Reading for Battle
Battle Readings is a regularly updated compilation of articles, essays, and opinion pieces relevant to the themes of the Battle of Ideas.
Choose a theme from the listing on the left to narrow your search, or view all readings.
Health & Well-being
The Law’s cyber drug war. Is it time to hold peace talks with internet suppliers of ‘legal highs’?
Like alcohol, can these chemicals not be taken in the right way, at the right dose
Jonathan Hurlow, Independent, 1 November 2012
Like alcohol, can these chemicals not be taken in the right way, at the right dose
Jonathan Hurlow, Independent, 1 November 2012
What happened to the caring professions?
The Tory drive to make teachers and carers chase after statistics has hindered rather than helped
Alka Sehgal Cuthbert, Independent, 29 October 2012
The Tory drive to make teachers and carers chase after statistics has hindered rather than helped
Alka Sehgal Cuthbert, Independent, 29 October 2012
Being Pro-Life Doesn't Make Me Any Less Of A Lefty
Listening to fellow pundits on the left react with rage and disbelief to the support by the Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, for halving the abortion time limit to 12 weeks, I was reminded of the late Christopher Hitchens. "[A]nyone who has ever seen a sonogram or has spent even an hour with a textbook on embryology knows that emotions are not the deciding factor [in abortions],"
Mehdi Hasan, Huffington Post, 14 October 2012
Listening to fellow pundits on the left react with rage and disbelief to the support by the Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, for halving the abortion time limit to 12 weeks, I was reminded of the late Christopher Hitchens. "[A]nyone who has ever seen a sonogram or has spent even an hour with a textbook on embryology knows that emotions are not the deciding factor [in abortions],"
Mehdi Hasan, Huffington Post, 14 October 2012
The state’s skewed line on moral issues makes me worried about giving it automatic ownership of our bodies after death
Under presumed consent I am not confident the state would feel a duty to treat a corpse with reverence after death or use it solely to help others live
Francis Phillips, Catholic Herald, 8 October 2012
Under presumed consent I am not confident the state would feel a duty to treat a corpse with reverence after death or use it solely to help others live
Francis Phillips, Catholic Herald, 8 October 2012
Why the Women’s Minister Shouldn’t Deny Women Later Abortion
Early access to abortion services is extremely important. Thanks to tests which can detect pregnancies before a woman has even missed a period, women who know they do not want to continue with their pregnancy can now often refer themselves directly into services, with their care paid for by the NHS.
Clare Murphy, Huffington Post, 4 October 2012
Early access to abortion services is extremely important. Thanks to tests which can detect pregnancies before a woman has even missed a period, women who know they do not want to continue with their pregnancy can now often refer themselves directly into services, with their care paid for by the NHS.
Clare Murphy, Huffington Post, 4 October 2012
Minimum alcohol price 'would save 11,500 pensioners'
The deaths of 11,500 pensioners could be avoided over the next decade if minimum alcohol pricing is rolled out in England, according to new research.
BBC News, 7 September 2012
The deaths of 11,500 pensioners could be avoided over the next decade if minimum alcohol pricing is rolled out in England, according to new research.
BBC News, 7 September 2012
Fabrice Muamba was 'dead' for 78 minutes
Doctor reveals star needed 15 shocks to restart heart.
Alex West, Sun, 15 August 2012
Doctor reveals star needed 15 shocks to restart heart.
Alex West, Sun, 15 August 2012
Blind search for profits behind care home abuse
Even in a euphoric Olympic week, a headline like “Mentally disabled adults abused at Christian Brothers’ home” would have grabbed the attention. It might even have ranked as a scandal – a term RTÉ was applying yesterday to some messing over a reception for our Olympians.
Fintan O'Toole, Irish Times, 14 August 2012
Even in a euphoric Olympic week, a headline like “Mentally disabled adults abused at Christian Brothers’ home” would have grabbed the attention. It might even have ranked as a scandal – a term RTÉ was applying yesterday to some messing over a reception for our Olympians.
Fintan O'Toole, Irish Times, 14 August 2012
Presumed consent: nationalising our organs
There is a desperate need for organs for transplant, but taking them from the dead without consent is no solution.
Tom Bailey, spiked, 7 August 2012
There is a desperate need for organs for transplant, but taking them from the dead without consent is no solution.
Tom Bailey, spiked, 7 August 2012
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