In The News

Political Clout in the Age of Outsourcing

David Leonhardt April 21, 2006
Americans were once nonchalant about outsourcing – until reports emerged about hospitals sending radiology tests to doctors in India, who provided low-cost accurate readings. Commentators and politicians took notice and debated what such outsourcing would mean for health care. Economists from MIT decided to take a closer look and found a single company in India with three radiologists doing such...

Bit of Malay Culture Is Now Vanishing Under Muslim Rules

Chris Prystay April 21, 2006
Introduced to Southeast Asia in the 13th century, Islam gradually supplanted Buddhism and Hinduism, but co-existed with ancient traditions over the centuries. Since the 1970s, however, fundamentalist Islam has spiked in multicultural countries such as Malaysia, with Muslim students and scholars galvanized by Iran emerging as an Islamic state. Political gains of Parti Islam parallel the increasing...

The US and China: Friends or Foes? – Part II

Daniel H. Rosen April 20, 2006
The US and China are the world’s two largest economies – but the citizens of the two nations differ in terms of financial habits. For example in 2005, savings accounted for at least 30 percent of Chinese household income while the US registered no savings at all. In the second of this two-part series, economist Daniel H. Rosen analyzes the implications of China’s increasing interdependence with...

Globalization Old and New

Ullrich Fichtner April 20, 2006
Globalization comes in many forms, some more pleasing than others. As Vietnam eagerly pushes for incorporation into the WTO, it could discover that globalization becomes colonization, “Part Two.” Hanoi emerged from European influence with its dignity intact, according to author Ullrich Fichtner, but new and rapid development could transform the city’s charm, with small shops featuring gourmet...

A Lobby, Not a Conspiracy

Tony Judt April 20, 2006
Some international critics suggest that Israel wields too much influence when it comes to US foreign policy. An essay assessing Israel-as-lobbyist, published in March by the “London Review of Books,” has unleashed raucous debate about the nature and purpose of the US-Israel relationship. The essay makes two claims: first, that uncritical support of Israel does not always serve US interests and...

China’s Investors Are to Get Freer Hand Abroad

James T. Areddy April 20, 2006
On the eve of Chinese President Hu’s visit to the US, China made a gesture toward a more open, market-based currency that pleases the US, but falls short of revaluing of the yuan. China will allow companies and individuals to make financial investments overseas, which could influence the country’s currency exchange-rate system as well as the value of yuan. China has kept the yuan’s value...

Mothers Want Hope for Their Children

Sonia Nazario April 19, 2006
The tide of illegal immigrants to American shores has become unmanageable, with numbers far outstripping those at any other time in US history. Immigrants take jobs that are unpopular with native US workers, often at reduced wages, thus allowing US firms to compete globally. The immigrant workforce reduces US food and clothing costs and makes child-care readily available for US families,...