In The News

Political Shades of Green Clash

Miguel Bustillo March 24, 2004
Immigration has once again spurred a divisive debate among environmental conservationists in the USA. Even the 112-year-old Sierra Club is facing an 'insurgent' campaign aimed at getting the group to come down hard for immigration restrictions. For decades, population control has featured prominently in the agenda of most environmental groups. Some environmentalists argue that the...

Jobs Can Be Outsourced, Not Politics

Harold James March 24, 2004
The American outcry about outsourcing stems not just from job loss, but also from the politician's favorite platitude - trade. According to Princeton historian, Harold James, ascribing job loss to trade is fraught with complications. Moreover, from a historical point of view, it is a recurring theme that often ends terribly. As James notes, throughout the latter part of the 19th and early...

Straw: Turkey is EU 'Acid Test'

Tom Happold March 23, 2004
UK Foreign Secretary Jack Straw claims that Turkey's membership in the EU will prove that Islam and the West are not locked in an inexorable "clash of civilizations." According to Straw, liberalism's values of pluralism, tolerence, the rule of law, and human rights are universal. If Turkey meets the right criteria, Straw hopes that negotiations for EU membership will get under...

Schröder Condemns Job Offshoring as Unpatriotic

Bertrand Benoit March 23, 2004
Outsourcing, a vital component of global capitalism, appears to have met a staunch new critic in Germany. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroder says Germany companies who move work to Eastern Europe and Asia are "unpatriotic". The cheaper labor of these regions, however, offers a strong economic incentive for German companies trying to compete globally. Nonetheless, says this article,...

In Florida Groves, Cheap Labor Means Machines

Eduardo Porter March 22, 2004
In Florida citrus groves, where most of the crop is still harvested by hand, machines are still a rare sight. As technological improvements take hold, however, Florida growers are seeing less need for the Latin American migrants who currently do much of the work. Facing increasingly fierce foreign competition, US growers view cost saving machines like canopy shakers as the best way to stay...

Looking over the Horizon

Robert L. Hutchings March 22, 2004
In assessing American foreign policy and strategy, the intertwined nature of the globe and the fast speed of change make any plan contingent on a variety of factors. In an effort to understand exactly that, the National Intelligence Council has created its '2020 project'. Using assessments of 'drivers' - factors that will affect the way the world changes - and a series of...

Keep the Ban on Arms for China

Roger Cliff March 22, 2004
15 years ago, in the wake of the Tiananmen Square violence, the US and nations that now make up the EU agreed to an arms embargo towards China. Until their human rights record improved, China should not be supplied with weapons technology, argued the European and American states. Now, EU nations are facing a call from China to eliminate the "outdated" embargo in order to cement their...