Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

Friday 3 May 2013


2 May 2013

May 2013

...tyranny of the one per cent; North Korea, scary and scared; China's space war; UK, in or out? France and Nato, Védrine to Debray; those problem EU borders; the Kurds' changing reality; special report: do we need a basic minimum income? energy for people or profit? Gordon Ramsey's tv coaching... supplement: the question of international solidarity... and more...
  • Sovereignty, democracy, inequality

    Tyranny of the one per cent - Serge Halimi

    Some revelations come as little surprise. It's not really news that some politicians love money and like to spend time with those who have lots of it. Or that they sometimes behave like a caste that is above the law. Or that the tax system favours the affluent, and that the free circulation of capital enables them to stash their cash in tax havens.
    The disclosure of individual transgressions should lead to scrutiny of the system that created them. But in recent decades, the world has been (...)
    Translated by George Miller
  • Special report : a basic minimum income

    Money to live* - Mona Chollet

    The proponents of a basic minimum income - rather than a wage - think that its time may have come, now that technological progress means paid work is available to fewer people. Get over the initial absurdity of the idea, and it makes a novel sense
    Translated by George Miller
  • Deserving and undeserving poor* - Pierre Rimbert

    Translated by Charles Goulden
  • Rupees in your pocket - Benjamin Fernandez

    An experiment in paying villagers in one of India's poorest states an unconditional basic income has been successful enough to change the government's thinking.
    Translated by Charles Goulden
  • Pyongyang raises the bar for future talks

    North Korea, scary and scared - Philippe Pons

    The latest threats by North Korea have unnerved the world. History suggests the country is trying to calm its own fears by frightening others.
    Translated by Charles Goulden
  • A second cold war, this time in space

    China goes ballistic* - Olivier Zajec

    US complacency about China's nuclear and space capabilities and intentions has been severely challenged. China has more and better missiles than thought, and plans well under way for a strong presence in space.
    Translated by George Miller
  • Counting the warheads* - Olivier Zajec

    Translated by George Miller
  • UK might hold referendum on EU membership

    In or out, yet again - Jean-Claude Sergeant

    Britain's prime minister David Cameron suggested earlier this year that the UK might vote on whether to remain in the EU. It's a powerful deterrent at home and in the EU - unless, that is, he actually uses it.
    Translated by Charles Goulden
  • Seat of influence for France

    The case for Nato* - Hubert Védrine

    In our April issue, Régis Debray reproached former foreign minister Hubert Védrine for recommending to President François Hollande that France remain in Nato's integrated command. This is Védrine's reply.
    Translated by George Miller
  • Kurds move on as regional alliances change

    Poised to profit - Vicken Cheterian

    The Kurdish region of northern Iraq is a boom zone with considerable economic and military clout; this has changed the alliances and expectations of Kurds in Turkey, Syria and Iran. How far can this go?
    Original text in English
  • Along the EU's problem borders

    The kingdom of Greater Hungary - again?* - Laurent Geslin and Sébastien Gobert

    The end of internal border controls after the EU enlargement of 2004 was meant to check a surge in nationalism. But in Hungary and Slovakia, as in Ukraine on the other side of the EU border, people still claim national identities.
    Translated by Charles Goulden
  • Who are the Ruthenians?* - Laurent Geslin and Sébastien Gobert

    Translated by Charles Goulden
  • Renewables for profit or public service ?

    Electricity goes local* - Aurélien Bernier

    Renewables are supplying power in Europe but not always where and when it is most needed: there is a mistaken strategy of privatisation and cross-border generation and distribution.
    Translated by Krystyna Horko
  • Supplement : Secours populaire français

    Sweet sound of global philanthropy - Bernard Hours

    Translated by Krystyna Horko
  • Mali's mobilised populations - Simon Maro

    Secours Populaire Français is working on several projects in the Kayes region with its local partner, the Association Malienne de Solidarité et de Coopération Internationale pour le Développement. Food and water self-sufficiency and women's literacy are among these projects.
    Translated by Charles Goulden
  • Dewesternising aid - Léon Koungou

    In Africa, where its role is emblematic, international solidarity is sometimes viewed with ambivalence: is it valuable support or cultural domination?
    Translated by Charles Goulden
  • Networks where everyone counts - Julien Lauprêtre

    Translated by Charles Goulden
  • Charity work vs unpaid volunteering - Stéphanie Rizet

    Thousands of people, especially the young, go abroad each year on solidarity initiatives. Their motivation, roles and status vary.
    Translated by Charles Goulden
  • 'Yes chef' as an employment mantra

    Dirty secrets in the kitchen* - Marc Perrenoud

    The Gordon Ramsay coaching format for reality television shows about restaurants and their kitchens has become a model for the way we think employment should work.
    Translated by Stephanie Irvine