In The News

Conservative Causes Go Global

Clifford Bob January 16, 2013
Global civil society has long been ideologically diverse and hard fought over many years, as demonstrated with the anti-slavery or suffrage movements. Causes with global stature carry greater prominence than local or national efforts, giving supporters access to more allies, resources and shared strategies. And while conservatives support minimal government in many areas, particularly...

Put Doomsday on the Schedule

David Dapice January 7, 2013
Americans, like most citizens all over the world, resent paying taxes, but are fond of government programs that allow health care, education or science to flourish. The US is overextended, living beyond its means, and Congress is divided over how to ease the climbing debt: Liberal Democrats want to tax the rich, while conservative Republicans aim to reduce spending that help citizens. Congress...

China Toughens Restrictions on Internet Use

Keith Bradsher January 4, 2013
New rules in China require internet users to prove real names. Also, service providers must police forbidden postings and file reports with the authorities, reports Keith Bradsher for the New York Times. Users can still post to the internet with fake names, but service providers are expected to maintain lists of real names. The new rules could slow online debate. “In recent weeks, Internet users...

Nationalism Rises in Northeast Asia

Jean-Pierre Lehmann January 4, 2013
The job-creating economies of the Northeast Asia Pacific region are the envy of the world. China, Japan and Korea – the world’s second, third and eleventh largest economies, respectively – are significant global economic powers. China, Japan and South Korea are major trade and investment partners, each thriving by embracing economic globalization. But because of historical differences and...

Recipe for a Post-Hegemonic USA

Kenneth Weisbrode January 2, 2013
US Congress, bitterly partisan, engages in petty bickering and repeatedly fails to resolve any number of pressing crises, let alone craft uplifting legislation for the country and the world. The poor behavior of the legislative body – blocking opponents at any cost – is symptomatic of the fading superpower status of the US and reinforces the loss of global influence. In terms of currency,...

Tunisian Revolution Is Work in Progress

Lindsay J. Benstead, Ellen Lust, Dhafer Malouche December 19, 2012
The surge of uprisings across North Africa began in Tunisia with the self-immolation of a desperate college graduate turned street vendor in December 2010. The pace for democracy since then has been slow, along with economic reforms, as is the case in Egypt and Libya. Economic challenges dog the government, with the unemployment rate near 20 percent. Protests and violence throughout the region,...

Turkey Can’t Afford Over-Involvement in Syria

Mohammed Ayoob December 17, 2012
Turkey has enjoyed enormous economic success over the past decade, and is now ranked as the world’s 16th largest economy. At the same time, the government has steered an independent foreign policy course under Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, maintaining security ties with the US through NATO, supporting protesters throughout the Arab Spring regime changes...