Is Tesla’s sales slump down to Elon Musk?: Frederic Legrand – COMEO/Shutterstock Over the past couple of years, the seemingly steady rightward drift of Elon Musk has culminated in actions and statements that have sparked broad controversy. Musk – visionary CEO of Tesla, SpaceX and founder of X Corp – is a man on a …
Giorgia Meloni’s government is watering down Italy’s anti-mafia laws – four dangerous examples: Author Alison Jamieson once described the fight against organised crime in Italy as the “mafia-antimafia seesaw”. There have been plenty of ups and downs in this long history. And yet, at the moment, it looks as though the seesaw is weighted on …
How The Bear sets up stereotypes of tough male and emotional female chefs – and then tears them down: This article contains spoilers for the second series of The Bear. The Michelin star chef Marco Pierre White said in 2019: “The real positive with men [in professional kitchens is] they are not as emotional, and they …
Will Joe Biden step down? An expert Q&A: Joe Biden’s extremely weak performance at the CNN TV debate last week, has prompted senior figures in the Democrat party to question whether he is fit enough to stand for the upcoming presidential election. Former speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said it was reasonable to ask: …
Ramaphosa made practical choices for South Africa’s multi-party cabinet – how this will help him down the line: South African president Cyril Ramaphosa’s multi-party cabinet of national unity has been sworn in. Much of the attention leading up to the announcement of ministerial portfolios focused on the acrimonious negotiations between the Democratic Alliance and the …
Why the Conservative MPs standing down at this election are a huge electoral threat to Rishi Sunak: Flickr/UK Parliament/Maria Unger , CC BY-NC-ND At the last count, 118 MPs have announced they will not contest July’s general election. The vast majority – more than 75 – are Conservatives (or former Conservatives who have been suspended …
Rishi Sunak fires election starting gun with a damp whimper – but Labour will want to play down talk of a landslide: “It’s the optics that matter” is a modern cliche of political life. It doesn’t matter what you say so much as how you say it – and where you say it. If this …
Labour’s £28 billion green investment promise could be watered down – here’s why: Mathematicians will tell you that 28 is a perfect number; it is not proving quite so perfect for Labour leader Keir Starmer. Starmer is set to make a “final” decision on whether Labour will commit to investing £28 billion a year as …
Victorian Britain had its own anti-vaxxers – and they helped bring down a government: E.E. Hillemacher/Wellcome Collection As the 1906 UK general election results rolled in, it became clear that the Conservative party, after 11 years in power, had suffered one of the most disastrous defeats in its history. Of 402 Conservative MPs, 251 lost …
COP28 agreement on adapting to climate change kicks the real challenge down the road: Ariful Azmi Usman/Shutterstock COP28 concluded late on Wednesday morning to a mixed reaction. The Dubai agreement extracted a promise from nearly 200 countries to transition away from fossil fuels, but it leaves many questions unanswered when it comes to keeping global …
Water crisis in South Africa: damning report finds 46% contamination, 67% of treatment works near to breaking down: A new report by South Africa’s Department of Water and Sanitation paints a grim picture of the quality of the country’s drinking water, and its water infrastructure. The Blue Drop Audit Report is meant to ensure that …
Apple, Disney and other big brands are pulling X ads – why Elon Musk’s latest ‘firestorm’ could bring down the company: Frederic Legrand – COMEO/Shutterstock Elon Musk’s recent endorsement of an antisemitic conspiracy theory on X (formerly Twitter) is the latest in a series of controversial statements the owner of the social media platform has …
AstraZeneca sued over jab: could it be down to a misunderstanding of how risk is calculated?: A multi-million-pound landmark “vaccine damage” case is set to take place in London’s High Court. The test case is being pursued by Jamie Scott who suffered a severe brain injury in April 2021 after receiving the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine. The …
Offering oil and gas licences every year distracts from the challenge of winding down UK North Sea: New areas for oil and gas development on the UK’s North Sea continental shelf are to be made available through annual licensing rounds subject to net zero tests. These proposals by the UK government, outlined in the 2023 …
‘Conversion therapy’: UK government kicks ban down the road – and there’s a major problem with what’s been proposed so far: Motortion Films/Shutterstock For the first time in four years, the king’s (or queen’s) speech has left out a promise to ban so-called “conversion therapy”. This widely discredited set of practices aims to “cure” LGBTQ+ …
The Atlantic Ocean’s major current system is slowing down – but a 21st century collapse is unlikely: Scientists collect water and sediment samples to study how the oceans and climate are changing. Eugene Bergh, Author provided Whether the water at your local beach is being roiled by nasty weather or is a perfectly calm expanse …
Why Pope’s message to young Russians not to forget ‘great Russia of Catherine II and Peter I’ has not gone down well in Ukraine: Pope Francis’s video speech to the All-Russian Meeting of Catholic Youth in St Petersburg, urging them to “not forget their heritage” has caused quite a stir. What struck a bitter chord …
Curious Kids: how does a tower crane go up and down?: How does a crane go up and down? – Spencer, aged four, UK When you see the metal arms of a crane – known properly as a tower crane – against the skyline, you know a new building is going up in your city …