In The News

Protests in Hong Kong Over Extradition Bill: Vox

Eric Kleefeld June 9, 2019
Citizens of Hong Kong express alarm about the erosion of freedoms since the United Kingdom handed control of the city to the People’s Republic of China in 1997. Hundreds of thousands of people, as many as a million, wore white and marched to protest a bill allowing criminal extradition to China. The protesters called for resignation of the city’s chief executive who supports the bill. The march...

Sudan Military Tries to Clear Protests: Al Jazeera

June 4, 2019
Sudan security forces have tried to clear a camp of protesters who have persisted for months with demands for civilian rule. At least nine people have died. Most of the protesters have cleared the camp and military vehicles are blocking their return. Protest organizers are now calling for a campaign of civil disobedience in the quest for civilian rule. “The sit-in has become the focal point of...

Sudan’s Protesters Expect Civilian Rule: Economist

June 3, 2019
Sudanese protestors have railed against internal turnover in government power, as in Awad Ibn Auf, former vice president and defense chief who briefly replaced the recently ousted Omar al-Bashir following his official resignation. Like his predecessor, Auf has long been the subject of international scrutiny for complicity in the genocide in Sudan’s Darfur region underway since 2003. “Faced with a...

Climate Change and Capitalism: Guardian

Phil McDuff June 2, 2019
Children witnessing climate disruptions express alarm about the future and question why governments fail to take action against the planet’s destruction. “Today’s children, as they become more politically aware, will be much more radical than their parents, simply because there will be no other choice for them,” suggests Phil McDuff for the Guardian. “Climate change is the result of our current...

Global Military Spending Booming: The Economist

May 27, 2019
Global military spending, now at US$1.8 trillion, is set to keep rising as superpowers like the United States and China upgrade their arsenals to respond to geopolitical tensions. The US budget expands, reaching 36 percent of the worldwide military expenditure in 2018. While China’s spending does not approach the exorbitant US numbers, it has risen rapidly under Xi Jinping, especially for the...

Australia’s China Challenge: New York Times

Damien Cave May 26, 2019
The Chinese government, under President Xi Jinping, has expanded its covert sphere of influence in countries like Australia. China relies on the substantial ethnic Chinese population and Chinese economic ties representing 24 percent of Australian imports and exports to push its agenda within Australia with a say on the nation’s foreign trade policy. Beijing has weaponized economics, and Chinese...

Why Venezuela Matters: New York Times

Megan Specia April 30, 2019
Maduro has presided over Venezuela's corrupt and mismanaged government since 2013, with violence, hunger and hyperinflation. Maduro refuses to engage in peaceful transfer of power. Venezuela, with ample oil supplies, should be among the world’s wealthiest nations. Yet 30 million citizens must contend with unreliable food, electricity, medicine and other basic supplies. Maduro curtailed power...