Category Archives: local government

Las Vegas as the UK’s post Brexit business model is a bad idea, here is why.

Posted on January 6, 2017 by lawrence serewicz

Mark Littlewood, Director General of the Institute of Economic Affairs[1] (IEA), argues in a Financial Times article that a post Brexit UK should emulate Las Vegas.[2] Like many tourists, Mr Littlewood appears to have been seduced by the city’s bright … Continue reading →

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A partial response to Snowdon’s Precis: Are the Rich Getting Richer?

Posted on June 21, 2015 by lawrence serewicz

Christopher Snowdon has written an interesting article about poverty and prosperity in the United Kingdom.[1] (The article is in the Institute of Economic Affairs Magazine EA can be found here: ) He makes an impassioned argument that the poor have gotten wealthier … Continue reading →

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A response to Keith Ng on Hobbes’s Leviathan

Posted on March 12, 2015 by lawrence serewicz

Thanks for the post on Hobbes’s Leviathan. As you note, it is a potent symbol and one with many meanings that wax and wane across different eras.[1] In particular, the idea of the Leviathan as a great creature of the … Continue reading →

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Ferguson and the return of Martin Luther King’s dream

Posted on November 27, 2014 by lawrence serewicz

Indicting Darren Wilson will not end racism. It will not even begin to end racism in America. It will not send a message to racist cops. It will not stop black men from being shot by the police. What we … Continue reading →

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Is the cost-benefit society’s justice harsher than the ancient political justice.

Posted on November 13, 2014 by lawrence serewicz

We often hear of deciding an issue by considering the costs versus the benefits. In many cases, this offers a good basic system for deciding an issue. However, when it comes to making a decision about a person, the term … Continue reading →

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When we talk about poverty, we need to talk about justice

Posted on October 21, 2014 by lawrence serewicz

In the UK, governments have discussed poverty and anti-poverty strategies for many years. They set targets and talked about the economic and political programs to reduce poverty. When the targets are not met, the governments redefine the target or the … Continue reading →

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Getting beyond the Rotherham Scandal Headlines

Posted on October 5, 2014 by lawrence serewicz

If we are to understand the Rotherham Child Sexual Exploitation scandal, we have to move beyond the headlines and the news stories. We may wish to stay on the surface of the issue and accept uncritically the journalist’s view or … Continue reading →

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How does a bureaucracy protect your freedom?

Posted on June 10, 2014 by lawrence serewicz

In a liberal democracy, the law restrains the government. The people consent to the law that creates the government, which in turn, enforces the law and protects the people. In the basic social contract, protection and obedience are linked by … Continue reading →

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An analysis of the Farage interview on LBC Radio: Was it really a “car crash?”

Posted on May 27, 2014 by lawrence serewicz

In the week leading up to the 2014 local elections and the European Union elections, we were treated to the power of the media in its ability to hold politicians to account. When the LBC commentator Mr. James O’Brien interviewed … Continue reading →

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Does liberalism need to answer Tony Benn’s questions?

Posted on May 7, 2014 by lawrence serewicz

Many people were not fans of Tony Benn. They did not agree with his politics, or his political style. For some people, he was more in the mould of Michael Foot than John Smith or Tony Blair, which may have … Continue reading →

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