In The News

Myanmar, The Latest Petro Bully

Michael L. Ross October 30, 2007
Governments with ample supplies of energy products find it easier to commit human-rights violations. Governments can use their oil and gas products to "buy their way out of trouble," writes political scientist Michael Ross for the Los Angeles Times. "Myanmar is Asia's fastest-growing petroleum exporter; China is the world's fastest-growing importer," he writes,...

Organic Food Is Healthier and Safer, Four-Year EU Investigation Shows

Emily Dugan October 30, 2007
With the rhapsodizing of moms who want healthy children and the battle cries of right-wing skeptics, it can be difficult to depoliticize the debate about organically grown foods and root out scientific information about how they compare to conventionally grown counterparts. The European Union funded a four-year long study comparing the nutritional value of organic and conventional produce. The...

Consumer Mouse That Is Roaring

Peter Kell October 29, 2007
The marketing of some products, particularly those targeting children, is irresponsible. Some firms make outlandish claims, all to make a profit. As a result, global consumer trust has declined both in rich and poor countries. Still, some countries regulate products and marketing more heavily than others. "As consumers we face the reality that product standards in other countries can have a...

Amber Light From the Party

Pierre F. Landry October 29, 2007
Transfer of power in Chinese politics is both undemocratic and uncertain. The Chinese Communist Party's highest leading body is the National Congress, which meets every five years to set policy and choose new leadership. But most decisions are finalized in secretive negotiations well before the meeting. The leadership lineup that emerged with the 17th Congress is not one of "monolithic...

The Next Steps For Burma

Amitav Acharya October 26, 2007
Western nations have tightened economic sanctions and ASEAN has expressed "revulsion" at Myanmar's repression of non-violent protests. Concrete actions must now follow the outrage. UN efforts to encourage talks on the country's constitution and renew humanitarian poverty relief, while positive, do not go far enough, argues Amitav Acharya, professor of global governance. Such...

Chasing the Chinese Dream

Ariana Eunjung Cha October 25, 2007
Business entrepreneurs seeking security, opportunity and religious tolerance are turning away from traditional immigration destinations like the United States or Europe, and instead finding themselves on China's shores. The number of internationals in China with long-term visas has nearly doubled since 2003, about 450,000 people, including about 20,000 Muslims and 1,000 displaced Iraqis. The...

Bloodstained Rubies Fund Burmese Regime

Beat Balzli October 25, 2007
It is well known how the proceeds from sales of diamonds or oil can subsidize civil war and corrupt regimes, but less well known is how the international ruby trade sustains the Burmese junta. The United States and Europe each responded to Myanmar's violent repression of peaceful protesters with tightened trade limitations in their relations with the pariah in Southeast Asia, but were easily...