In The News

Japan’s Olympic Challenge

Jean-Pierre Lehmann October 22, 2013
Bitterness from the Second World War lingers throughout the Asia Pacific region; Japan lost the war, yet rebuilt and became a strong ally with the United States, its one-time opponent. Many in China and South Korea suggest that Japan has not expressed adequate apology to Asian neighbors for wartime aggression. Japan is skilled at adaptation, notes international political economist Jean-Pierre...

Shutting Down US Antarctic Research Will Have Global Repercussions

Jeffrey Marlow October 16, 2013
Failing to reach agreement on spending, US legislators closed non-essential government services. The designation reduces employee morale and threatens US contributions to trade, health and scientific endeavors, including Antarctic research. Because of the shutdown, the US National Science Foundation put the program in caretaker status. “The logistical ordeal of transporting people and supplies to...

Cambodians Refuse to Accept Rigged Elections

Elizabeth Becker October 15, 2013
Cambodians are connected to the world through trade, investment, tourism, cultural events, social media and dual citizenship. The connections influence how the citizens deal with their long-running authoritarian regime. With a per capita income less than $1000, many Cambodians refuse to support the government of Hun Sen, who has been in office for 28 years. The prime minister no longer convinces...

Lessons From Negotiating With the Taliban

Marc Grossman October 8, 2013
Pakistan released the Afghan Taliban’s second in command to catalyze a peace process. It’s not the first effort. In trying to end fighting in Afghanistan and secure a sustainable representative government for Afghans, from mid-2011 to March 2012, the United States tried encouraging Taliban members to work with the Afghan government. Those talks failed, explains Marc Grossman, the US Special...

Our Democracy Is at Stake

Thomas L. Friedman October 4, 2013
A Republican plan to approve parts of the US budget piecemeal, starting with the popular national parks, would allow a small minority to control spending and end health care, education or other programs favored by Democrats. Thomas Friedman, of the New York Times, argues that “the future of how we govern ourselves is at stake.” He points to structural changes in US politics, including political...

Beginning of the End for Washington

Ron Fournier October 1, 2013
Unable to agree on a spending bill, the US legislature has orchestrated a partial shutdown for US government operations. A minority group in the US House of Representatives is demanding a delay in implementing a health care law in exchange for its approval of the spending bill. The legislative impasse undermines US citizen confidence in government, and could be a defining moment for young voters...

The US and Iran in a Tantalizing Dance

Abbas Amanat September 26, 2013
There was no handshake between Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and US President Barack Obama during the United Nations General Assembly, but the tone of their rhetoric promises a sea change in relations after more than three decades. The Iranian public supports Rouhani's moderate proposals as a means to securing respect, stability and an end to debilitating sanctions imposed by the West....