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SubscriptionsSection: Argument
Honestly held opinions and provocative argument based on current events or our recent reports.
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Cummings, Elliott, Westley – Boris Johnson’s Game of Russian Roulette
Otto English on how the new prime minister’s appointment of the toxic trio Dominic Cummings, Matthew Elliott and Chloe Westley is a massive hostage to fortune.
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Empty Promises: Boris Johnson’s 20,000 New Police Officers won’t Provide a Solution to Britain’s Creaking Justice System
North West England’s former Chief Prosecutor, Nazir Afzal, on why the new Prime Minister does not have a coherent crime and justice strategy – despite his ‘law and order’ rhetoric.
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Eco Anxiety: The Heat Wave Heralds the Climate Emergency To Us All – Why Won’t We Wake Up?
CJ Werleman on the psychological effects of climate change, its deniers and why younger generations are right to be so disturbed by the future planet that awaits them.
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Enter the Emperor: Why Boris Johnson is our Caligula
With his love of himself, vanity projects and grand pronouncements, Otto English on why Britain’s new Prime Minister shares more than a few similarities with the Roman Emperor who proved too good to be true.
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Weaponising News: With a Disgraced Journalist in Number 10, the Fourth Estate is now the Fifth Battlespace
Peter Jukes looks back over three years of information warfare around the election of Donald Trump and the Brexit referendum and asks: how do we distinguish real journalism from disinformation?
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Ignore the Squealing Landlords, Rent Control offers the Chance of a Better Society
Tom Cordell on why the Mayor of London’s plans to control private rents in the capital could be the revolution required to break through the housing crisis.
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While Austerity is Intellectually Dead, it is Far from Over in Reality
Jonathan Portes on why ideology, short-termism and a relentless focus on Brexit has resulted in economic hardship continuing in the UK long after the Coalition Government.
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Electing Trump was About White Supremacy Not ‘Making America Great Again’
CJ Werleman on the US President’s worrying attempts to gain support by tapping into deeply-rooted anxieties and prejudices concerning race.
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Reasons to be Cheerful: Trump’s Bigotry Backfires
The sight of Donald Trump surrounded by thousands of his supporters chanting “send her back” this week was chilling. But the reaction to it can give us a cause for hope.
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Australia’s Journalism Crisis is Threatening its Democracy
With Rupert Murdoch’s chosen government waging a war on journalists in Australia, democratic values in his country of birth are in peril, writes CJ Werleman.
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The Diary of a Homeless Man
Canadian Drew B explains his experience of sleeping rough in London and his battle on the streets against being deported.
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Jacob Rees-Mogg and the Brexiters’ Persistent Myths of Empire
Britain has not really faced up to losing an empire and the unresolved cost is playing out through the traumas of Brexit.
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Calling the North East of England ‘Brexit Central’ is Simplistic and Snobbish
Newcastle resident Molly Greeves’ take on how people in the north east feel about the decision to leave the EU three years on.
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We Should be Grateful but Not Complacent that ‘Tommy Robinson’ is in Prison
Byline Times’ court reporter James Doleman gives his personal take on the jailing of Stephen Yaxley-Lennon and his conviction for contempt of court.
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England’s Cricket Team Could Not Have Made History Without Immigration
With MP Jacob Rees-Mogg pontificating that England’s cricket World Cup victory shows “we clearly don’t need Europe to win”, Faisal Khan argues that immigration was key to the team’s success.
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We Must Fight this Dangerous Attack on Our Civil Service
Dr Jennifer Cassidy on why Kim Darroch’s resignation after leaked emails revealed his criticisms of Donald Trump’s administration are such a blow for the rule of law.
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The Double Attack on Liberal Democracy
The far right’s collusion with Vladimir Putin is now well-documented, but support from the left puts democracy in even greater danger.
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The Blindness of the Anti-War Left is Helping Undermine Democracy and Human Rights Everywhere
CJ Werleman on the rise of authoritarianism in Asia and why some on the left are aiding the advance of illiberal regimes, not fighting it.
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THE JUSTICE TRAP: A Miscarriage of Justice is a Lifelong Sentence
The injustice of how our justice system deals with its own errors was a key theme at the launch of Proof magazine this week.
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The Attraction of Iran: The Middle East’s Locked Up Treasure Trove
It’s not just a wealth of natural resources that makes Iran such a target, but the fact they’re nationalised explains Adi MacArtney
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‘We would Rather Die Now than be Kept in Here Forever’ – Life Inside a Saudi Detention Centre for Rohingya Refugees
CJ Werleman documents his conversations with Faisal Thar Thakin, a Rohingya Muslim who has been held in the kingdom’s notorious Shumaisi detention centre for the past six years.
