Issue 147
June 2008
Contents
The plague is over, let's party
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
An HIV diagnosis in Britain is no longer a death sentence—thanks to costly new drugs. But as the spectre of death fades, so do the most visible reasons to avoid risky behaviour. Now the Aids prevention industry has a whole new set of problems
What's up, doc?
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Last year's medical training fiasco was a failure of NHS centralisation. And the surge in the number of medical students, plus an open door for foreign doctors, means there will be a mismatch between applicants and jobs for years to come
The failed state we're in
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
The international community has spent billions on reconstructing Afghanistan—yet the country has made dismayingly little progress. It's time for a radical new approach to state-building
Are we losing the virus wars?
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
The openness of "generative" technologies like the PC and the internet has led to great innovations—but also to an upward spiral of viruses, worms and spam. Such bad code threatens to derail the internet and promote "sterile" appliances like the iPhone
Rage against the machines
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Modern video games mean big business, and big controversy. Yet most of the charges levelled against games—that they stunt minds and spark addiction—are based on an outdated understanding of what gamers do when they sit down to play
Likud on the terraces
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Seventy per cent of Jewish Israelis say they want a two-state solution. That doesn't mean they have a high opinion of Arabs. Consider the hardcore fans of Beitar Jerusalem FC
Movies made me
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
They are art, big business and soft power—but movies are a lot more than just that. On a six-hour flight, I worked out exactly what it is about cinema that makes it matter to me
Lakshmi Mittal
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Mittal is the wealthiest steelman since Andrew Carnegie. But there's little sign that the Indian tycoon shares his American predecessor's political engagement or philanthropic instinct
Franco-British Council Story Prize 2
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
This month saw the inaugural Prospect/Franco-British Council prize for a short story of under 1,000 words inspired by France. The top three entries in the sixth-form category are below
Franco-British Council Story Prize 1
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
This month saw the inaugural Prospect/Franco-British Council prize for a short story of under 1,000 words inspired by France. The top four entries in the undergraduate category are below
Tibet's second betrayal
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Some Indians resent the presence of Tibetan refugees. Yet had India stood up to China's 1950 invasion of Tibet, the problem could have been averted
Letter from New Haven
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
In a quiet park in Connecticut, I see the ruptures of Chinese society in microcosm
When historians matter
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
On Israel's 60th anniversary, one of the country's revisionist "new historians" looks back on how their work changed the debate over 1948
Mayoral scepticism
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Would more mayors would be a good thing for England? Not necessarily
Too many prizes
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Britain has gone awards-mad. Maybe I'll finally win one now
Racial divisions
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
The debate over race has moved on. To judge from his review of my book, Mark Pagel hasn't noticed
Writing the election
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
The best coverage of American politics is to be found not in the country's newspapers, but in its books
Liberalise or die
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Labour is in deep trouble. To survive, it must turn its back on its centralising tradition and embrace liberalism
Primary school
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Now that Barack Obama has finally triumphed, what have we learned from the US primaries?
Noblesse oblige
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Surely we should be welcoming the return of society's most privileged to political leadership
Cairo's failing fundamentalists
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
The Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt is less powerful than many western analysts think
An Ulster betrayal
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
By going soft on Sinn Féin, Tony Blair and Jonathan Powell allowed Ulster's centrists to be sidelined
Against gunboat philanthropy
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Bernard Kouchner's proposal to force aid on the Burmese regime is dangerous posturing
The truth about food
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Rises in world food prices may hurt city-dwellers, but they do not increase global hunger
The kindness of strangers
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
The claim that there is no such thing as race is understandable but wrong
The unforgivable truth
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
One of Israel's great national authors can finally be read in English. Sixty years after Israel's birth, his words remain resonant
States of terror and consent
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Philip Bobbitt's sweeping analysis of the relationship between 21st-century states and terrorism could not be more timely. His arguments are radical, but they will not appeal to many Europeans
To thine own self be true
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Political hypocrisy finds its modern expression in the creation of "narratives." Blair mastered it, but it could be Brown's downfall
End of the cult of finance?
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Central banks, regulators and governments share the main blame for the financial crisis. But, as Charles Morris's book makes clear, the financial sector will have to accept significant new constraints
Private view
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Contemporary Chinese art is often cleverly calibrated for a western market, and it can fetch millions. But is this calculation part of its mastery?
Performance notes
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Despite popular myth, Mahler did not compose his "farewell" in the grip of a death wish. Plus, someone finally takes on London's concert coughers
Smallscreen
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Just when reality television shows start to look stale, they reward us with moments of gloriously unexpected drama. Take The Apprentice
Impostor
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
When Adam's life fell apart, he turned to his brother for help. But charity can be hard to swallow
Out of mind
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Those seeking to explain the actions of Josef Fritzl have resorted to stock ideas—that he is insane, evil or a product of his culture. Yet for all his depravity, he remains one of us
Washington watch
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Now that Obama looks unstoppable, some Dems are having second thoughts about whether he can win. Plus, McCain's fundraising trickery and cut-price Clinton T-shirts
China café
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
Teaching English at my local nursery school has proved to be a soul-destroying experience. The same could be said of the typical life of a Chinese athlete
Lab report
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
So it turns out that the world has not been warming since 1998—what is going on? How biofuels are adding to the food crisis. Plus, can we predict earthquakes?
Brussels diary
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
The press have ruled out Blair's chances of becoming EU president. But don't write him off just yet. Make way for the new EU diplomatic corps. Plus, Robert Cooper needs a job
Confessions
29th June 2008 — Issue 147
I was at a north London dinner party when something very peculiar happened, I suddenly realised what I really believed and blurted it out—it did not go down well