Jonathon Shafi

“Christ in the Rubble: A liturgy of lament.” This was the title for the service delivered by the Reverend Munther Isaac, of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, on December 23rd. If there is a Christmas message to be found, amid the death and destruction in the Holy Land, then it is surely in this remarkable sermon, where unlike the White House and Westminster, there is no denial of the scale of the ethnic cleansing taking place.  "Leaders of the so-called ‘free’ lined up one after the other to give the green light for this genocide against a captive population,” says Isaac. “Not only did they make sure to pay the bill in advance, they veiled the truth and context, providing political cover.”  As the Biden administration swings a wrecking ball through what remains of the United Nations and international humanitarian law, regional tensions are escalating. Some are calling for direct military confrontations with Iran.

GEARING up for the first holiday abroad in over three years, I had submerged tales of “airport chaos”. Even if the journey is to be testing, it will be worth the hassle in the end, I reckoned.

“Europe is gliding down an inclined plane with increasing swiftness towards the abyss of a general war, a war of hitherto unheard-of extent and ferocity. Only one thing can stop it – a change of system in Russia. That this must come about in a few years there can be no doubt. May it come to pass in good time before the otherwise inevitable occurs." Those are the words of Frederick Engels, writing in 1890, as part of a scathing critique of Russian Tsardom.

RAYMOND Williams, the Welsh socialist, writer and critic crystalised what it means to struggle for social change in one sentence when he said: “To be truly radical is to make hope possible, rather than despair convincing.”

IT is said that in polite company – and at family gatherings – that there are three topics to be avoided: religion, politics, and money.

It is difficult to properly digest the pandemic and all that it has entailed. The impact on our day to day lives has been a profound shock to the system. And it has brought into sharp relief the pre-existing inequalities deeply embedded in our society.

THE SNP conference meets once again this weekend, in an online format, at least. Speaking to a veteran SNP campaigner, we talked about how much the traditional in-person conferences were missed. Partly, this nostalgia referred to the ability to debate fully, to get a sense of one’s own political agency and to feel the atmosphere of the crowd after a rousing speech. But personally, too, it was an opportunity to socialise and to catch up with friends.

UNDER the shade of his cowboy hat – after touching down from his first space adventure – billionaire Jeff Bezos drew a substantial backlash when he said the following at the post-flight press conference: “I also want to thank every Amazon employee and every Amazon customer because you guys paid for this.” Little wonder. Amazon is known for its union busting and low wages and has been accused of exploitative practices and inhumane conditions for workers. That Mr Bezos rides his rocket int

IT wasn’t always going to be such a predictable election.

Confounding many unionist commentators, support for independence is reaching a sustained majority in the opinion polls, despite the context of coronavirus.