Review of The Times online

The Times published a short review by me on their online site in today's Friday papers (which was a bit of a shock to my father who had picked up the papers at Heathrow on the way back from Singapore, ha!). The Times have printed pieces by me twice now, maybe if I write a couple more times they might get the hint that I'd die to join the team! 

Subscribers can read the article online here at the website, or below is an excerpt:

Julia Macfarlane, a student at St Andrews University, reviews thetimes.co.uk

The main story — a Times exclusive on sex grooming in Blackpool — proved to be a hot topic, garnering more than 50 comments by 9am. Portugal’s impending bailout was the main business story, which was succinctly explained with a nudge of blame at Alistair Darling, noted by (and commented on) by readers. This was accompanied by a useful graphic that laid out the key facts, figures and quotes.

However, the article “Obama’s golf buddy caught in prostitution sting”perhaps did not deserve its prominence on the homepage. The controversy of FCO colonial records proves to be the most controversial and most commented-on topic, and is accompanied by an engaging leading article, “Dust and Denial”. The best-received article was “The hero scouts of Libya”, which was a delight to read. The accompanying photos were outstanding and matched the optimistic tone of the article.

There is a breath of spring air in the Life section, which covers the best exhibitions in Paris, picking not just the flagship Manet exhibition at the d’Orsay but also under-the-radar art niches, such as the tantalising Vodun: African Voodoo exhibition. Once again the royal wedding dominates the view counts, with interpretations of the dream gown generating the most attention and excitement among online readers.

This year's first true Christmas message, in the Sunday Times

It drives me mad that I cannot put a link up on this article unless anyone else has a subscription to the Times Online. *but I would encourage everyone to buy a copy of the Sunday Times tomorrow (today, as its past midnight actually) to cut out and keep the article entitled*

 Updated 29th November 2010: In my enthusiasm for this article I failed to realise, somewhat dimly, that the article is actually from last week's Sunday Times. For subscribers, the link is here:  Love drives repentant Taliban chief to defect. 

For those who do not have a subscription, I'd like to quote a couple paragraphs (seeing as the paper wasn't yesterday but a week ago) in what I'm afraid may be a heinous transgression of copyright law, but all credit goes to Miles Amoore for his article, and I really do want to share his words with my readers:

"Ultimately, [Abdul Hakim] says, it was his desire to marry his fiancée that compelled him to lay down his weapons. The prospective father-in-law told Haqim that he would never give his daughter’s hand to a fighter because he did not want to see her widowed. “It was an easy choice for me,” he said. Haqim is not the only fighter from Wardak to come in from the cold. Habib Rahman, a 32-year-old sub-district commander from Jilga district, has also made peace overtures to the government.

Rahman joined the Taliban five years after the US-led invasion in 2001. His father was killed in the American bombing campaign that helped to bring the former Taliban regime to its knees. “I was sickened by the killing of innocent civilians,” he said.  “I couldn’t return to see my family because I would put them in danger. Living in the mountains is no fun." ~ Miles Amoore, The Sunday Times, 21st November 2010

This is a wonderfully written and spirited reporting of recent stories of Taliban commanders who have chosen to lay down their arms and join a movement called the Afghanistan Peace and Reintegration Programme, in order to reconstruct their own family lives and promote peace for the Afghan civilians. The programme is still in its infancy but is well on its way to growth. 

 These kinds of heart-warming stories are what we need to remind ourselves of when we become cynical of the endless rage in the Middle East, when success seems far from possibility. 

 I applaud Miles Amoore for his poignant and inspiring reporting, and I do hope everyone reads the article to push for peace in the Middle East. A wonderful article that reminds us that humanity is still alive in the stricken war zones and, clearly, even in the armies of those our soldiers fight against. 

 And that's something we often forget; that its not just a faceless mob of evil beings we face, but vulnerable individuals who have been driven to violence or revenge by those who saw an opportunity to corrupt. A certain Quaker friend of mine (you find all sorts at boarding school) once quoted Natalie Imbruglia: "brother shoots brother; meanwhile you're fixing up your face". Its hard to remind ourselves of what terrors are happening elsewhere in the world when we are living in such comfortable environments.

Update on Monday, November 29, 2010 at 3:07 PM by Julia

Corrections posted!

Has Obama bitten off more than he can chew?

Here is an article I wrote as part of an application for an internship at Pearson. Pearson publish the Economist and own the Financial Times Group as well as the Penguin Group. A juggernaut in publishing, needless to say I unfortunately didn't get an internship but I try and console myself with the knowledge that they must have been inundated with better applications than mine!

HAS OBAMA BITTEN OFF MORE THAN HE CAN CHEW?

The Capitol was host to dog-eat-dog politics earlier this month as Barack Obama resorted to bribery, struggling to stay leader of the pack. The political spectacle was kick-started with proposals for a “deem and pass” strategy for a reconciliation of the healthcare reform bill, avoiding an “up or down” vote. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that over a period of ten years the bill will cost $940 billion yet will reduce the US deficit by $138 billion; however it is not these costs that have the public raising their hackles in disapproval. In a series of moves that was reminiscent on this side of the puddle of Gordon Brown’s water bill offered to the DUP for votes on the “42 day detention” bill of 2008, Obama was forced to deal with members of his own house voting against the bill. One such voter is Democrat Bart Stupak who folded on the 21^st March after declaring on his website funds for three airports in his district in Michigan on the 19^th. Suzanne Kosmas also jumped ship after securing funds for the Kennedy Space Centre in her district. Rep. Jim Costa of California announced on his website on March 16^th that Central Valley had been allocated a 35% increase in public water allocations instead of an expected 5%. He promptly voted in favour of the bill the following weekend. On March 18^th, Democrat Bart Gordon announced he would reverse his original vote to show support for the bill. His district in Tennessee is to receive $100 million extra Medicaid funds. Speculation on these and other offers made for the Democrats to receive their win of 60-39 votes have led this to be Obama’s most controversial political gain, costing his approval ratings in the US to drop from 70% to a tail-between-the-legs 50%.

Julia Macfarlane© 2010-2011