"opinion" blog posts
Opinion: Why the government's race report is deeply flawed
Posted on: 21 April 2021 | Category: 2021 posts
Dr Leona Vaughn, Derby Fellow in the politics department, gives her view on the government's recent report into race and racism in the UK.
Why is the appointment of the next US supreme court judge so important?
Posted on: 15 October 2020 | Category: 2020 posts
The debate continues about Amy Coney Barrett, who has been selected by President Trump as the nominated replacement for the late Ruth Bader Ginsberg, for the role of supreme court judge. We asked politics lecturer, Dr Sean Haughey, to give an explainer as to why the role is such a pivotal appointment in the US and how this relates to the upcoming presidential election.
"Images are powerful" - new exhibition of all 209 female MPs
Posted on: 8 March 2019 | Category: 2019 posts
Open Eye Gallery's '209 Women' exhibition features new portraits of all women MPs, shot by women photographers. The new exhibition opened in Liverpool on 28 February 2019 and aims to amplify the call for gender equality across all spheres of society. At the launch event, MP Alison McGovern said: \"These images are not only beautiful, they are a political act.\"
Why I no longer view Western political thought as a 'canon'
Posted on: 5 December 2018 | Category: 2018 posts
When I started at university in the UK, political theory meant studying a very particular canon, taught by a very particular type of scholar. In recent years, calls for the need to change how we think about and teach international relations and politics have started to gain traction. It is about time.
Opinion: Why Vladimir Putin cannot ignore Russians’ social rights
Posted on: 20 June 2018 | Category: 2018 posts
What is the role of Russia’s post-communist state in providing housing, healthcare, pensions or social security?
Opinion: Are Jordanian street protests reviving the 'Arab Spring'?
Posted on: 13 June 2018 | Category: 2018 posts
Over a week of street protests in Jordan’s main cities have toppled the prime minister and torpedoed an unpopular tax law. We ask Hannes Baumann: Is this a return of the protest wave that marked the 'Arab Spring' of 2011?
Opinion - Airstrikes on Syria: our experts answer key questions about the military action
Posted on: 3 May 2018 | Category: 2018 posts
In the early hours of 14 April 2018, the militaries of the United States, France, and the United Kingdom launched airstrikes against regime targets in Syria. This came as retaliation for a suspected chemical weapons attack on civilians in the opposition-controlled enclave of Douma a week earlier.
Opinion - Does Russia risk major conflict by fighting wars with private armed forces?
Posted on: 19 April 2018 | Category: 2018 posts
Does Russia risk major conflict by fighting wars with private armed forces? Ulrich Petersohn explores the murky world of Russian mercenaries and the risks this brings.
Jon Tonge's guide to the 2018 north west elections
Posted on: 26 March 2018 | Category: 2018 posts
With local elections for the North West coming up in May, politics expert Jon Tonge gives us his guide to the state of play for this year’s council elections, in comparison to 2014:
Brexit rhetoric: How to convince a sceptical public
Posted on: 1 March 2018 | Category: 2018 posts
As the government sets out its Brexit vision in a series of speeches by senior ministers, Dr Andrew Crines looks at the rhetorical strategies that could convince a sceptical nation.
Top 4 political books of 2017 to help you make sense of today's headlines
Posted on: 19 December 2017 | Category: 2017 posts
2017 was another tumultuous year in politics. The holiday season is the perfect time to reflect on what just happened in Britain and the world. So here is our list of the most exciting political books of the year that will help you make sense of the headlines and what's happening now.
Opinion: Why research methods matter
Posted on: 14 December 2017 | Category: 2017 posts
A few weeks ago I attended a talk during which a number of claims surrounding questions of correlation and causation were made, which suggested a significant link between two factors. However, when I asked for more details about the relationship between the two variables, I was told that these statements were based on assumptions gleaned from engagement with the media - reading articles in the press that suggested that in cases where A occurred, B also occurred. In fact, no quantitative data had been gathered, requested, or analysed.
One year after Donald Trump’s election victory - politics as usual?
Posted on: 20 November 2017 | Category: 2017 posts
It's one year since Donald Trump was elected as President to the US. Has the Trump presidency been politics as usual, or are we witnessing a fundamentally new politics under Trump?
What is rhetoric and why do we need it?
Posted on: 18 September 2017 | Category: 2017 posts
In this blog I’m going to defend the use of rhetoric. Why? The premise is very simple - because we need it.
Trump's changing view of Afghanistan: are private armies part of the plan?
Posted on: 23 August 2017 | Category: 2017 posts
Donald Trump has defied expectation by pledging to increase the number of US troops in Afghanistan.