Covid and ageism: Experts say age discrimination in the West results from pre-pandemic policies
After the pandemic’s deadly first peak in April 2020, it became clear that Sweden’s quest to protect its elderly had failed. My home country had become the last outpost for a “herd immunity” approach, with the government ignoring international calls for quarantine. Sweden’s strategy had two central goals: Limit the...
Racism: As a Black woman, I had to change my route home because England lost
Football during the Euros and World Cup brings out a weird sense of patriotism in me, more than any other time. It’s when I, as a Black woman, feel unquestionably British. As British as white people. They shout, ‘Is it coming home Paula?’ and I respond, ‘Of course it is!’...
Covid has made UN’s goal to combat illicit financial and arms flows more urgent to fight cybercrime
This July, the UN High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development is convening to undertake a thematic review of Sustainable Development Goal 16 (SDG 16), among other key goals. Within SDG 16 is Target 16.4, which aims to significantly reduce illicit financial and arms flows, strengthen the recovery and return...
Zuma has proved South Africa is just another African country like Kenya with its tribalism or Nigeria with its corruption
Post-apartheid South-Africa always begs the question: Is South Africa just another African country; what can we do about it? “In the midst of the political confusion that has gripped our country, many people are wondering if we have come to the end of South Africa. The answer is simple: The...
Researchers should focus on generating knowledge instead of boosting their English skills
Most of my 19 years in Russian academia has been spent teaching English to students. But in 2014, my employer at the time, Tomsk Polytechnic University, gave me a new task: delivering full English courses to academics. I’ve been giving similar courses ever since. My experience of teaching English to...
Pandemic teaches us we can deliver better care to patients who seek to terminate pregnancies
Last year, over concerns of exposure to Covid-19, a federal judge ended the US Food and Drug Administration’s requirement that mifepristone, a medication necessary to terminate an early pregnancy, must be obtained directly from a hospital or provider’s office. On January 12, the Supreme Court reinstated that requirement, over the...
Facebook’s too big for antitrust law to regulate, its oversight board’s helpless
Unlike most other companies, growth and user engagement – not revenue, profit or even market capitalisation – have been the driving metrics for Mark Zuckerberg since the beginning. Any attempt to limit Facebook’s reach would have to contend with those core values. But we currently lack any methods to do...
UN’s biometric identity cards have brought little but pain to Rohingya refugees
Massive amounts of personal and biometric data are being gathered from hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. This should set off multiple alarm bells. As bystanders to likely crimes against humanity against the Rohingya, the humanitarian community has a particular responsibility to ensure their rights are not violated...
How Trumpists weaponised ‘smokescreen trolling’ and waged ideological war
Some of the claims coming out of the Trump camp in recent weeks are laughable: that Joe Biden is the Hamburglar, that Democrats are conspiring to take away the Chick-fil-A sauces of “real” Americans, that socialism is making your burritos more expensive. Some are much more serious, but just as...
Kenyans’ journey to the Promised Land stalled in River Jordan, they need a Joshua
It took the children of Israel 40 years to get from Egypt to the Promised Land. The journey could have been accomplished in 11 days. But while God had taken them out of Egypt in a day, it took Him a whole generation to take Egypt out of them. And...
