In The News

Towns Rethink Laws Against Illegal Immigrants

Ken Belson October 1, 2007
An anti-immigrant fire has swept the American landscape over the past two years, and immigrants are not the only ones scorched. Laws passed in more than 30 US towns, penalizing anyone who employed or rented to illegal immigrants, sent thousands running and left local businesses empty of customers. The laws, intended in part to eliminate the wage suppression typically associated with large illegal...

An Enduring Peace Built on Freedom

John McCain August 31, 2007
John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, argues that only strong American leadership can combat the threats that exist in today’s world. Modern Americans enjoy unprecedented peace and prosperity, but – like their forefathers – they also have a responsibility to use their advantages to confront the great challenges of their time. McCain stresses that strong alliances are...

Outsourcing: External Affairs

August 26, 2007
Outsourcing can reduce costs, result in some silly mistakes because of misunderstandings over culture or language, and terrify workers in nations where the wage bar is set high. Yet the outsourcing industry has matured, argues this article from the Economist. Signs of maturation include growth slowing to single-digit levels, providers competing over quality and vendors referring to themselves as...

Migrants Agree: It's Harder to Get Jobs

Pablo Bachelet August 15, 2007
Migrants report that finding work in the US has become more challenging, according to a recent study conducted by Inter-American Development Bank and the Bendixen polling firm. Migrants often feel as though they live in a “sense of siege” and many contemplate returning to their native countries. In the US, they face job, lending and housing discrimination and often do not make enough money to...

Surge in Immigration Laws Around US

Julia Preston August 10, 2007
With the failure of a US immigration bill, most analysts assumed immigration reform was dead until after the next presidential election. But states have taken the matter into their own hands, considering more than 1000 pieces of legislation on immigration, with an unprecedented number of laws passed by 41 state legislatures, along with more from some cities and towns. Varying laws – most hostile...

US Mortgage Crisis Hits Pacific Rim Markets

Carter Dougherty August 7, 2007
Lured by low adjustable-interest rates, US homeowners bought larger homes than many could afford. Mortgage companies bundled those loans into bond packages, selling them to investors worldwide. But the credit was too easy, and wages are stagnant for many. For homeowners who can’t handle automatic rate increases, loans go into default. Trying to sell homes and escape the trap, homeowners discover...

Ocean Explorers Plant Russian Flag on Arctic Sea Floor

Randy Boswell August 3, 2007
Canada, Russia, the US, Norway and Denmark all have some overlapping claims throughout the Arctic, each hoping to secure a big share of the rich oil, gas and mineral reserves believed to rest under the ice. “Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, a country can secure rights to seabed territory reaching far beyond the 200-mile limit if it can prove that a portion of the ocean...