Letter from the Editor 1 October 2011

Dear All,

 

I hope you are well and enjoying the unseasonable weather. Today marks the start of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and also World Blindness Awareness month, I have just discovered.

 

The Labour Party Conference kicked off at the beginning of this week. Harriet Harman got the event off to an inauspicious start by accidentally saying that she hoped David Miliband would be the next Prime Minister. Ed Miliband returned the favour by stumbling over her name in his speech. Said speech, in which he offered the British public a “new bargain”, received a mixed response – those on the left of the party appeared to love it, whilst their more centre leaning peers seemed largely unconvinced. There have been widespread rumours that Yvette Cooper will succeed him as leader of the Labour Party.

 

Monday’s big Middle Eastern news was that Saudi Arabian women were to be given the vote and allowed to run in elections. Jonathon Graham described this as a “different kind of revolution”. Meanwhile, in Libya, more than 1200 bodies were found in a mass grave in Tripoli.

 

I’m delighted to be able to welcome Samuel Perriman to our community. He recently returned from Syria and has written a very informative piece on the EU sanctions the country has faced.

 

In sport, England won their Rugby World Cup match against Scotland this morning, although not as convincingly as they might have hoped. A friend of mine charmingly texted me to point out that Scotland were “going home”, although when I looked at the scores I found that my homeland had lost with dignity, and that’s what counts…

 

Emma Jones made an excellent point in her illuminating piece on Irish football, which she feels has been neglected by the British media.

 

She was not the only one who was unimpressed by their coverage this week, as I demonstrated in my article on the Baja California abortion amendment.

 

I have chosen Jonathon Graham’s piece on Saudi Arabia as the article of the week.

 

I hope you all enjoy the weekend and have a good week ahead!

 

Very best,

 

Laura