Volume 124 Issue 2 March/April 2009

Editorial: Puzzling history: Would life be better if we knew all the answers?

Cover Story

In praise of the coup: Military takeovers can be a good thing for African democracy. Paul Collier makes the case

No appeasement: If liberal Britain is ailing we have only ourselves to blame, says Nick Cohen
Endgame: What's my line?: Laurie Taylor stands up for himself

On the trail of the red pilgrims: The philosopher Michail Ryklin tells Caspar Melville what really motivated communism's faithful followers
The unlovable press: Tabloid newspapers are a vital force for democracy, argues an American academic. What about the British case, asks Julian Petley?
Hatefest: We must prevent the UN being unravelled by bigotry and conflict, argues Ian Williams
Blog standard: How well does online punditry translate on the printed page? Stephen Howe finds out
God Trumps Part II: Still struggling to choose the top religion? Pigeonhole yourself for all eternity with the second part of our cut-out-and-keep metaphysical card game. Devised by Christina Martin, illustrated by Martin Rowson
Moral dilemmas: Do we have the right to judge others? Steven Lukes reviews the evidence
Green eyed monster: Is jealousy an intrinsic part of our make-up? asks Sally Feldman. Or a weakness to be vanquished?
Bad vibrations: Songs can break more than your heart. Martin Cloonan on the sinister uses and abuses of music
Fault lines: The miners' strike of 1984 changed British politics forever, argues Francis Beckett

Diary: Science friction: It seems even sci-fi geeks can indulge in a spot of retrospective offence, says Natalie Haynes

Lost in the maelstrom: Fifty years after CP Snow’s celebrated lecture the ‘two cultures’ are further apart than ever, finds Eliane Glaser

The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell: Philip Womack grapples with a controversial epic
What would Google do? by Jeff Jarvis: Can Google's philosophy change the world? Bill Thompson finds out
From Fatwa to Jihad by Kenan Malik: Lindsay Johns is impressed by Kenan Malik's take on Rushdie and race
Book Review: Questions of Truth: God, Science and Belief by John Polkinghorne and Nicholas Beale: AC Grayling rips into the latest attempt to bridge the God-science gap
Why Socrates Died by Robin Waterfield: Jenny Bunker never quite learns what really killed Socrates