A weekly reflection on a topical issue.
David Goodhart discusses why integration is a permanent dilemma for multi-ethnic societies. And he wonders whether, "if there is no solution to the issues that it throws up, then not talking about it much might be a rational strategy". Or, he asks, is that too complacent? Producer: Adele Armstrong
"Tomorrow's world," writes Zia Haider Rahman, "will be shaped still more by finance, tech, and the minds of the mathematically disposed." He argues that we ignore maths at our peril. Producer: Adele Armstrong
In the aftermath of the recent report on religious groups in the UK carried out by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, Rebecca Stott ponders the tension between defending the right to religious freedom and defending the rights of the child. "Maybe it is time," she writes, "to admit that closed, highly-controlling environments , that refuse or escape scrutiny in the name of religious toleration... might not be safe places to entrust the hearts, minds and bodies of children." Producer...
As thousands of Afghan refugees look to make their home in the UK, Michael Morpurgo tells the story of one child refugee, Little Amal. "Surely," he argues, "just as we now fully acknowledge our global responsibility to restore the world about us, the world we ourselves have damaged, so we must play our part as one of the richest nations on earth, to welcome in as many refugees as we can, to give them safe haven with us, to treat them right, as we know we should." Producer: Adele Armstrong Record...
John Gray on how former British Prime Minister, Arthur Balfour, identified a weakness in the idea that science and faith are opposites. "Beyond our narrow corner of things, there may be limitless possibilities, or else primordial chaos," he writes. "Our belief in the uniformity of nature is not a result but a presupposition of science - in other words, an act of faith." Producer: Adele Armstrong
Sara Wheeler looks at the emotional power of food. "It's regrettable", she writes, "that the link between food and happiness has been broken by the epidemic of obesity that bedevils the developed world." Producer: Adele Armstrong
'I don't want to find an eight-part drama more interesting than my life', writes Zoe Strimpel. Zoe reflects on the power of TV as a coping mechanism at the height of the COVID pandemic. But she argues that the creep of the on-screen narrative must now be slowed down in order for us to fully re-engage with our lives. Producer: Adele Armstrong
Rebecca Stott responds to the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. And she reflects on how our ancestors dealt with dramatic weather events - and the gods they believed were responsible. "Our ancestors would have sacrificed everything they owned to appease those gods.....they would have prayed together, sacrificed together". "But what," she wonders, "will we in the west sacrifice to save our species? Our cars? Our meat-eating? Our air-conditioning? Our foreign holida...
Adam Gopnik reflects on the ever-increasing accessibility of the past. He ponders what effect it has when "everything in the world that we can ever remember, everything that has accidentally haunted our imaginations for even a moment" is available online. Producer: Adele Armstrong
Howard Jacobson turns his thoughts to the unlikely subject of present wrapping. He delves into "Expectation Disconfirmation Theory" which, he claims, "will explain why you are less happy than you ever thought you'd be with your new trainers, and more happy than you ever expected you'd be listening to this programme!" Producer: Adele Armstrong
'In the dog days of the pandemic,' writes John Connell, 'I decided the place to recharge my spirit was the mountains and oceans of Ireland's west coast.' John sets off in the footsteps of the famous Irish monk and journeyman, St Brendan, in an attempt to recover a sense of 'wonder'. Producer: Adele Armstrong
Bernardine Evaristo argues that the racist abuse levelled at England players after the final of the Euros has troubling ramifications. She says it's the kind of "vile, in-yer-face bile many of us thought we'd left behind decades ago." The essay contains very strong racist language. Producer: Adele Armstrong
'I object to the demotion of the noble art of indoor swimming,' writes Sara Wheeler, 'in the current frenzy to leap into the nearest river.' Sara explains why she has little time for the new fad of wild swimming and sings the praises of those gorgeous pools that sprang up around the UK from the nineteenth century. Producer: Adele Armstrong
Tom Shakespeare argues that red tape should be regarded as a force for good. From Charles Dickens' famous mention of red tape until today, making fun of red tape has been virtually a national pastime. But Tom cautions that as Britain prepares to set aside rules and regulations surrounding COVID, we shouldn't act too hastily. Producer: Adele Armstrong
Niall Ferguson argues that a post-pandemic 'Roaring Twenties' is far from certain. 'There are good reasons to doubt that the 2020s will be roaring in any sense at all, good or bad', he writes. 'Rather the remainder of the decade may prove distinctly boring.' Reflecting on his own teenage boredom, he believes - for young people - a boring decade would be the biggest disappointment of all. Producer: Adele Armstrong (Image: Niall Ferguson. Credit: Dewald Aukema)
Zoe Strimpel argues that the culture war is no fake or proxy war - but rather ideas about what is acceptable to know, to teach and to think. Thirty years after the US sociologist James Davison Hunter wrote his book 'Culture Wars: The Struggle to Define America', Zoe looks at how those ideas are playing out around the world today. 'There is a sense of menace about,' she writes, 'of pent-up, complicated grievance. I worry that the culture war could tip into something far more deadly.' Producer: Ad...
