In The News

The Coming Tsunami of Trash

Niall Ferguson August 14, 2006
Oceans provide food, transportation and beauty – and a place to hide trash. Yet the trash is more obvious, particularly plastic, which takes more than a century to degrade and piles up as small islands in some parts of the world. Ocean pollution exemplifies the “tragedy of the commons,” when a public resource gets abused by many and protected by none. The 1994 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea...

Migration Laws May Be the End of Globalization

Branko Milanovic August 1, 2006
The first worldwide era of economic globalization ended with the carnage and insecurity of two World Wars separated by a Depression, according to author Branko Milanovic. The end of the current era, he writes, will not necessarily come from global catastrophe, but rather with “an economic retrenchment that brings economic stagnation and consigns billions of people to grinding poverty.”...

US Cuts in Africa Aid Said to Hurt War on Terror

Mark Mazzetti July 27, 2006
The US government has ended military aid for several African countries with governments that refused to sign an “Article 98 agreement” that exempts American soldiers from the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC). The 2002 “American Servicemembers’ Protection Act” is a keystone of US opposition to the ICC, but the aid cutoffs have angered some military officials who say that...

Cell Out

David A. Shaywitz July 26, 2006
When US President Bush vetoed stem-cell legislation, he did not stop scientists from pursuing stem-cell research. The US creates hundreds of thousands of embryos for infertile couples, many of which are disposed of or frozen, but prohibits federal funding to study any new embryo lines created after August 2001. Researchers hope to use the cells to treat diseases like Alzheimer’s, diabetes and...

Time for a New Approach to Pyongyang?

Richard Halloran July 24, 2006
Ever since North Korea’s missile launch, the world has focused on diplomacy, sanctions and even hints of military action – all deemed ineffective or impractical. The Triple-I Strategy – ignore, isolate and implode – could be a worthy replacement. Led by the US, this action entails ending all official communications with North Korea, imposing substantial economic sanctions, and imposing military...

Dare Violate a Copyright in Hong Kong? A Boy Scout May Be Watching Online

Keith Bradsher July 18, 2006
The Hong Kong government has unveiled a plan to use 200,000 young people from organizations like the Boy Scouts and the Girl Guides as watchdogs for internet copyright infringement. Many civil liberties advocates question the use of teenagers in state-sponsored law enforcement. While Hong Kong authorities claim that the program encourages good citizenship among a population with a high rate of...

North Korea’s Missiles Backfire

Shim Jae Hoon July 18, 2006
North Korea’s missile launches in early July, despite repeated pleas by all, enraged an international community worried about a growing threat to global security. The launches even provoked North Korea’s longtime allies, China and Russia, prompting both parties to sign on to the UN resolution calling for sanctions. South Korea, which favored negotiations and reconciliation with the North, now...