Columns
New in Ceasefire, The Unveiled Truth - Wednesday, October 27, 2010 19:32 - 5 Comments
The Unveiled Truth: The forgotten scapegoat
In the wake of Tariq Aziz's sentencing to death yesterday, Shirin Sadeghi revisits a case of striking similarities, that of Amir Abbas Hoveyda, the Shah of Iran's longest serving Prime Minister, who was executed by the Khomeini regime in 1979. As Sadeghi argues, Aziz's unwritten memoirs, like Hoveyda's, would have given us priceless insights into the history of the region, but are too inconvenient for the powers that be.
Modern Times, New in Ceasefire - Tuesday, October 26, 2010 18:01 - 0 Comments
Modern Times: Is anybody (partly) there?
In this week's Modern Times column, Corin Faife looks at how our 21st century lives are turning into one long stream of continuous, disjointed, fleeting interactions. Technology was supposed to save us time, instead, everyone is too busy doing a thousand things at once except, of course, those that matter. Time to stop the madness?
Deserter's Songs, New in Ceasefire - Saturday, October 23, 2010 17:59 - 0 Comments
Deserter’s Songs – Bye Bye Binaries (Music and Żal)
In this week's Deserter's Songs column, David Bell considers the way in which music can cut across binary distinctions, and considers a Polish term which may help us understand the complex, contradictory emotions that music can throw up.
In Theory, New in Ceasefire - Friday, October 22, 2010 15:21 - 11 Comments
In Theory – Herbert Marcuse: One Dimensional Man?
Marcuse's One-Dimensional Man was written in 1962, but much of it reads as if it could have been written today. In a forensic and robust re-assessment, political theorist Andrew Robinson highlights the merits, and lacunae, of this pivotal work.
New in Ceasefire, The Unveiled Truth - Wednesday, October 20, 2010 22:14 - 3 Comments
The Unveiled Truth: The importance of being M.I.A.
In this week’s column, Shirin Sadeghi takes a look at the case of M.I.A., who made headlines this week when, at an awards show, she appeared on the red carpet with a highly stylized but completely covering abaya and niqab. As Sadeghi shows, what makes M.I.A.’s work, in its visceral impact, so important is that it forces both the “East” and the “West” to face, and know, each other.
Diary of a Domestic Extremist, New in Ceasefire, Politics - Wednesday, October 20, 2010 11:42 - 0 Comments
Diary of a Domestic Extremist: The Final Cut?
The Con-Dem cuts, the latest attempt to dismantle the welfare state, will see massive, catastrophic changes to the social make up of the country. In his latest column, Mikhail Goldman says the fightback already under way can stop the unfolding disaster, but only through unity, courage and an awareness of past mistakes.
Modern Times, New in Ceasefire, Politics - Tuesday, October 19, 2010 22:30 - 1 Comment
Modern Times: Is the anti-deportation movement waiting for its Rodney King?
In this week's Modern Times column, Corin Faife looks at the case of Jimmy Mubenga, who died a few days ago during his attempted deportation as a result of excessive force. Faife reminds us that Mubenga's plea to his impassive fellow passengers, “what kind of people are you that do nothing?”, must act as a wake-up call to all of us.
Deserter's Songs, Music & Dance, New in Ceasefire - Saturday, October 16, 2010 8:19 - 9 Comments
Deserter’s Songs: The shape of education to come?
In this week's Deserter's Songs column on music and politics, David Bell considers the relevance of free improvisation for a 'new way of making and living education'. In so doing, he examines the resonances between the practice of free improvisation and what is commonly termed 'critical pedagogy'.The similarities, he contends, are startling.
New in Ceasefire, Sabir on Security - Friday, October 15, 2010 20:10 - 2 Comments
Sabir on Security – The 7/7 inquest: we need answers not a whitewash
This week, more than five years after the events, an official inquest has been launched into the London bombings of 7/7. As Rizwaan Sabir shows in his latest column, an inquest might answer some of the questions, but only a public inquiry can ensure the right lessons are learnt
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.
