Author: nick

A hearty cheer could be heard from patriotic citizens longing to restore American greatness when Justice Department lawyers argued last week that the administration could, if need be, “bulldoze” the Statue of Liberty. The argument was made in court proceedings to determine the future of President Donald Trump’s big, beautiful ballroom. Nobody actually wants the Statue of Liberty destroyed at this time, of course, though that could change. The New York Harbor colossus has long been a beacon to the world’s tired, poor, huddled masses blah-blah-blah, but this might not be the best time to encourage even more “wretched refuse”…

Richard Gowers (front right) with Jakub Hrůša, conductor, and brass players of the Berlin Philharmonic. Photo: David Yearsley. For centuries, the King of Instruments ruled by Divine Right. He had come from humble origins, midwifed into the world by an Alexandrian engineer by the name of Ctesibius two centuries before the birth of the King of Kings (aka Jesus Christ). This hydraulis—so called because water pressure was used to stabilize the wind generated by a cylindrical pump—was a modestly sized but ingeniously appointed portable mechanism. Soon, the boy (the organ, not Jesus) had been adopted all around the Mediterranean World.…

If police in the UK are told they must believe any racial minority who claims to have been racially abused, what are they supposed to do when they come across an incident where claims of racism are made? Obviously they will be inclined to see the person claiming racial abuse as the “victim,” and the accused as the “criminal.” How can they do otherwise? This is what happened when the police arrived on the scene of the stabbing murder of the white student Henry Nowak by Vickrum Singh Digwa, a 23-year-old British Sikh in Southampton in December 2025. Digwa had…

Germany threw everything it had behind its campaign for a seat on the UN Security Council, but the campaign failed: The UN General Assembly decided that Germany has no place there. This year, two rotating seats allocated to the Western European group were up for election. Portugal received 134 votes. Austria received 131. They took the two seats. Germany secured 104 votes, falling 23 short of the required two-thirds majority. For Berlin, this is not a minor diplomatic setback, but a historic humiliation. Since reunification, Germany has served four times as a non-permanent member of the Security Council, winning the…

Photo by Markus Spiske “This event would never have happened with the Militarily Top Secret Ballroom currently under construction at the White House,” US president Donald Trump claimed the day after an armed would-be assassin attempted to charge through a security barricade at the Washington Hilton. “It cannot be built fast enough!” US Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) agreed: “America has a problem. That problem is, it is very difficult to have a bunch of important people in the same place unless it is really, really secure.” I partly agreed with Trump, Graham, and other prominent Republicans at the time: By…

What connects the rapper Kanye West, pick-up artist Julien Blanc, and left-wing broadcaster Cenk Uygur of The Young Turks YouTube channel? All three are Americans who have been banned from visiting the UK, as their presence has been deemed “not conducive to the public good”—which is essentially British bureaucrat-speak for “they have expressed views that some might find offensive.” The UK has a notoriously lax approach to illegal migrants who traverse the English Channel on small boats. On arrival, even hardened criminals are regularly offered free accommodation, access to public services, and “human rights” protections that ensure they won’t be…

Robert and Mabel Williams were two of the most militant organizers of the Black liberation movement in its first couple decades. Unwilling to wait for the US legal system do undo its legacy of white supremacy and consequently in conflict with civil rights groups taking that road, the Williams’ armed defense and anti-colonialist politics put targets on their backs, forcing them into exile. Their story is one that, despite frequent efforts to bury it in the dustbin of history, continues to be heard and retold. Likewise, it continues to inspire. In 2025, Robert’s memoir was republished together with Mabel’s memories…

CounterPunch explores the upcoming UFC White House spectacle and the Hollywood, DC, and Gulf power brokers at the nexus of US politics, sports and entertainment. Host Eric Draitser welcomes veteran combat sports journalist Nate Wilcox, Editor-in-Chief of The MMA Draw, to the show to discuss the White House event, the mythology around Trump’s relationship with the UFC and Dana White, the role of Ari Emanuel and TKO Group in monopolizing combat sports and playing all sides of the power structure, the Gulf monarchies and their projection of soft power, the overlap between entertainment, finance, and geopolitics, and so much more.…

Only way to Remain Human  We have arrived at the definitive parting of the ways. Two roads diverging at right angles: one signposted Real Life and the other Fake Life. No half way house. That’s important, because at present many are trying to walk a non-committed, neither one nor the other pathway that involves tricking one’s self into believing one is a spectator in a theatre and that the turbulent world outside is something to be viewed from one’s theatre seat. Such isolated comforts are available for a bit longer, maybe – but they are illusory. An inner voice that…

Photograph Source: Capital FM Kenya – CC BY 3.0 The main news item in African media this past week has been the controversy surrounding a proposed U.S.-funded Ebola quarantine facility in Kenya. What began as a public health initiative has rapidly evolved into a politically charged national dispute. The project has triggered protests and legal action. Two people have reportedly died during demonstrations. The High Court, according to media reports, has ordered the government to disclose details of the agreement underpinning the facility, while public debate has expanded beyond epidemiology to questions of sovereignty, transparency and public trust. These public…