Marginalia, Nida-e Haq

Guns and America Asad Mirza Recent mass shootings in the US have been attributed to a variety of causes - disaffected youth, mental illness, workplace conflict and family discord. According to the BBC the nature of the attack could also prompt a rethinking of the domestic threat presented by militant white nationalists and ways to stop it, including new gun control measures. The attacks have once again brought into focus two crucial acts, which are related to America. First, is the Gun Control Laws in the US. Many Americans and the Republican Party included, oppose restriction of arms possession by the American public. Second, is the international law known as Arms Trade Treaty, which aims to restrict sale of arms to those countries which are in a state of turmoil or internal dissidence, in this case too, the US is not a signatory to the ATT, which was adopted by the United Nations on 24 December 2014, and so far 104 states have ratified the treaty. Among gun cont...

Boris Johnson: a maverick Asad Mirza Former London Mayor Boris Johnson led the campaign for Britain to leave the EU, and after a dramatic prime minister race, he'll be serving in one of the country's top positions. Johnson is a clownish character, but he's got enviable popularity levels and is known by his first name across the UK. He's even affectionately referred to as "BoJo" over social media. While at Oxford University, Boris was president of the Oxford Union, a position held by former Conservative leader William Hague and ex-Prime Minister Edward Heath. Johnson went to Eton College and university with Prime Minister David Cameron, but Boris was much more obviously political at the time. Johnson, who also worked as a journalist was sacked after a brief career at London-based newspaper The Times , and then worked for The Daily Telegraph as the paper's Brussels correspondent, gaining a name for himself in the center-right p...