get the conversation started

"Hey Paul," it says, "get the conversation started!"

What democracy can impose a press-charter without a parliamentary vote? Do we have a right to privacy (particularly when we are in a public place) and why do people's reputations matter so much (given that we're all stained with original sin)? Is causing offence a sin and/or a crime and, if so, what about the people whose very existence can offend others?

What right does a government have to confiscate private land to build a railway (or anything else)? If government can do that, does ownership have any meaning any more? Can a railway be justified because it will purportedly bring wealth to one area yet risks making other areas more cut-off?

When government intervenes in a market (to cap fuel-prices or pension-fees), doesn't it destroy a market? What happens if a fuel-cap means that it's no longer profitable for energy-companies to supply gas or lecky and, consequently, cease trading. Who keeps the lights on then?

If we privatise a public asset, why should taxpayers have to spend money on shares in something they already own and have been subsidising for years? Is there anything you can't privatise and, if not, why not? Why is there just one monopolies-commission?

Should we charge foreigners to use the NHS (or our schools or our subsidised public transport or roads), or is health a basic human right which we can't deny them?

What are the ethics of the implementation of the new Chiltern/Wycombe waste-disposal scheme?