In The News

A Fair Globalization: Creating Opportunities for All

February 24, 2004
A new report issued by the World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization acknowledges that globalization's "potential for good is immense," but points to record unemployment levels as a sign that globalization has not met the majority of men and women's "simple and legitimate aspirations for decent jobs and a better future for their children." The...

Argentina Stuck on the Periphery of a Globalized World

Jean-Pierre Lehmann February 20, 2004
Although once renowned for its prosperity and rich culture, Argentina has seen its fortunes decline as it suffered authoritarian rulers throughout the 20th century. Democratic strides in the 1980s and 1990s did not bring success, either - the "liberal" leaders of those two decades implemented free-market policies that many blame for Argentina's current economic woes. Yet...

China's Taiwan Dilemma

Michael Yahuda February 18, 2004
China's leadership believes strongly in the goal of a unified country - and for Beijing that means preventing Taiwan from declaring independence. For many Chinese, uniting with Taiwan is a matter of national pride. China scholar Michael Yahuda argues that pushing the issue politically or militarily would stimulate hostility abroad and cause an economic downturn at home, possibly leading to...

Echoes of Panic over Global Disease

Philip Bowring February 17, 2004
Philip Bowring believes lessons from history should inform our current concerns over global epidemics. While epidemics lead to widespread fears and calls for global advisory boards and local action, Bowring asserts that we would be wise to question virologists, journalists, and health officials on the level of threat they suppose looms around the corner. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)...

Still Waiting For The President's `Humble' Foreign Policy

Gustav Ranis February 12, 2004
"The world's only superpower now looks vulnerable," says Gustav Ranis, Professor of International Economics and director of the Yale Center for International and Area Studies, Yale University. The US is at a stage where it has no "clear exit strategy" from the foreign policy muddle it has gotten into by taking a unilateral stand on Afghanistan, Iraq, and Al-Qaeda. Ranis...

Bush Seeks New Push to Curb N-Weapons

Edward Alden February 12, 2004
To stem the spread of nuclear weapons, President Bush proposes a ban on all sales of civilian nuclear enrichment technology. Under his new plan, nuclear countries would provide fuel only to those countries that renounce enrichment. Recognizing that this could fundamentally change the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, Bush is seeking to make changes through the Nuclear Suppliers Group, a 40-nation...

The Strategic Straitjacket of Globalization

Banning Garrett February 11, 2004
Unlike during the Cold war, when competition was only between the US and the Soviet Union, today all globalizing nations are competitors. However, writes Banning Garrett, Director of Asia Programs at the Atlantic Council, these competing nations are also partners in today's globalizing economy, which is growing increasingly interconnected and interdependent. These new conditions of...