At the time of publication Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollan Khomeini declared a fatwa, a legal pronouncement of Islam, against Rushdie claiming that the book was blasphemous and mocked the Islamic faith. Following this, Rushdie was placed under the protection of the British police for ten years, two of his translators were killed and one seriously injured. Some of the bookshops which stocked the novel were also under attack. The book was banned in Muslim countries and India, Rushdie’s birthplace. Rushdie’s freedom of expression was defended and Penguin refused to withdraw the book from publication.

This January, Rushdie was scheduled to appear at the Jaipur Literary Festival in his native India but this decision was met with a hostile response by the vice-chancellor of the Darul Uloom Deoband seminary, Maulana Abul Qasim Nomani, who stated:

“Rushdie should not be allowed to visit India. If he visits India, it would be adding salt to the injuries of Muslims. He has hurt our religious sentiments.”

The adversity was so widespread that Rushdie opted to address the festival by video-link. Yesterday however, an announcement was made by the organisers of the festival that even this video-link had to be cancelled, following threats of violence. Salman Rushdie commented on Twitter:

“Threat of violence by muslim groups stifled free speech today. In a true democracy we all get to speak, not just the ones making threats”

The hostility to “The Satanic Verses” comes almost 25 years after its original publication and illustrates the impact that literature can have.

For more information about this see:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/jan/24/salman-rushdie-attacks-indian-politicians

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/culture/allanmassie/100059953/salman-rushdie-and-the-jaipur-literary-festival-the-zealots-have-triumphed-again/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-16695754

If you are interested in exploring these themes in literature, you may be interested in our English Literature Summer School.

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1. English Masterclass

According to Einstein’s theory of special relativity there is a limit to the speed at which energy and information can travel. This limit is the speed of light, measured by the variable c. It is, for all intents and purposes, the speed limit of the universe.

But in September 2011 the entire notion of c as a maximum speed was undermined. At this time the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), which is the world’s largest physics lab, started to analyze information from a recent experiment named OPERA. The result? Neutrinos (a particular kind of subatomic particle) seem to have travelled faster than the speed of light, covering 730 kilometres from CERN to a beam detector set up in Gran Sasso, Italy.

So, it seems these neutrinos can move very vey quickly. But so what? What does all this mean? Well, for one thing, if the results of this experiment hold up against scrutiny, this would entirely undermine Einstein’s theory of special relativity and it would make us re-question how we understand the nature of the universe.

But, more interestingly, it would also make classic time travelling films a scientific reality. It would mean, for instance, that information does not just travel in one direction (the future) but in at least two directions (the future and the past). This would mean that information of our present could be sent to the past; the past from which our present is built. This would entirely blur the concepts of past, present and future and would render the idea of time most confounding.

For more information on this experiment and its possible consequences, please read the following sources:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2011/nov/18/neutrinos-still-faster-than-light

http://profmattstrassler.com/2011/09/22/what-have-we-here/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15791236

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/faster-than-light-neutrino-poses-the-ultimate-cosmic-brain-teaser-for-physicists/2011/11/09/gIQAsw9sKN_story.html

If you find this interesting you might enjoy our Physics Summer School where students get the chance to ponder the nature of the entire universe and some of its most puzzling riddles.

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But what does this all mean? And why is it important?

Credit rating agencies are private companies which study the data and give an unbiased opinion on how ‘safe’ a loan to a particular organisation – it could be a country or a business – will be. That is, how likely is it that the lender will be repaid on time and in full. Standard and Poor is one of the largest such agencies, and its opinions are taken very seriously.

The ‘AAA’ rating is the top rating available, and it basically means that the country is certain to be able to repay any loan it takes out. A lower grade , like ‘BB’, which is the mark given on Friday to smaller european countries like Portugal, means that prospective lenders should take into account a real risk that they may not get all of their money back. France’s new grade of ‘AA’ is still very good, as French President Nicholas Sarkozy has been quick to point out.

The grade matters because it is important in determining the interest rate at which governments are able to borrow money. A lower grade means that borrowing becomes more expensive, and could even mean that a country is not able to borrow money on the open market at a rate which it can afford. That is when a country needs to be rescued or ‘bailed out’ by an international lender like the International Monetary Fund.

