In The News

English Butler Leads China's Latest Cultural Revolution

Jonathan Watts October 26, 2005
The austere refinement and discreet assistance long associated with a traditional English butler is now a commodity available globally. In the past decade, Robert Watson has taken his business – training aspiring manservants in ettiquette, wine-tasting, table-dressing and other skills – to numerous continents. Watson's latest expansion is in the Far East, where Chinese authorities have...

Defiant Turkish Writer Says "Genocide" Taboo an Obstacle to EU Entry

Ramsay Short October 19, 2005
In a development that recalls the Iranian theocracy's 1989 fatwa forcing author Salman Rushdie into exile, Turkish officials have criminally charged novelist Orhan Pamuk for his comments condemning the country's slaughter of Armenian residents at the beginning of the 20th century. Pamuk, a native Turk whose work has received numerous accolades, has made no bones about his stance on the...

Globalization Explained to the French

Philip H. Gordon October 18, 2005
Following France's decisive May 29 referendum against the proposed EU Constitution, many observers condemned this once great imperial power's rejection of the international system. Decrying the predations of "Anglo-Saxon capitalism," the "Non!" camp had clung to an alternate vision of polity, rooted in commitments to social development and market regulation. But an...

Opportunity in Tragedy?

October 10, 2005
Following Saturday's devastating earthquake, Pakistan appealed to the international community for emergency supplies and money. But because of the long-standing dispute over the Kashmir region, Pakistani officials have been reluctant to accept help from India. In order to save lives in Kashmir and elsewhere, the two nuclear powers must set aside their political disputes and focus on joint...

Aboriginal Remains Will Be Returned

James Button October 6, 2005
Five years ago, world media focused its attention on Gaborone, Botswana, to watch the repatriation of a corpse. The stuffed body of a 19th century African, who had been on display for over a century in European museums, was returned to his native soil. Indigenous populations outside of Europe, from the "Hottentots" of southern Africa to the Maori of New Zealand, were long the subjects...

Don't Tell Anybody It's Africa Calling

Nayan Chanda October 4, 2005
Six hundred years ago, France exported slaves from what is today Senegal. Now, the West African country imports jobs from its former colonial master – causing panic in France, but bringing hope to workers at home, writes YaleGlobal editor Nayan Chanda. More and more French call center companies now outsource to Senegal, where they can conduct business at a fraction of European operating costs....

Russia and China Together Again, Gingerly

Yu Bin September 6, 2005
Beginning August 18, China and Russia embarked on an unprecedented military collaboration: an eight-day joint war game, named "Peace Mission 2005." Though officials of the two countries claimed the drills were for "anti-terrorist" goals, writes scholar Yu Bin, the exercises were "certainly oversized and of overkill capacity for any anti-terrorist operation."...