In The News

On a Tiny Island, Catchy Web Name Sparks a Battle

Christopher Rhoads April 5, 2006
Domain names ending in dot.nu – “nu” meaning “now” in Swedish – sell like hot cakes in Sweden. The rights to operate dot-nu domain names, accorded to the US-based entrepreneur Bill Semich in the late 1990s, have earned him financial success. Semich has applied some of his newfound profits to the impoverished South Pacific island of Niue, via the provision of free wireless internet to the citizens...

Making American Money at Home in Mexico

Manuel Roig-Franzia April 4, 2006
In the classic story, Mexican migrants surreptitiously cross the US border in search of jobs. The treacherous journey requires long separations from family and friends, and proposed US legislation would increase restrictions for such hires. But tourism is increasing employment opportunities in Mexico. In the late 1960s, the Mexican government focused on turning the fishing village into a tourist...

Don't Give Up on WTO, Fix It

Richard G. Lipsey April 4, 2006
Contrary to what its most adamant critics maintain, the World Trade Organization (WTO) is a primary defense for poor and oppressed nations against exploitation from powerful nations and companies. Economist Richard G. Lipsey traces how the international institution that regulates trade emerged from policies facilitating globalization during the latter half of the 20th century. The WTO does not...

Afghanistan: The Long Road Ahead

Richard Holbrooke April 3, 2006
Plotting attacks against US, NATO and Afghan forces, US enemies in the war on terror continue to make Afghanistan a source of conflict. Unspoken publicly, but increasingly obvious, is that the US presence will be required in Afghanistan for years, probably long after troops leave Iraq, according to Richard Holbrooke, former US ambassador to the UN. Afghanistan’s border areas are particularly...

Hypocritical Arab Generosity on Darfur

Julie Flint April 3, 2006
At the Arab League summit in Khartoum, leaders offered to fund the African Union (AU) peacekeeping force in Darfur, pledging $150 million starting on October 1 of 2006. The only problem is that the AU’s mandate is due to expire on September 30. Meanwhile the greatest need is now. The League’s decision amounts to prescribing medicine after the patient expires. The author suggests that Arab...

In Khartoum, the Refrain of Arab Failure

Rami G. Khouri March 31, 2006
The Arab League summit in Khartoum, poorly attended by Arab leaders, coincided with the revolt of several hundred workers in Dubai – and the two events expose problems in the Arab world. The workers, primarily from South Asia for construction projects, protested poor working and living conditions, low and delayed pay, as well as a general lack of basic rights. The leaders in Khartoum and...

Does Globalization Help or Hurt the World’s Poor?

Pranab Bardhan March 31, 2006
As debates over economic globalization rage, one writer ponders whether “expansion of foreign trade and investment” influences the world’s poor. Author Pranab Bardhan notes that the answer is neither a simple yes or no. By certain measures, the level of extreme poverty has lessened worldwide, but that doesn’t necessarily correlate with globalization and could be the result of some domestic...