Lexington Still in the trenches A pre-Christmas lull in political combat probably means less than meets the eye THE idea of the Christmas truce is a potent one. A celebrated example took place in December 1914, when first-world-war troops climbed war...
German xenophobia Peaceful, but menacing A new movement with a barely hidden message of hate unsettles Germany We don't need no Muslims here CALLING themselves Pegida, or patriotic Europeans against the Islamisation of the Occident, since October the...
Politics this week America's Senate Intelligence Committee released a controversial report into the CIA's interrogation techniques, which revealed some more details about the torture of suspected terrorists after the September 11th 2001 attacks, and...
Nicaragua's canal Digging for truth Chinese construction is due to startbut of what? ON DECEMBER 22nd an odd coupleNicaragua's left-wing government and a Chinese-born telecoms magnatesay they will begin the realisation of a dream that has captivated...
Homelessness in Hawaii Paradise lost Catering to tourists comes at a hefty price for locals THE sun is setting on Waikiki Beach, and Koa still has a few hours before his 9pm shift cleaning the food court at the Ala Moana mall. I'm trying to better my...
German universities Between great and so-so Not in the elite but improving, German universities bet on a middle way A GLANCE at the global rankings of universities suggests that nothing much has changed in recent years. MIT, Stanford, Cambridge, Oxfo...
International schools The new local English-language schools once aimed at expatriates now cater to domestic elites IN 1979, when Ken Ross was eight, his family moved from Scotland to France for his father's job with IBM. The computer firm paid the f...
Stamp duty Unexpected bills Why stamp-duty tax cuts may hurt homebuyers TODAY I'm cutting stamp duty for millions of homebuyers, crowed George Osborne, the chancellor of the exchequer, on December 3rd when announcing reforms to stamp duty, a tax on b...
Lexington The immigrant numbers game Why Barack Obama's partial amnesty won't be reversed SOMETIMES the hardest questions come from friendly crowds. Barack Obama on December 9th made a foray into the heartland to promote his plan to shield millions o...
Boutique food shops Deli-licious As supermarkets flounder, small food and drink retailers are booming Chi-chi cheese INVESTORS in Tesco, Britain's largest supermarket chain, could be forgiven for weeping into their Christmas pud this month. On Decemb...
