Ireland had a general election on 29 November but isn’t expected to have a government until the new year. The government is likely to be another coalition led by the two historical centrist parties Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, with at least one other partner. After the last election in 2020, it took five months … Continue reading “Voting in Ireland”
The Australian Senate has approved new legislation that would ban under-16-year-olds from accessing social-media services by late 2025. The government says that exposure to social media can harm young people but it is not clear exactly how the ban will work. The legislation passed by the Senate is guaranteed to also be passed by the … Continue reading “Australia Bans Social Media for Under-16s”
We had got used to election results that took days or weeks to arrive. Not this time. It came clear in the night after polling stations closed that Donald Trump would be returning to the White House, this time as the 47th President of the U.S.A. Although the final results won’t be in for weeks, … Continue reading “Back to the White House”
The donkey and elephant are the famous symbols of the Democratic and Republican Parties in the U.S. But how did these two animals become linked to the parties? Did the parties choose them through votes or laws? Surprisingly, these symbols came from jokes and political cartoons. Here’s the story of how it all happened. Democrats: … Continue reading “Political Icons: The Donkey and the Elephant”
Back at the beginning of 2024, it looked like this year’s presidential race was going to be very predictable, and somewhat boring, a replay of 2020. Boy, was that wrong! One candidate, Joe Biden, pulled out after a disastrous first TV debate, which was held untraditionally before the summer. Another, Donald Trump, has been the … Continue reading “The Rocky Road to the White House”
All U.S. states are not equal when it comes to time and budget lavished on them by presidential candidates and political parties. Most of the focus is on states which are variously referred to as swing states, battleground states or purple states. In the presidential election, it’s not the national popular vote that counts, but … Continue reading “Red, Blue or Purple States: a Colorful Guide to U.S. Elections”
Who will get out and vote, and for whom, in the U.S. Presidential elections? There has been a lot of interest recently in celebrities endorsing one or other of the tickets. Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish and Elon Musk’s endorsements of Harris-Walz and Trump-Vance respectively have made headlines. Celebrity endorsements of candidates are nothing new: Warren … Continue reading “Getting Out the Vote”
From September 26 to 29, 2024, the city of Vincennes is set to host the 11th edition of Festival America, a must-attend event for North American literature enthusiasts. This year, the festival distinguishes itself by broadening its horizons to include European voices, creating a true transatlantic dialogue. The festival’s program promises to be rich and … Continue reading “Festival America 2024: A Transatlantic Literary Dialogue”
A 14-year-old from Brighton, England, has just had a dream summer. Bly Twomey went to her first Paralympics as one of the youngest members of the British team, and went home with two bronze medals, one in singles, one in doubles. Bly only started playing table tennis three years ago, at a sports camp for … Continue reading “Table-Tennis Teen”
Orion Jean, 13, has one goal in life: to spread kindness and encourage other people to be kind too. At age nine, he won a competition to write a speech about kindness. He used the prize money to donate toys to a children’s hospital. Then went on to fundraise for 100,000 meals for the hungry … Continue reading “Kindness Champion”