In The News

Turkey Approves Harsh New Internet Law

Joshua Hersh February 10, 2014
Turkey’s government has approved a law, which requires the president’s approval, imposing new regulations for the internet: “The law, which still requires final approval by the country's president, would permit the government to quickly shutter a website deemed inappropriate, and orders Internet companies to store traffic and other data for two years,” reports Joshua Hersh for the World Post...

A Wary US Remains Open to Chinese Investments

Ziad Haider February 6, 2014
China with its fast-growing economy is on the hunt for global investments. The United States reviews most investments for national security implications with its Committee on Foreign Investment, chaired by the Department of Treasury, and Ziad Haider, attorney and writer, argues Chinese companies fare better than most would assume: “The volume and sophistication of Chinese firms looking to enter...

The Specter of Mass Killings in Burma

Larry Diamond February 3, 2014
Myanmar, or Burma’s struggle to build a democracy is visible in many spheres of life including many problematic provisions in the new constitution: “These give the military a quarter of the seats in parliament (and thus a veto over constitutional reform) … and complete immunity from civilian oversight,” writes Larry Diamond for the Atlantic. “They also continue to deny Burma’s minorities (...

Reid Deals Body Blow to Obama on Trade

William Mauldin, Siobhan Hughes January 31, 2014
US President Barack Obama and Senate Majority leader Harry Reid share party affiliation as Democrats and are typically strong allies. But Reid has announced opposition to legislation that would provide fast-track approvals of major trade deals and prevent nitpicky amendments in Congress. “The move spells trouble for two sets of complicated talks” – namely the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the...

“Snowden Effect” Threatens US Tech Industry's Global Ambitions

Gerry Smith January 28, 2014
Claims by a former US National Security Agency contract worker that multinational companies like Google, Facebook and Microsoft cooperate in handing over user data has reduced global trust in the US tech industry. Equally alarming are Edward Snowden’s claims that the US engages in industrial espionage. “The impact of the Snowden leaks could threaten the future architecture of the modern Internet...

The Plight of the Globe’s Domestic Workers

Susan Froetschel January 15, 2014
Domestic workers and diplomats may be but pawns for nations struggling with their own internal quarrels and place in the world. The arrest of an Indian consulate officer in New York City for filing false information on a nanny’s wages triggered outrage in India. The immediate official reaction was that Devyani Khobragade has immunity from arrest including a standard body search and that the crime...

A Torrent of Hyperbole

Nayan Chanda December 23, 2013
Those arrested or detained in the United States, women and men of all ages, charged with small crimes or large, are routinely searched for their own protection and the protection of others held. Two contrasting stories have emerged about treatment of domestic help by an Indian diplomat charged with lying on a visa application. Politics and media as entertainment have combined to elicit extreme...