In The News

Hidden Nuclear Drawings Found in Iran

Sonni Efron February 13, 2004
The discovery of blueprints for a device used to enrich uranium has renewed Washington's suspicions of a covert nuclear program in Iran. Washington is considering referring Iran's nuclear activities to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the United Nations Security Council. As the international community considers the most appropriate international response, investigators...

President Bush's New Plan to Stop Proliferation

Joseph Cirincione February 13, 2004
Under US President George W. Bush's newly proposed plan, only a handful of countries would be allowed to develop nuclear fuel. These countries could, in turn, sell fuel only to states that renounce enrichment and reprocessing. Joseph Cirincione, Director of the Non-Proliferation Project at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, believes that although the proposal does represent an...

Grassley, Others Rip Bush Official's Pro-Outsourcing Remark

Margaret K. Collins February 12, 2004
The Bush administration's chief economist came under fire this week for testifying that the movement of American jobs overseas will benefit the economy. Lawmakers from states affected by the outsourcing trend were quick to criticize President Bush for the "insensitive" remarks of economic advisor Gregory Mankiw, which came at a time when many Americans are worried about losing...

Still Waiting For The President's `Humble' Foreign Policy

Gustav Ranis February 12, 2004
"The world's only superpower now looks vulnerable," says Gustav Ranis, Professor of International Economics and director of the Yale Center for International and Area Studies, Yale University. The US is at a stage where it has no "clear exit strategy" from the foreign policy muddle it has gotten into by taking a unilateral stand on Afghanistan, Iraq, and Al-Qaeda. Ranis...

'Lean, Mean at 20

Matt Nauman February 11, 2004
Twenty years ago, automobile manufacturers in the US were far from 'lean' in their production facilities. In one California General Motors factory, workers were known for high absenteeism and a "militant" attitude. But that changed in 1984, says this Mercury News article, when Toyota and GM joined forces and decided to import Japanese management practices to an American...

The Strategic Straitjacket of Globalization

Banning Garrett February 11, 2004
Unlike during the Cold war, when competition was only between the US and the Soviet Union, today all globalizing nations are competitors. However, writes Banning Garrett, Director of Asia Programs at the Atlantic Council, these competing nations are also partners in today's globalizing economy, which is growing increasingly interconnected and interdependent. These new conditions of...

'Offshoring' Has Its Trade-Offs

Steven Pearlstein February 11, 2004
The offshoring of US jobs is becoming a hot topic in political and economic debates. Earlier this week, President Bush's top economic advisor, Greg Mankiw, weighed in on the controversy by claiming that the offshoring of service jobs - like software design - to India and other countries can only make US businesses stronger. But that's not necessarily the case, says Steven Pearlstein...