In The News

Inglish as She's Spoke

Gurcharan Das May 3, 2005
The worldwide spread of English has seen a rise in colloquially "blended languages," from Franglais (French and English) to Spanglish (Spanish and English) to Taglish (Tagalog and English), and so on. This Outlook India piece suggests a new addition: Inglish (Hindi and English). As the author writes, English is the ticket to a good job and middle class status in India. It unites...

Tangled Threads of Protectionism – Part I

Pietra Rivoli May 3, 2005
One of the textile industry's oldest problems is again under focus: how to adjust in the face of changing technology, tastes, and economic fundamentals. Politicians are calling, not surprisingly, for a populist solution – protect jobs by raising walls against imports. In a three-part series, trade experts examine the issues surrounding the post-quota state of the textile industry. With the...

Power Plays in Asia

Jim Hoagland April 22, 2005
Protesters recently filled China's streets, objecting to Japan's bid for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council; Japan, the protesters maintain, has yet to atone sufficiently for its crimes during World War II. As this Washington Post article points out, however, "It is a mistake to write off the political turmoil in Asia as a case of resurgent nationalism in a region that...

China Owes Japan for Riots

April 21, 2005
Citing the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, Japanese officials and experts in international law say that Beijing must apologize to Japan and compensate for property damage incurred in recent anti-Japanese demonstrations. The windows of the Japanese embassy and consulates were shattered and the walls smeared with paint by protestors throughout China. Many Japanese businesses have also...

China-India Entente Shifts Global Balance

Clyde Prestowitz April 15, 2005
Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao's recent diplomatic visit to India resulted in a number of potentially historic agreements. Economist Clyde Prestowitz suggests that collaboration between the two Asian nations may reshape globalization in the 21st century. The European age of exploration set into motion a first wave of globalization – setting the stage for centuries of Western economic,...

Deadly Flu Strain Shipped Worldwide

Rob Stein April 13, 2005
Health officials worldwide are scrambling to secure a potentially lethal sample of the flu virus sent to over 3,700 laboratories for testing. As part of routine quality control procedures, scientists often order flu samples from private biotechnology companies in order to certify their laboratories. These samples are usually innocuous and safe for testing. As a scientist in Winnipeg, Manitoba...

Globalization Is Not Made in the West

Robbie Robertson April 13, 2005
Too often, globalization is seen as an exclusively Western phenomenon, an aggressive force that often endangers indigenous cultures and ways of life. But, as Robbie Robertson writes, this view is not simply reductive – it is inaccurate. "Globalization is not about rampant capitalism, technology, or homogenization," he writes, "It is about the changed environments people create...