France and Austria’s grades are particularly important at the moment because they are both guarantors of the European Financial Stability Fund, one of the key policy tools for dealing with the eurozone credit crisis.

Learn more about the international financial system at the Economics Summer School 2012.

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Mr. Munawar’s application to remain was originally refused on the grounds that he did not have enough funds in his bank account to reach the requirements of the points-based system used to determine visa applications. At first instance, the case was rejected and went on appeal to the Upper Tier of the Immigration and Asylum Tribunal where, upon finding the Home Office decision unlawful, Judge Pitt stated:

“In addition to his studies, the appellant has formed friendships with fellow students and work colleagues.  He has been living with student friends. He plays cricket at the weekends and trains in the week. He attends his mosque regularly and follows a personal development course there. His mother and siblings remain in Bangladesh and his father is working in Iraq.  He has a paternal aunt and cousins in the UK. He sees them most weekends. His grandmother also lived in the UK but, sadly, she died last year”

Although this is an upper tribunal decision, which still could be overturned on subsequent appeal, concerns have been raised that this case could result in thousands of applications being lodged from other students who have made friends and settled in their community over the three years of their study. This decision is not binding on future cases but it is felt that this may be referred to in subsequent judgments concerning similar matters and that the principles found in this case will be applied.

This comes at a time where the Government has been scrutinised for failing to meet their pledge to reduce net immigration to tens of thousands per year. The Minister for immigration, Damien Green said that:

“We are disappointed with this ruling. It shows how Article 8 is being used to place the private life of those without a right to remain in the UK above the rights of the British public, who want to see our immigration rules enforced.”

The Human Rights Act 1998 gives further effect to the ECHR and enables domestic courts to grant a remedy for the breach of a convention right without the need for the applicant to be heard at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

For more information about this case please see:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/immigration/8986046/New-human-rights-row-over-cricket-case.html

http://ukhumanrightsblog.com/2012/01/09/are-some-rights-to-private-life-just-not-cricket/

If you are interested in issues like these then you may be interested in our Law Summer School 

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1. American Political Life
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But what effect will this new office have on international relations? Afghan president Karzai is in favour of this new development but will the new office help to stabilize volatile Afghanistan? Or will this new consulate simply undermine the authority of the Afghan government?

Furthermore, does the Taliban, a disperate group with various factions, have the political authority to establish themselves as a legitimate voice of power or are they simply a terrorist organisation?

The United States government is hopeful that the establishment of an official Taliban office will facilitate new peace negotiations which could lead to a dignified withdrawl of American troops from Afghanistan in 2014. However, the Taliban is requesting, as a gesture of good will, the release of Taliban members currently being held in the US deterntion facility in Guantanamo Bay. But will the Americans agree to hand over their prisoners? And what is to be made of President Karzai’s plea that Taliban prisoners be first sent to the Afghan government?

Finally, what roles do Iran and China play in this new development? Will Iran, which has notoriously backed the Taliban in Afghanistan, be so pleased to see peaceful negotiations between the Taliban and the United States? Or are they, as the Washington Post claims, trying to encourage anti-American sentiment within Afghanistan? Finally, if this new office leads to a new peace negotiation and the full withdrawl of US troops, what will happen to the devastated infrastructure within Afghanistan? Surely Afghanistan will look to China as well as to Iran for development aid. China has already been granted access to 87 million barrels of Afghan oil. Will China now also be offered major development contracts within Afghanistan? If so, how will this affect the economies of these two countries?

If you find this story interesting you may also be interested in our International Relations Summer School.

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1. Young Diplomats Conference

The Commission on Assisted Dying has recommended that laws be established to allow people to assist suicide in a limited range of cases.

Anyone seeking assisted suicide would need to be over the age of 18, terminally ill with less than 12 months to live, and not subject to any sort of mental impairment. The person would need to be assessed by two doctors before the decision would be allowed, and the patient would need to be able to administer the euthanising drugs themselves.

This would impact a relatively limited number of people – excluding those with dementia, and those with long term chronic conditions, but would still be a huge change for British law.

At the moment it is illegal under the 1961 Suicide Act to help anyone to commit suicide, but the Director of Public Prosecutions has indicated that it may not always be appropriate to prosecute someone who has given such help, depending on the circumstances. This situation is considered unsatisfactory by groups on both sides of the debate as it leaves a great deal of uncertainty, both in principle and in practice.

