In The News

Capitalism Sputters to Life Across Iraq

Maureen Fan May 6, 2003
In the wake of the US-led war in Iraq, free-market capitalism seems to be all the rage. Daily fluctuations in prices and a lack of social order, however, are leaving some Iraqis underwhelmed by their newfound economic freedom. Without proper police protection or market-setting authorities, both consumers and vendors are experiencing the pains of unregulated exchange, profiting on one day and...

America's Broadband Dream is Alive in Korea

Ken Belson May 5, 2003
According to a vision of Internet technology, one would be able to watch television programs, attend training workshops, sing karaoke, shop, and play interactive games – all of it online. Although Internet has changed patterns of consumption and sociality in the US, it has not yet realized its full potential. But that is not to say it has not happened anywhere. South Korea is a remarkable...

North Korea's Missile Trade Helps Fund Its Nuclear Program

Bertil Lintner May 5, 2003
A New York Times article on May 5 says that “tacitly acknowledging that North Korea may not be deterred from producing plutonium for nuclear weapons, President Bush is now trying to marshal international support for preventing the country from exporting nuclear material.” While preventing the export of nuclear material has emerged as the top priority the US government is also considering how to...

Anglosphere: Limits to Globalization

James C. Bennett May 3, 2003
In this essay James C. Bennett addresses the limits of globalization. According to Bennett, amongst the enduring benefits of globalization are innovations in travel, world economy, and medical and technological breakthroughs. However, Bennett argues against a universal paradigm for globalization because globalization often occurs between nations and economies that are similarly positioned in...

A Shocking Response

Michael Jansen May 2, 2003
Thanks to the EU, two halves of a divided nation are re-united. Turkish and Greek residents of Cyprus are now able to cross the Green Line – a UN-patrolled border separating the two groups – with ease and comfort. At Turkey's urging, the Turkish Cypriot leadership agreed to drop border barriers along the Green Line. In the first day, almost 5,000 people had crossed the border to visit the...

It’s Time Businesses Got Back to Business

Klaus Schwab May 2, 2003
Many years ago, the business of business was business. Now, argues Klaus Schwab, president of the World Economic Forum, companies have been saddled with a host of social responsibilities, like fighting poverty and protecting the environment, that should be the purview of governments. Instead of focusing on these responsibilities, Schwab says, business leaders "must re-embrace the wealth-...

Thailand, Neighbours Agree on Jobs Strategy

Supalak Ganjanakhundee May 1, 2003
Thailand has become a host nation to almost half a million legally working migrants and countless illegal immigrants. Though it continues to be in a better condition than its neighboring states, the Thai economy is still feeling the strain from too many workers and too few jobs. A cooperative solution is being negotiated to create jobs in the home countries of the illegal immigrants, which...