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Think entertainment is violent today? The Victorians were much, much worse
Society, Politics & Law

Think entertainment is violent today? The Victorians were much, much worse

...accounts of the murder”. But reenactments of topical murders formed only one type of violent drama found on the contemporary stage. Much more prominent was the murder melodrama. Theatre playbills, which were highly informative productions at this time, not only provided a textual description of the violent scenes in advertised plays, but from the 1840s, graphic...
Is public spending a drain on the economy or the mark of a civilised society?
Society, Politics & Law

Is public spending a drain on the economy or the mark of a civilised society?

...account for the growth of public spending in many Western European countries to around 40 to 45 per cent of GDP. Neoliberals would claim that the role of the State is to protect property in its narrowest sense and to ensure the functioning of free and efficient markets. However, the claims made for market efficiency are contestable. For example, markets often depend on...
COP28: inside the United Arab Emirates, the oil giant who hosted the 2023 climate change summit
Nature & Environment

COP28: inside the United Arab Emirates, the oil giant who hosted the 2023 climate change summit

...account for nearly 90% of the carbon dioxide emissions driving climate change, many have argued that there is a clear conflict of interest in having oil and gas producers at the helm of climate talks. The UAE is alleged to flare more gas than it reports and plans to increase oil production from 3.7 million barrels a day to 5 million by 2027. Some contend that the oil and...
Think you’re better at driving than most? How psychological biases are keeping our roads unsafe
Health, Sports & Psychology

Think you’re better at driving than most? How psychological biases are keeping our roads unsafe

...accountability and support the notion that traffic collisions are inevitable. Likewise, using the word ‘accident’ to describe crashes, suggests they are unavoidable. In reality, speeding, drink or drug driving, phone use and not wearing a seatbelt – all of which are avoidable – are the leading causes of road deaths. We need a balance of education, policy and...
The taste of love on different tongues: What language tells us about love
Languages

The taste of love on different tongues: What language tells us about love

...account for many of the feelings that fall within the ambit of love. Untranslatable words I decided to expand on this work as part of a broader lexicographic project to collect so-called “untranslatable” words that pertain to well-being, a work-in-progress which currently features nearly 1,000 words. Such words can reveal phenomena which have been overlooked or...
Immigration detention: what's the problem with privatisation?
Society, Politics & Law

Immigration detention: what's the problem with privatisation?

...are again raised around performance, financial sustainability and superiority of service. The state might not offer preferable alternatives to their business counterparts, but there is one key difference with state run facilities: public accountability for the individual or institutional infliction of harm or systematic violence, at least in theory if not practice....
Children are at risk from junk food advertisements on social media
Society, Politics & Law

Children are at risk from junk food advertisements on social media

...accounted for nearly 70% of children’s viewing, children were still exposed to high levels of junk food advertising. Therefore, as the WHO has repeatedly stressed since 2010, children’s overall exposure to junk food marketing needs to be reduced, wherever it’s encountered. And now, as the broadcast era cedes to online media dominance, ethical and health concerns...
Clinton / Trump II: America comes off the loser
Society, Politics & Law

Clinton / Trump II: America comes off the loser

...of conventional wisdom about how American politics works. We are living in what increasingly appears to be a “post-factual” age in which scandals roll on without accountability and facts are trumped by ideology. As Trump would say: “It’s just words, folks.”[The Conversation] This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article....