The establishment’s cowardice leaves no place for honesty. It is a safe, risk-averse, and timid strategy for those without guiding principles or will to follow them. As Mikhail Bulgakov once wrote, “cowardice is the most terrible of vices.”

A common sentiment among the population is that Ukrainians cannot afford to indulge in woe but should do their best to rebuild, regain lost wealth, and live on.

Universalism is forced to coexist with diversity and inclusion; one has to agree that patriarchy, aristocracy and capitalism were evil unless they are not white. But deeper divides force progressives to either keep their eyes shut or risk becoming the oppressors.

Children must not be shielded from struggle. This is, perhaps unexpectedly, among the few advantages of educating children in schools rather than at home, for there they have the chance to experience struggle as a part of life and to learn how to do it with courage and kindness.

The novel treats Britain’s past with the utmost respect it deserves; the regency world is presented to the reader in all its glory. Susanna Clarke does not betray its spirit by infusing it with modern culture, unlike so many other representations of the period.

Western political philosophy focuses on inherent features of man, and so Europeans were able to build a system which recognises and respects them. It is arguably the best system in the world, which is evidenced by the success of the countries that adopted it. It safeguards everything we value, and we should do everything to preserve it.

Bolingbroke is, perhaps, the most obvious figure to represent secular conservatism. He was a statesman, an historian, and a philosopher; he was also a libertine, and no stranger to intrigues he denounced.

Why endure work routine, long commutes, and hated bosses if one has an opportunity to sit back and enjoy even larger payments from the government? Not only is it simple, but it is also often more profitable.

The ages-old concept of the balance of power is supposedly understood by every international relations student. However, preoccupied with the ideas of globalism, American and European leaders often forget to take it into account when forming their policies.

As I am writing these words, I can hear a battle raging on the other side of the Kyiv Sea. The worst thing about living close to the front line is not knowing where the next missile will land, but we are determined to carry on with our lives for as long as possible.

Fictional rebellions invite us to side with the underdog. The story conveniently ends with their victory, but leaves no ruined lives and no unhealable scars—nothing to contradict the idea of a newly found paradise.

Does any government actually need more funds than it already has?