Dictator Dan is Gone

Victorian Premier Dan Andrews, who imposed the world’s longest Covid lockdowns on his state, officially steps down from his position today. Andrews earned the nickname ‘Dictator Dan’ for his strongman style of leadership during the pandemic years. He leaves a …

Pandemic Samizdat in the US

On May 15, 1970, the New York Times published an article by esteemed Russia scholar Albert Parry detailing how Soviet dissident intellectuals were covertly passing forbidden ideas around to each other on handcrafted, typewritten documents called samizdat. Here is the beginning …

How France lost control of Gabon

Gabon fulfils all the stereotypes you might have about the west coast of Africa. Brutal, kleptocratic dictator whose family have been in power for over 50 years? Tick. Highly corrupt political system that facilitates large multinational companies to pillage, rob …