"To locate Zionism's origins," argues Howard Jacobson, "we must leave historical for spiritual time." Howard ponders whether a hint of the tragic world view would change perceptions today in the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Producer: Adele Armstrong
Bernardine Evaristo argues that, as we move out of lockdown and rebuild our creative infrastructure, we must cherish the country's arts culture. She criticises disinvestment in the arts and the notion that school children should be, at every stage of their education, steered towards science and maths subjects. 'Creativity infuses every aspect of society and how we function as human beings,' she writes. 'Without creativity everything stagnates, including advances in STEM subjects.' Producer: Adel...
Sara Wheeler rereads her youthful diaries and ponders lessons learned. 'Discarding perished rubber bands that once sheaved the slim volumes,' Sara writes, 'I read the story of my own life.' She wonders if accepting and understanding the past can help us escape 'the three rs of lived experience - regret, remorse and recrimination.' Producer: Adele Armstrong
'I have to concede: I am a fervent eavesdropper', writes Will Self. He ponders eavesdropping etiquette, the hard and fast rules of the game, and whether - in our straitened times - there can be any future for the eavesdropper. Producer: Adele Armstrong
Rebecca Stott reflects on why we should be looking to the Romans, and our other ancestors, for imaginative ways of building. "People who walked the planet long before us knew more sustainable ways to build their homes", she writes. With concrete responsible for 8% of the world's carbon emissions, Rebecca argues that we urgently need to find alternatives. Producer: Adele Armstrong
"The Venetian Republic," writes Adam Gopnik, "built one of the greatest and most beautiful churches in the world, Santa Maria della Salute, to celebrate the end of one of their plagues in 1630." Adam examines why today - as we attempt to put the pandemic behind us - any sense of exaltation is notable by its absence. Producer: Adele Armstrong
Zoe Strimpel questions some of the dominant gender narratives around the Me Too movement. 'The problem,' she writes, 'is that there is no space in all this for the lives and experiences of the many straight women who don't have this problem, who do not live in fear of men, and who are not sexualised at every turn.' Producer: Adele Armstrong
David Goodhart reflects on group identities in the aftermath of the Sewell report and argues that the mere existence of a difference is not evidence of unfairness. He calls for a more nuanced understanding of group difference and the challenges this poses in an egalitarian age. Producer: Adele Armstrong
'While self-righteousness loosens the tongues of fools,' writes Howard Jacobson, 'self-censorship ties the tongues of the wise.’ Howard argues that it's not autocracy that has bedevilled us in the past twelve months, it is levity. Producer: Adele Armstrong
Michael Morpurgo reflects on meeting the Duke of Edinburgh when he was 16 and the indirect effect that meeting had in shaping his views later in life. 'He realised', writes Michael, 'that investing in our young people is the most important investment we can make as a society' . He says the Duke's passion for helping young people will be needed more than ever in the difficult months ahead, as we come out of the pandemic. Producer: Adele Armstrong
"The K beater, the whisk and the dough hook are rattling around in the bowl, and I am tasting butterscotch Angel Delight on my lips." Rebecca Stott relives memories of her 1970s childhood with one kitchen device taking centre stage. And she sees a lesson for today. Producer: Adele Armstrong (This episode was previously broadcast on the 9th October 2020.)
Adam Gopnik on the intricacies of the generation gap. It's highlighted, Adam argues, by what he calls the ‘Florida Phone Call’ - the call you get from your children ‘announcing that not only are you no longer fully competent to grasp contemporary life and its technology...but there is no longer any chance that you will grasp contemporary life and its technology!’ Producer: Adele Armstrong
Sara Wheeler explains why online packages arriving at her house are now addressed to 'The Right Reverend Sara Wheeler'! Sara looks back at the surprising history of the Mrs-Miss distinction and concludes it has no place in contemporary Britain. Producer: Adele Armstrong
'There is a theory,' writes Sarah Dunant, 'that we needed to pull back from too much face-to-face conversation...because we had all got so damn angry with each other.' The past year has certainly put a stop to much conversation, angry or otherwise. Sarah imagines how conversation will be - once we're finally able to talk to each other again, face to face. Producer: Adele Armstrong
