06 June 2005
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From the Editor…
Welcome to the New Statesman website. Whether you are a new reader or an existing one - online or via the magazine - I hope you'll enjoy the great writing, fresh ideas and provocative debate that make the New Statesman Britain's award-winning current affairs weekly
Cover story
Mob rule
The west may believe it is building a safer world by opening up markets, imposing sanctions and intervening in conflicts. In reality it is creating a gangsters' paradise
Features
A triumph of the right
Europe - The paradox of France's stunning No vote is that, while it leaves Chirac a lame duck, it damaged the divided Socialist Party even more. The PS now faces many years in the political wilderness
This is a Europe we have seen before
Europe -
No . . . to boule and Pastis
Europe - Don't write the obituaries yet. A new France could put Britain on the sidelines
Scars on the backs of the young
Muslim children as young as six are still being allowed to beat themselves with knives on the end of chains. It is illegal, yet the police are not keen to prosecute. Would other religions get away with it? Report
Heart of the matter
Cholesterol is a killer - or is it? Margaret Cook reveals how the drugs market flourishes on misinformation
The veg that dare not speak its name
A new cartoon show about hungry elves is meant to sell healthy eating to kids, but Dea Birkett finds the flavours far too understated for her taste
Oxfam bites back
Last week the NS accused the aid agency of failing Africa by diluting the Make Poverty History message. Barbara Stocking replies
Essay
NS Essay - 'From Churchill to Macmillan on to Thatcher and Blair, British leaders have encouraged the idea that we can still be a global player. It is a fantasy'
New Labour prides itself on "thinking the unthinkable", but its policies are still guided by the stale platitudes of the Thatcher era. Let's dump these failed ideas and think experimentally, urges John Gray
Interview
Interview - Jose Manuel Barroso
Europe - The self-confessed friend of Tony who must now pick up the pieces. Jose Manuel Barroso interviewed
Regulars
The Politics Column
Politics - Cathy Newman sees past the bickering has-beens
Blair may want to delay his departure until he is satisfied he has left his mark, but the Chancellor's back-bench fans won't let that happen
Mark Thomas watches aid money go down the drain
Africa may as well stick up an enormous sign saying "Clearance sale. Everything must go", as an entire continent is reduced to the status of a pound shop
Darcus Howe stands up for Brixton
None of our real leaders is state-sponsored in the way Trevor Phillips describes
Competition
Win vouchers to spend at any Tesco store
Culture
Deeds not words
On the anniversary of Emily Wilding Davison's fatal Derby Day protest, Diane Atkinson suggests there are links between the Edwardian suffragette and today's suicide bombers, and recounts the iconic moments of that historic event
Mixed race
National images - Tate Britain had an opportunity to present a revealing picture of the country. It's a pity David Dimbleby was allowed to stick his editorial oar in
Theatre
Michael Coveney - Far from friends
Theatre - Two men who can't see what's staring them in the face. By Michael Coveney Some Girl(s) Gielgud Theatre, London W1 The Home Place Comedy Theatre, London SW1
Film
Mark Kermode - Barely human
Film - A triumph of style over substance is hard to fault, writes Mark Kermode Sin City (18) Adam and Paul (15)
Television
Andrew Billen - Communist plot
Television - Gorbachev traces the highs and lows of the Soviet Union. By Andrew Billen Big Ideas That Changed the World (Five)
Books
Why cod wins out over colonialism
Is history the new cookery? Yes, judging by our appetite for books celebrating salt, chocolate and great men. We no longer want the past to challenge our assumptions; what we crave are stories that offer comfort and consolation for a world we have lost
The horrors of history. A novel of post-9/11 trauma is let down by its obsessive whimsy, finds Benjamin Markovits
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close Jonathan Safran Foer Hamish Hamilton, 326pp, £14.99 ISBN 024114213X
Just get on with it
Not a Games Person Julie Myerson Yellow Jersey Press, 115pp, £10 ISBN 0224073990
The spying game
A Life in Secrets: the story of Vera Atkins and the lost agents of SOE Sarah Helm Little, Brown, 463pp, £20 ISBN 0316724971
The book business
Nicholas Clee on why a writer's work can sometimes be above criticism
Sweat and soil
The Farm: the story of one family and the English countryside Richard Benson Hamish Hamilton, 230pp, £15.99 ISBN 0241142229
Fiction - Problem child
We Need To Talk About Kevin Lionel Shriver Serpent's Tale, 400pp, £9.99 ISBN 1852428899
