Politics

Chances are you've heard a few jokes and a few arguments over the last week about whether Andy Murray is Scottish or British. The old joke is that when he is losing, the English refer to him as Scottish, but when he is winning (like last weekend) he is most definitely British.

If you're not from Britain all the terminology and minor differences can get very confusing. Many other nationalities seem to use the terms ‘English' and ‘British' interchangeably- which is certainly not the case and can get you into a spot of bother.

Indeed, even the New York Times struggled with it this week, announcing Murray's win as one for England rather than Britain, despite the fact Murray is from Scotland:

London Pride was an amazing and colorful experience. Pride's theme of this year was dedicated to ‘Love (and Marriage)' to celebrate the positive steps towards equal marriage in the UK, as well as in various countries around the world. More than fifty events have been taking place throughout June and July as part of the Pride in London festival.

My role as volunteer involved insuring the parade ran smoothly, to enchant the audience and give information out to those who asked. Volunteers were given a t-shirt & a badge, and we were divided into groups of 5 or 6 people with a senior steward leading each one.

The parade started at 1.00pm and went along Oxford Street to Oxford Circus, moved down Regent Street and along Pall Mall, then to Trafalgar Square and finally ended in Whitehall at around 4.00pm. Over 150 groups had registered to take part in the parade, and many organizations joined the event as well.

After the parade, people than moved to Trafalgar Square where there was a big stage and different artists were performing. Soho soon became full of people having food and drinks. The after party took place in many venues around London and it was a great time to meet new people and celebrate Pride together.

"In Bulgaria it is often impossible to know where organised crime ends and legitimate business begins. The nexus between the two is characterised by complex bureaucratic structures, opaque corporate accounting and a maze of offshore accounts." The journalist John O'Brennan gives us an explanatory view of the causes of the protests in Bulgaria, widely ignored by the media during the first week of manifestations across the nation.

Besides the economic stagnation, lack of jobs and youths' future undermined by incertitude in the poorest country in the EU, the principal cause of the outrage and malcontent that led civilians to the street is the corruption of the political elite, accused of being oligarchs and biased.

The escalated bribery, dotted by many episodes of embezzlements and elections of people whose lifestyles and morality are rather ambiguous, exasperates citizens. They are making demands that the current three-month-old, socialist-led government step down, for new and legitimate elections, for effective strategies to fight organized crime and for reforms to improve the stagnant economy.

The spending for Margret Thatcher's funeral was a tremendous insult to the hard economic crisis that is affecting many countries, the UK included. In an era where people struggle to keep their jobs and to pay their bills, the government decided to spend about £10 million on the funeral of one person (who, despite being worshiped by some, affected negatively the lives of many).

The spending was justified by some- for example the Deputy Speaker Nigel Evans: "It is the right way to commemorate her life" and Prime Minister David Cameron: "What is happening today is absolutely fitting and right. She was the first woman prime minister, she served for longer in the job than anyone for 150 years, she achieved some extraordinary things in her life". However, many people were outraged. The Bishop of Grantham called the costs "a mistake" as "a funeral should be more low-key and personal".

Protesters gathered near St. Paul's (pictured above) to voice their dissidence against the cost of the commemoration, they waved placards reading "Rest of us in Poverty" and "Rest in Shame" and wore t-shirts with messages such as "Society does exist".

With ex-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's funeral having taken place this morning, student writer Erik gives his view on her life and death and the way he has seen the British respond to her. 

"I can not omit a few lines about the Iron Lady...

The death of Margaret Thatcher has brought out so many different reactions.

Sitting on the tube in the morning, her face was looking at me from the front page of the newspapers. Even the fans of One Direction on Twitter were asking whether she was a friend of the band members after seeing their condolence. At least the young have taken notice.

Many people on both sides of the political spectrum consider her the greatest Prime Minister since Winston Churchill. He was also both loved and loathed. But while Churchill was switching between parties according to his political tastes, Thatcher introduced politics of different taste to one party.

No politician can appeal to all- that is one of the truths of the occupation. During Thatcher's time in office, Britain won the Falkland Islands, but wasted lives in the conflict in Northern Ireland. She supported individualism and enabled people to buy their own houses; but on the other hand, they were cut short of milk. She helped to end the communist era, but critics suggest that the foundations for the crisis were laid down at the same time.