In The News

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,...

No Lone Wolves in Cyberspace

Gabriel Weimann December 21, 2012
Two Florida brothers, naturalized US citizens, were arrested in November for trying to obtain explosives and carry out an attack in New York City. Prosecutors allege the men had read Inspire, a magazine in English said to be published by Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula for encouraging terrorism and random attacks in Europe and the US. Lone wolf terrorism – typically young adult men who plan a...

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...

East Asia: Stop Squabbling, Start Drilling

Will Hickey December 14, 2012
Large oilfields often don’t fall neatly within national boundaries. Intent on securing underground or undersea reserves, nations contest territorial claims. China battles Japan for the Diaoyu/Senkakku Islands and ASEAN members for large sections of the South China Sea. Settling disputes quickly is in the interest of all claimants, particularly those with less technological expertise, suggests...

Obama Visits China-Tilting Cambodia

Sebastian Strangio December 7, 2012
Barack Obama is the first sitting US president to visit Cambodia and Burma. Both nations have close ties with China, and the contrast in welcomes for Obama was stark: Burmese lined streets and cheered, and Burma officials assured the president on ongoing reform. In Cambodia – which hosted the East Asian Summit attended by Obama, heads of state of ASEAN members and others in the region – the...

China’s Aggressive Stance Reveals Lack of Coordination

Terry McCarthy December 5, 2012
Growing tensions in East Asia over aggressive postures from China may stem from a lack of coordination among government factions rather than concerted policy. But that is hardly reassuring, argues Terry McCarthy. The country lacks strong leadership that can control factions competing to be most outspoken and nationalistic. As a result, the country antagonizes neighbors with far-reaching claims...