The Commission has heard evidence from 1300 sources during its year long enquiry, but some groups refused to take part because they objected to the fact that the panel was set up and funded by campaigners who would like to see a change in the law.

The government has indicated that it has no plans to change the law in this area, but that any vote in parliament on the issue would be a ‘matter of conscience’ for individual MPs and not subject to government policy.

You can read more about this story here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/andrewbrown/2012/jan/05/assisted-suicide-autonomous-choice

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/jan/01/mary-warnock-assisted-suicide?newsfeed=true

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/8987017/Lord-Falconer-assisted-suicide-law-fails-to-protect-or-punish.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-16210769

Get stuck into lots more Medical Ethics debates at the Debate Chamber Medicine events – click here for more information.

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If this sounds interesting –  have a look at our next English Masterclass taking place on the 26^th of November 2011.

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The economics day of the course contained lively discussions, as students got to grips with and debated the causes of the credit crunch, working their way through the jargon to understand what is happening behind the newspaper headlines of doom and gloom. After a detailed look at how we got into the economic mess we are in, students turned to being policy makers, looking at the major options for resolving the debt crisis in Greece and the Eurozone.

In politics, students tackled subjects from areas of political theory and political science, looking at the justifications for and set-up of the state, the central institution in politics which has such an extensive impact on our lives. In the afternoon, students studied developments in British politics, including Tony Blair’s role in an increasingly presidential style of politics, the changing impact of class and socio-economic background on one’s voting behaviour and potential changes to the voting system.

One of the skills students have to learn when embarking on a degree involving philosophy is how to closely read, understand and analyse different texts, which students at the PPE Autumn School had a taste of when being introduced to the thought of two of the central figures of philosophy – John Stuart Mill and Immanuel Kant. Students were introduced to areas of philosophy they had not encountered before, such as metaphysics – the study of the nature of reality and epistemology – the philosophy of knowledge.

The final day of the course was led by Bob Hargrave, Lecturer in Philosophy at Balliol College, University of Oxford, which included both a lecture on the history of human rights and an examination of how public discourse about human rights has changed since the start of the war on terror. In the afternoon, students set the agenda as discussion groups took place on human rights questions which students wished to engage with – such as whether there should be a right not to be offended, whether animals have rights and what rights criminals should have or lose.

We will also be running our 4 day PPE School from 16-19th February 2012.

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The first day of the weekend kicked off with economic game theory. Students looked at a number of “games” which demonstrate how human agents acting in their own best interest often bring about sub-optimal results. For example, we looked at the prisoner’s dilemma: a classic paradigm matrix based on the same principles as the hit British TV series “Golden Balls”. Students then related game theory to current economic situations, such as the US’s credit rating getting downgraded.

On Saturday afternoon students then turned their attention to philosophy. Working in small groups with their peers students got the opportunity to ponder (as philosophers do!) questions such as “What makes me me?” and “Am I the same person I was when I was twelve”. From these discussions we then were able to touch on many themes including religious versus causal determinism, free will and moral responsibility. We also read some Locke and talked about Descartes’ mind/body divide. Finally, we looked at Derek Parfit’s work and evaluated whether you could be the same person if there was one of you on Earth and one of you on Mars.

On Sunday students took part in a politics and interdisciplinary session. Students compared different kinds of governments, such as parliamentary versus presidential and federal vs unitary, and they discussed some key questions for divided societies. Students were also given the opportunity to create their own own constitution. Finally, students got to role-play Summit discussions between the EU and Africa as they discussed the problem of poverty in sub-Saharan Africa.

If you’re interested in booking a place on our PPE Weekend, our next one runs on the 12^th-13^th of November 2011.

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The students coped extremely well with these new ideas and questions and took part in heated debates on topics including whether your mind or your body is more important in determining your identity and whether it was moral to deny all prisoners the vote. Some feedback from the students involved is below:

“I thought the session was a great way to get involved in philosophy and ethics by using things we can relate to and real topical issues”

“I would highly recommend it to others who like to debate important and topical issues”

“Overall I thought it was brilliant and I would love to do more!”

If this sounds interesting –  have a look at our Young Thinkers Summer School - taking place from 2nd-4th September 2011.

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2. Young Philosophers in Elstree