Hymenoplasty is a surgical procedure requested by women who are expected to remain virgins until marriage. In this article, I assess the ethical and legal challenges raised by this request, both for the individual physician and for the health care system. I argue that performing hymenoplasty is not always an unethical practice and that, under certain conditions, it should be provided by the health care system.

Analysis of contemporary political discourse reveals that the topics of ‘immigration’ and ‘asylum’, historically the preserve of extreme right-wing politics, have increasingly entered more centrist conservative discourse. Meanwhile, it is also argued that elite political discourse on ethnic affairs cuts across traditional political divides. Thus, contemporary left-wing discourses also require scrutiny. The current article examines one example of elite discourse from liberal media commentary, which addresses ideological concerns regarding diversity, immigration and the welfare state in Britain. Adopting a discursive analytic (...) approach, three predominant discursive themes are identified in the text, which we term: ‘Unnatural Sharing’, ‘Diversity as Ethnic Difference’ and ‘Immigrant-Minorities Alchemy’. Through careful examination of these themes, we show how, via their engagement, the text subtly yet persuasively builds a version of ‘reality’ inimical to progressive ideals. (shrink)