There are some situations about which we feel very angry but equally powerless. One of these is the plight of the Palestinians, hugely exacerbated by the recent Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip and the subsequent ground invasion. Much has been written about the recent conflict and the resulting humanitarian tragedy, but we got involved in some of the protests and would like to have our say on the ongoing issue of justice in the Middle East. And the football connection? Well that would be giving the game (of two halves) away......

This story has some of my favourite ingredients although it does lack any live music or even a sniff of revolution. Good friends, hoppy liquids, a sport played with a round ball involving twenty-two blokes and three visually-impaired gentlemen dressed in black, some spicy food, a great indie band and gigantic amounts of middle-class apoplexy. Gigantic to the extent of – wait for it, wait for it – a letter from.......the Residents’ Association Committee! Yes, it was your average November weekend in Northampton starring North London boys the Holloways......

Take the Red Pill has always believed that charity alone will not solve the problems associated with global poverty. In fact, it can sometimes make things worse. Yes, we need direct aid, sometimes urgently, for those who are desperately poor but we also need to challenge the systems which cause poverty.  Brazilian Bishop Helder Camara said, “When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. And when I ask why they have no food, they call me a Communist.” Here we look at one aid organisation working in the spirit of Helder Camara.

I must admit that when I woke up on Saturday morning, I was tempted to pull the duvet back over my head and spend the rest of the day in bed. I swear that my warm pillow started whispering to me. “Who’s going to know if you don’t go on the march?”, “What difference will one person make?” and “Blimey, what did you eat last night, you stink?” Somehow I managed to get my butt out of that bed and down to Northampton station for the trip to the Smoke. It was obviously my day – it was a Virgin train AND it left on time.......

For someone who lives live music and enjoys a wide variety of musical genres, it takes something very bad to make me want to leave a gig just a few minutes after the main band has come on stage. That’s what happened last Friday when I took my son to see Simple Plan play at the Academy in Birmingham. I’m going to try really hard to find some positives in the story – see if you can spot them......

It’s been almost three years since we went to see Mark Thomas and heard his tales about Coca-Cola and its rather disturbing practices around the world. That inspired me to write one of Take the Red Pill’s most popular articles* and the redpillcrew to discourage as many people as possible from buying any Coke products. Now Mark Thomas has published his book showing in more detail the link between buying a cheap sugary drink and the oppression of poor people in the developed and developing world. Put your can or bottle down and read on........

Euphoria seems to be the order of the day. People all around the world are walking with a spring in their step and a smile on their face because Senator Barack Obama has won the 2008 US Presidential Election. Yet we have a sneaking suspicion that if they were asked the reason for their happiness about the result, many would be unable to give a clear answer, possibly resorting to mumbling something about ‘hope’ or ‘change’ or, worse still, uttering the McSlogan ‘Yes we can!’

We’re a bit old-fashioned when it comes to journalism. You know - a reporter gets a lead on a story, goes and investigates, checks out reliable sources to verify the facts and then publishes something which hasn’t been published by every other newspaper, TV station and website. We intend to take a more in-depth look at the death of journalism in due course, but here’s a very simple example to give you a taster. Trivia makes news and PR is the new journalism.......

The small but happy crowd surges then slows, surges then slows, switching almost effortlessly between moshing and skanking. Josh takes off his guitar, leans it against the drums, grins like a maniac and launches himself into the crowd. It’s all gone a bit NHS dental and this is still the support band the Skints. Welcome to a bit of thrash ska on a Monday night at the Barfly in Birmingham. Ladies and gentlemen, let’s hear it for two of London’s finest bands, the Skints and the King Blues......

I have supported Crystal Palace for almost 40 years. Over those 40 years there have been only a handful of seasons when Palace slumbered in mid-table. Most years I spend the months of April and May sweating over whether they will achieve promotion or avoid relegation. Consistency is not a word easily associated with Crystal Palace Football Club. They are my beloved yo-yo club. So it was with no huge sense of expectation that I travelled to Preston for the second match of this season.