The Joy of Six 1339

Anthony Painter explains how Britain's weak economy is limiting Labour's room for manoeuvre: "What is the difference between the austerity state and the Brexterity state? There was a way out of the austerity state. And in fact, ahead of the EU referendum, things were starting to recover. They recovered enough to give the Conservative party a majority in the 2015 election. Sometimes you have to think we are cursed. That majority enabled them to follow through on an insane referendum. The rest is, well, not yet history."

"Due to the collapse of my country, which surrendered to Russia in full view of the world on February 28, 2025, I have been seeking out dissident voices from the past ... to help us figure out what we need to do in the present." Heidi Siegmund Cuda turns to Václav Havel’s dissident essays from 1978, The Power of the Powerless, to learn how people can find a collective way back from democratic ruin.

Taylor Noakes explains how Donald Trump has brought a divided Canada together - against him.

Are mental health conditions overdiagnosed in the UK? On The Conversation, Susan McPherson (professor in psychology and sociology) and Joanna Moncrieff (professor of critical and social psychiatry) have an enlightening debate.

"In a nation that often demands that Black people perform either rage or gratitude, George Foreman dared to be something else: complex." Bryan Armen Graham on the career of the twice world heavyweight champion.

Sheila O'Malley dissects the artistry of Joan Crawford: "Crawford was extremely smart in choosing material for herself once she was in a position to do so. She had to campaign hard for some of her best roles. She understood her own persona intimately. Acting teachers often say that self-knowledge is even more important than talent. Crawford knew which roles were 'hers' even before she had landed them."