In The News

Speak Softly and Carry a Blank Cheque

July 22, 2010
Thanks to strong global demand for its agribusiness and industrial commodities, Brazil is one of the world's largest emerging markets and one of the rising BRIC four – along with Russia, India and China. Goldman Sachs predicts the combined economies of the four will exceed the G-7 total by 2032. With such economic power, Brazil extends several billion in development aid to other countries,...

In Afghanistan, a Threat of Plunder

Paul Collier July 21, 2010
Afghanistan’s poor security situation, combined with reports of enormous untapped mineral wealth, could unleash a tragic rush to exploitation, environmental destruction and civil conflict. Without good governance, Afghanistan’s lithium and gold may do little to improve Afghani daily life – as was the case with gold in the Congo, oil in Nigeria, or diamonds in Sierra Leone. In contrast, Botswana...

Europe’s Social Burden

Nayan Chanda July 21, 2010
For more than four decades, Europe’s system of taxation provided its citizens with job security, education, health and retirement benefits that were envied around the globe. But global recession, an aging population and tax avoidance have disrupted the system, explains YaleGlobal editor Nayan Chanda in his regular column for Businessworld. Before the crisis struck, too many politicians tried to...

Obama’s America and the World: A Promise at Risk

Strobe Talbott July 20, 2010
Disappointment swelling since Barack Obama’s election isn’t limited to his domestic opposition – it also runs deep among progressives who long for the US president to move swiftly on stirring campaign promises. Obama entered office with a horrendous legacy, a list longer than that encountered by previous US presidents: ongoing Middle East conflict, hemorrhaging Afghan war, North Korea’s and Iran’...

US Leapfrogs Sluggish EU on Financial Reform

Wolfgang Reuter July 20, 2010
The US approved a financial reform law that could nudge the rest of the world, especially Europe, into preventing another financial meltdown. In an interconnected system, fast action on regulating complex securities and speculation can set global patterns into play, as noted by Wolfgang Reuter: “Americans have established a benchmark. European banks that do business in the United States will now...

Hollywood on the Danube

Dan Bilefsky July 19, 2010
Setting is an essential tool for movies to work their magic – and economic hard times require directors to innovate, finding inexpensive locales to stand in for high-cost cities already overrun with tourists. Besides having its own long tradition in producing filmmakers, Budapest offers low-cost, non-union crews and European allure, reports Dan Bilefsky for the New York Times. So the city, with...

Headless Bodies and Other Immigration Tall Tales in Arizona

Dana Milbank July 16, 2010
Immigration has been a major driver of US economic growth, but at a time of economic distress, it has emerged as a contentious issue. Recent attempts by politicians to exploit concerns over immigration by falsehood or exaggeration could have unintended consequences. Defending a new law targeting illegal immigrants, Arizona politicians claim rising violence along the state’s border shared with...