In The News

Richard Smith June 17, 2008
The wealthiest countries spend lavishly on health care. The growing expenditures create entrenched health-care systems that provide an increasing share of employment in those nations. Technological innovation – from development of new drugs to life-saving equipment – in the health-care sector, unlike other industries, tends to make prices rise rather than fall, explains Richard Smith in an essay...
June 12, 2008
A panel of foreign journalists, including YaleGlobal Editor Nayan Chanda, analyze for the News Hour and the Public Broadcasting Service why citizens around the world remain mesmerized by the US presidential election, with presumptive nominees John McCain and Barack Obama. In a transcript of the June 12, 2008, broadcast, Chanda explains that Obama draws tremendous interest, in part, because of the...
Daniel Pepper June 10, 2008
The LRAD, or long-range acoustical device, was developed by the American Technology Corp. after the 2000 attack on the USS Cole, and is most often characterized as a “warning device.” The device is capable of emitting high-energy waves that are painfully loud when aimed at specific targets. LRAD, currently classified as a communications system, is not subject to US export-control regulations. But...
Margot Wallström June 9, 2008
Europe has been a progressive leader on many political issues, but women are still underrepresented in continental politics, argues Margot Wallström, vice president of the European Commission in an essay for the Financial Times. In selecting candidates for ministerial positions, top leaders often strive for diversity but overlook glaring gender imbalances, she notes. People naturally tend to...
Jean-Pierre Filiu June 3, 2008
Some Islamists believe that establishing a broad jurisdiction under an Islamic leader, last seen with the Ottoman Empire in 1924, could deliver stability. Calling for such a caliphate is Hizb ut-Tahrir, or the Islamic Party of Liberation, which has re-emerged in Palestine since the divisive clash between Hamas and Fatah. Hizb ut-Tahrir refuses to participate in elections, and its supporters blame...
Linda Chavez May 30, 2008
Among all the powers that a president is given, the choice to nominate federal judges is critical. Voters should scrutinize candidates’ criteria for choosing judges: Barack Obama seeks judges who can make decisions grounded on fairness while John McCain values judges who understand the bounds of judicial power. In choosing a president, voters need to consider what types of judges will be...
Wenran Jiang May 23, 2008
An earthquake, 7.9 in magnitude, struck China on May 12, in the midst of global protests about the country’s crackdown on Tibet, complaints about press censorship and grumbling about trade imbalances. This YaleGlobal series compares the domestic and international responses to the earthquake disaster in Sichuan Province and the May 2 cyclone that devastated Burma’s Irrawaddy Delta. The Burmese...