In The News

Is Crisis of Capitalism a Crisis of Democracy? DW

Alexander Görlach November 26, 2019
Protests are breaking out worldwide: over corruption in Lebanon and Egypt, rising fuel prices and cuts in subsidies in Chile and Ecuador and France, sectarian power-sharing in Iraq and Lebanon, worries about housing prices and Chinese control in Hong Kong, separatist movement in Spain, and failure to enact climate-change regulations in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Austriaand New...

Hong Kong Elections: South China Morning Post

Jeffie Lam, Sum Lok-kei and Ng Kang-chung November 25, 2019
More than 70 percent of Hong Kong’s registered voters turned out for district council elections, firmly rejecting unchecked control from China. “The tsunami of disaffection among voters was clear across the board, as pan-democrats rode the wave to win big in poor and rich neighbourhoods, in both protest-prone and non-protest-afflicted districts and, in downtown areas as well as the suburbs,”...

Europe Divided Again: Wall Street Journal

Bojan Pancevski November 17, 2019
Three decades after the Berlin Wall fell, political divisions are again rising between East and West Europe, reports the Wall Street Journal. “Despite the economic success of German reunification and the triumph of democracy across Eastern Europe, the two regions are drifting apart again in a clash of values that is threatening the cohesion of the Western alliance and the European Union,” the...

Listen to the Young: Times of India

Nayan Chanda October 26, 2019
Young people are worried about the future of their societies and the planet as a whole and are becoming activists, convincing peers and adults to listen. Greta Thunberg of Sweden, 16, has rallied millions of students around the globe urging immediate action on climate change, and Joshua Wong, 22, seeks support on protecting democracy for Hong Kong. “Both Thunberg and Wong need the adults to act...

NBA Caught Up in Hong Kong Protests: Bloomberg

Eben Novy-Williams October 10, 2019
Through three decades’ development, basketball has attracted an annual Chinese audience of more than 800 million, creating a market with billions of dollars revenue. However, one swiftly deleted tweet may threaten all those painstaking efforts. Daryl Morey, general manager of the Houston Rockets, tweeted an image of a slogan supporting Hong Kong’s protesters, and China responded quickly. Some...

A Need to Hear “I Don’t Know” More: New Statesman

Amelia Tait September 28, 2019
Many in the world are far too certain and free with opinions even when lacking evidence. “’I don’t know’ is a phrase that is sorely needed in modern discourse,” suggests Amelia Tait for New Statesman. “In a world of push notifications, populism and prolifically tweeting presidents, it is easier than ever to feel overpowered by the news.” Many complex issues require nuanced responses that go far...

Hong Kong Withdraws Extradition Bill: SCMP

September 4, 2019
Large crowds of Hong Kong protesters began organizing in mid-June soon after the government introduced a bill allowing extradition of criminal suspects to jurisdictions with which the city lacks a treaty, including China. Announcement of suspension on June 16 was not enough and spurred 2 million to take the streets in peaceful protest. Weeks passed and the protests took a violent turn with petrol...