17 March 2003
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From the Editor…
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Cover story
What now?
Civil disobedience is the sole path left for those who cannot support the Bush-Blair pact of aggression. Only then will politicians on both sides of the Atlantic be forced to recognise the folly of their ways
Features
When the bombs start to fall . . .
When the bombs start to fall how will pro- (and anti-) war organisations respond? A guide to who will protest and where
Blair: the errors that led to a nightmare
The US administration disdains traditional diplomacy, but the PM persuaded George Bush to let him give it a try. He couldn't deliver
Is God really an American?
The Bush problem is not his Christian faith; it's his use of it in aid of secular nationalism
War: ain't nothing but a dick thing
The debate on Iraq is being played out against a background of macho posturing
Shock and awe, Hiroshima-style
Lindsey Hilsum in Baghdad awaits 3,000 cruise missiles and the latest invention, microwave bombs
Why left and right should unite and fight
There is nothing to lose but the chains of political correctness. Neil Clark, unashamedly old Labour, proposes a permanent anti-war alliance with the forces of conservatism
A different use for profit
Glenys Thornton on why social enterprise needs help from EastEnders and Coronation Street
Good manners and mediocre teachers
William Skidelsky, who went first to a comprehensive and then to Eton, thinks Bristol University is right to reject those who have merely learnt how to write serviceable essays
A country on the edge
Andrew Hussey in Morocco finds, behind the tolerance that attracts tourists, a fierce Islamist resurgence, with cut throats and attacks on unveiled women
Regulars
Cristina Odone worries about the boys at the front
Out there in the Gulf, our boys can't phone either their lawyers or their therapists
Darcus Howe campaigns for Caribbean unity
The idea of a Caribbean federation, thought to be dead 40 years ago, has been revived
Competition
Win vouchers to spend at any Tesco store
Culture
The avenging heir
Saladin was the good enemy. Appropriated by Saddam Hussein, the knightly sultan has become an emblem of hostility to the west
Bohemian rhapsody
Opera - Peter Conrad is infected with the joyful spirit of Baz Luhrmann's festive comedy
Letter from Hong Kong
Jason Cowley on the city state that, despite a recent double child murder and a depressed economy, has lost none of its old wonder
Variety show
Art - Ned Denny finds much to admire in a diverse exhibition of contemporary work
Film
Shiny, happy people
Film - Philip Kerr is surprisingly uplifted by a story about two Norwegian misfits
Theatre
Honour and anarchy
Theatre - Sheridan Morley enjoys a week of passion and politics from Australia and Italy
Television
Guilty pleasure at enjoying Real Men
Television - Andrew Billen on a violent, sexualised and disturbing new drama
The Fan
The fan - Hunter Davies
The only new ideas footballers have are about hairstyles and fashion
Books
The Mummy returns. Margaret Thatcher will continue to haunt the left as much as she does her own party until her legacy is properly understood. Suzanne Moore on our fear of an unlaid ghost
Thatcher, Politics and Fantasy: the political culture of gender and nation Heather Nunn Lawrence & Wishart, 224pp, £17.99 ISBN 0853159629
A gallant failure
Eden: the life and times of Anthony Eden D R Thorpe Chatto & Windus, 758pp, £25
Life on Mars. Mark Leonard takes issue with the most talked-about book of the year
Paradise and Power: America and Europe in the new world order Robert Kagan Atlantic Books, 103pp, £10 ISBN 1843541777
Nil desperandum
Articles of Faith: the story of British intellectual journalism Neil Berry Waywiser Press, 271pp, £13.95 ISBN 1904130089
Novel of the week
Water Lily Susanna Jones Picador, 294pp, £15.99 ISBN 0330485822
The first anorexic
A Wonderful Little Girl: the true story of Sarah Jacob, the Welsh fasting girl Sian Busby Short Books, 157pp, £9.99 ISBN 1904095437
Worlds apart
A Distant Shore Caryl Phillips Secker & Warburg, 312pp, £15.99 ISBN 0436205645
