There's an array of interesting articles in the papers today with no particular (or even contrived) links:

• Demographics and inequality are two issues that CentreForum has shown a strong interest over the last two years (See 'Does Britain need a population policy', 'From boom to bust: fertility, ageing and demographic change' and 'Climbing the ladder: how can Britain become more socially mobile') Today, the FT publishes an interesting piece by Christopher Caldwell that brings the two together with the concept of 'mortality inequality'.  See 'More mortal than some'. 
  

• Jackie Ashley tries back-peddling a bit from her more interesting piece of 7 days ago where she suggested that Brown was on the brink of collapse.  In this week's offering ('Brown's retreat to his tribal comfort zone is suicidal') she suggests Brown has "retreated again to his personal comfort zone of macho, tribal men who love to tussle and hate to listen." Her verdict is clear: "This is suicidal."
  I wonder if Tim Hames in The Times would agree.  His prescription today in 'How to stop Labour's self destruction' is that Brown needs an "explicitly political fixer". He describes this as "the person who instinctively understands what will calm or upset Labour MPs and can peer ahead, spot the controversies that might transpire, and damp them down." I read this description as an alpha-male figure - where Jackie Ashley seems to think that the alpha-males are causing the problems.
• The Telegraph's decries the poor state of Britain's local government ('Local council elections? What elections').  "The underlying problem won't be tackled until... local authorities are given meaningful fiscal and legislative autonomy." It is a topic that the paper has spoken about clearly and lucidly for several years now.
  

• If you're bored of Ken, Boris, Brian and Sian and the London Mayoral elections - The Times has an interesting, if rather light, piece looking at various other high profile Mayor's from around the world.  Rather inapropriately titled as 'Beyond our Ken (or Boris)' it gives a pen portait of the Mayors of Berlin, New York and Paris.