The Foodwatch report on Coca-Cola is paternalism masquerading as science

Last week, the German NGO Foodwatch published a report that intends to expose how the American soft-drink producer Coca-Cola is “marketing sweet causes of illnesses to children.” The report contains three main arguments, notably that sugary soft drinks marketed by Coca-Cola contribute significantly to the obesity crisis, that the company deliberately targets children, and that […]

The angrier your taxi driver is, the better

The temper tantrums thrown by taxi drivers around the world, when it comes to ride-sharing services such as Uber or Lyft, is indicative of a dying monopoly. If your taxi driver wasn’t angry at the gig economy, then something would be wrong.

Why is the UK complicit in the complete ban on snus?

In 1990, after a recommendation by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the UK banned snus, a moist, smokeless tobacco product. Popular in Scandinavia, snus (Swedish for ‘snuff’) is sold in little prepackaged white pouches, which are commonly put underneath the upper lip. Unlike dry snuff or dipping tobacco, you don’t need to spit it out. […]

I attended an event of Nanny State hardliners. This is what happened.

There are moments in life in which your expectations meet reality. The “Legal but Lethal” event, held on April 23 in Brussels, happened to be such an occasion. Organised by the WEMOS Foundation the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) and Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO), this conference illustrated was a magnificent illustration of the dogmatic nature […]

The bad economics that are plastic bag taxes

In January, the British government announced its intention to extend their plastic bag tax to all shops. As of now, only establishments which have more than 250 employees need to impose the charge on single-use plastic bags. In the United States, certain states or cities even go beyond a tax and put an outright ban on them. But the […]

The entitlement epidemic

In France, radicalised students are blocking the entrance of multiple universities. Estimates count more than one million euros in damages, with higher education establishments being affected with damages of about €300,000. What exactly do these students want, and what needs to be done about their feeling of entitlement? A student’s fight against meritocracy French students […]

Emmanuel Macron is crowning himself King of Europe

“You as a political project are in denial.” Those words are now part of the EU lexicon thanks to Nigel Farage’s speech in the European Parliament following the Brexit referendum. Farage’s point: despite Brexit, the European Union was unwilling to concede that its process of centralization had gone too far.

France shows what you get with democratic socialism

Strikes and blockades have spread across France as President Emmanuel Macron spends his time touring Europe with a new EU agenda.The French state-run railway service, SNCF, is currently dealing with massive strikes on both the regional and the high-speed inter-city lines. The unions CGT and SUD-Rail are striking in opposition to any change in the […]