The concept of choice is highly valued, especially in the West, as a fundamental right of free individuals. Our sense of being free is often based on our freedom to exercise choice in the marketplace, in matrimony, in the voting booth, or in the hypertext link. But choice has its darker side: it can prove to be illusory; sometimes the process of choosing can be agonising; making a choice can close off future choices; we are frequently forced to make choices.

This issue of Static takes its inspiration from the German adage die Qual der Wahl ('the suffering of choice'). The issue will examine whether/when the freedom to choose is in fact a condemnation to suffer. The theme provides a useful way of thinking about democracy, marketing and consumerism, free will, justice, body politics, social policy, education, aesthetics, and digital culture. As the London Consortium is dedicated to interdisciplinarity, we are encouraging submissions from contributors of all kinds and from all fields. Possible lines of enquiry include but are not limited to: