursday, May 26, 2011 9:51 - 0 Comments

Books Natural Experiments of History

Can you run experiments on the past? A groundbreaking book seems to suggest the answer might be yes. 'National Experiments of History", co-authored by celebrated thinker Jared Diamond, attempts to propose a radical new way of studying history and other social sciences. Ceasefire's Omer Ali gives his verdict.

Devil's Advocate, New in Ceasefire - Thursday, February 17, 2011 15:21 - 3 Comments

Devil’s Advocate: The tuition cap increase? Hurray!

In this week's Devil's Advocate column, Omer Ali revisits the tuition fees debate. Increasing the cap on fees, he argues, is almost certainly very good news for both students and universities.

Devil's Advocate, Ideas, New in Ceasefire - Thursday, November 11, 2010 0:00 - 1 Comment

Devil’s Advocate Ideology: another form of blindness?

Do you have a worldview? does it have a name? Is it socialism? Anarchism? Conservatism? Well, as Omer Ali argues, in a new 'Devil's Advocate' column, it's not that some ideologies are better than others, but that ideology itself, by definition, is a form of unreason.

Devil's Advocate, Features, New in Ceasefire - Thursday, October 14, 2010 18:55 - 1 Comment

Devil’s Advocate Where the Tea Party gets it right

Everyone knows that the tea party movement is based on strident sloganeering rather than on any real serious intellectual principles, and everyone, Omer Ali argues, is wrong. In the latest of his Devil's Advocate columns, Ali warns that the Left should dismiss the Tea Party case at its own peril.

Devil's Advocate, Politics - Thursday, September 16, 2010 15:10 - 3 Comments

When Republicans and Ayatollahs agree: On the politics of Qur’an burnings and “The Ground Zero Mosque”

In his new 'Devil's Advocate' Column, Omer Ali examines the international storm over the so called "Ground Zero Mosque" and finds the usual mix of ubriddled bigotry and cynical manipulation.

Columns, Devil's Advocate, Features - Thursday, September 2, 2010 22:17 - 7 Comments

Devil’s Advocate: In defence of Tesco

In yesterday's 'Domestic Extremist' column, Mikhail goldman launched a vigorous attack on the increasingly ubiquitous dominance of the Tesco "empire". In this week's Devil's Advocate column, Omer Ali offers a thoughtful and solid attempt at counter-argument. For all their charmlessness, he argues, Supermarkets are in fact better for (almost) everyone, including the environment.

Columns, Devil's Advocate, Politics - Thursday, August 19, 2010 23:50 - 6 Comments

Devil’s Advocate: On the right to offend

Is there a right not to be offended? If so, what about the right to offend? In particular, are some Muslims simply conflating being justifiably criticised with being illegally abused? Omer Ali, Ceasefire's very own Devil's Advocate, ruminates on the matter...

Columns, Devil's Advocate, Ideas, Politics - Thursday, August 5, 2010 14:02 - 9 Comments

Devil’s Advocate: Is Democracy overrated?

Everyone knows -or at least pays lip-service to- Democracy as an exalted ideal. Is everyone wrong? Is this a concept we have been too lazy, or too blind, to fully examine? what is so special about a system that is aimed at creating a good society yet rarely delivers on that promise? In a controversial piece, the first of his 'Devil's Advocate' columns, Omer Ali examines the impact of democracy as well as its theoretical underpinnings. In the process, he draws on examples from politics and economics and takes aim at a few sacred truths.