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‘TOMMY ROBINSON’ GUILTY: A Fair Trial is at the Centre of Our Justice System
Nazir Afzal highlights why Stephen Yaxley-Lennon’s conviction for interfering with a child sexual abuse trial in Leeds in 2018 goes to the heart of justice itself.
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The Myths of Immigration Just Don’t Add Up
Jonathan Portes, Professor of economics and public policy at King’s College London, on why the UK has long been a country shaped by immigration and immigrants – and how the reality of this is not as bad as the rhetoric portrays.
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How Can Our Rage Over Alabama’s Abortion Ban Achieve Justice for Northern Ireland?
Molly Greeves on why Alabama’s abortion ban should jolt those in the UK into action to secure rights to the procedure in Northern Ireland.
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Brexit and Empire: Nostalgia for a Nation that Never Was is Driving Britain over a Cliff
With the likely next Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, praising Britain today as the ‘Greatest Place on Earth’ all the unlearned lessons of Empire are coming back to haunt us.
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Why do the British Not Eat Horsemeat? How Icons of the British Countryside have been Weaponised by the Brexit Establishment
Iain Overton on where power has always resided in Britain – and why the horse is its ultimate symbol.
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BREXIT: “The Greatest Electoral Heist in History” – How to Safeguard Our Democracy
Kyle Taylor of the Fair Vote campaign says the war of words between Scotland Yard and the Electoral Commission over electoral law breaking proves Britain needs urgent legislation.
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The Clock is Ticking on Boris and Brexit, but Still No Headway on Confronting Electoral Wrongdoing
Even though they’re crucial to the security of future elections, the British institutions supposed to be safeguarding democracy are playing the game of passing the buck.
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‘Jirga’ Provokes New Thinking on War and PTSD
CJ Werleman speaks to the Australian filmmaker Benjamin Gilmour about his new film Jirga.
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Defeating Democracy with its Own Weapons – A Warning from History
Otto English on why the Brexit Party MEPs’ decision to turn their backs on the EU’s anthem is more worrying than just being a mere stunt.
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Divide and Rule: ‘Colonial Mindsets Fuelling Islamophobia and Racism’
Hardeep Matharu speaks to Tahir Butt, a Muslim campaigner who spent nearly 30 years in the police, about his experience of racism and identity.
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PORTLAND VIOLENCE: When Fascists Become the Anti-Fascists?
CJ Werleman on what the reaction to the violence in Oregon reveals about the rising threat of fascism in America.
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From Protest to Party: Why Corporate Brands Need to Stop Hijacking Pride and Let Us Riot
Molly Greeves on why the iconic festival celebrating the LBGT+ community must return to its roots to have a real impact on social change.
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The One Thing Theresa May could do to Leave her Mark on History
Otto English on how a Prime Minister who will be remembered only for Brexit still has a chance to guarantee her place in posterity for something else.
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India’s Secular Democracy is in Crisis – What will it do when the Inevitable Happens?
CJ Werleman asks the darkest of all questions: what will happen in India the day after a handful of would-be violent “jihadist” terrorists carry out an attack motivated by Modi’s Hindu nationalism?
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The Housing Crisis is a Political Creation
In a new Byline Times series, ‘City for Sale’, film-maker and writer Tom Cordell outlines the reasons behind the housing crisis, the role played by politicians and the property and financial sectors, and the possible solutions.
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Liam Gallagher’s Been Pontificating on Knife Crime – But has he Heard of the ‘Dunning Kruger Effect’?
Otto English on why celebrities, who know very little about the political issues they are offering views on, should stick to their métier.
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German Foreign Minister Recognises Far Right “Terrorism Problem” while British Politicians Normalise it
CJ Werleman on how the UK is “sleepwalking” into a domestic right-wing terrorism crisis despite warnings from the police.
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Recalling the Stasi: Boris Johnson, Privacy and the Politics of Personal Destruction
Mike Stuchbery explains how a journalist’s targeting of neighbours who recorded the prime minister-in-waiting has more in common with East Germany’s infamous secret police than they do.
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The Lesson of Dachau and the ‘Concentration Camp’ Controversy
Mike Stuchbery sheds some light on the heated debate ignited by New York congresswoman Alexandra-Cortez
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A Challenge to Our Brexit Party Gravy Train-Riding MEPs
Fighting the system while grabbing its perks – Otto English on the Brexit Party MEPs’ big day out in Brussels.
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Why the Landmine Legacy of Princess Diana Must Address a 21st Century Reality
Iain Overton reports on how publicity around British landmine clearance efforts tend to ignore the War on Terror and the rise of IEDS.
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“They think they have No Choice but to Take their Own Lives” – The Shame of Australia’s Manus Island Must End
CJ Werleman explores what it will take to shift the Australian Government’s controversial policy of sending refugees from Asia and the Middle East to offshore detention facilities.
