Politicians generally like to hear themselves talks — and Israeli politicians are generally no different. Instead of cutting to the point (even the “Straight Talk Express” came in through a heavy fog), politicians often cloud what they mean with metaphors, references to local business leaders, allusions to past heroes and other tactics meant to beat […]
Luzhkov, an avid beekeeper, had ordered his prize-winning hives to be evacuated away from the smog. All the while, he has refused to declare a state of emergency for Moscow’s human inhabitants. This is just one stark example of government callousness and incompetence in the face of the fires that led Simon Schuster to ask, […]
I wish that people in Pakistan would wake up and realized that hating Zardari is not going to do any good. What needs to be done is that people from all across Pakistan come together, realistically and honestly look at the problems that the country is facing and trying to find the best answer or […]
General David Petraeus is asking for more time on the ground in Afghanistan to work out his counterinsurgency (COIN) strategy, the one that he used to immense acclaim in Iraq. This is good news, though how excited one might be by this news depends on what exactly one thinks General Petraeus actually did in Afghanistan. […]
Brazil’s state-controlled Banco de Brazil and its rival Bradesco have agreed to acquire stakes in BES Africa, a Banco Espirito Santo (BES) holding company that makes investments in the African continent. The joint venture is intended to expand the Brazilian banks’ international operations and benefit Brazilian businesses operating in Africa. The move follows similar steps taken […]
Paul Kagame’s landslide victory in Monday’s presidential elections highlights Africa’s multiparty democracy problems. Across the continent elections are predictable, and continue to produce landslides victories for ruling parties. According to media reports, Kagame received 93 per cent of the votes in an election criticized for being marred by political intimidation, repression and violence. But more […]
The newest issue of The Georgetown Journal of International Affairs is out, and the theme of its “Forum” section, which leads off each issue and provides the cover stories, is “Match Point: Sports, Nationalism, and Diplomacy.” It includes an article by yours truly, “The Death of Doubt? Sport, Race, and Nationalism in the New South […]
I guess it is understandable that the narrative about Rwandan politics is dominated by the aftermath of the 1994 genocide and that the prevailing narrative ignores most of what happened before and has happened since (hint: violence did not just spring from the ether in April 1994). But the feel-good post-1994 narrative is not the […]
Last week, a massive iceberg four times the size of Manhattan broke off of the Petermann Glacier in West Greenland. It is the largest chunk of ice to calve from the glacier since 1962. It is now floating down the Nares Strait between Greenland and Canada. To give a better idea of the sheer volume […]
Surprise! Russia’s leaders are surviving the wildfires much more comfortably than their beleaguered constituents, up to 700 of whom are dying per day in Moscow alone. Indeed, as the flames threaten to kill up to 15000, cost $15 billion worth of GDP and even turn radioactive (!!!), some things they don’t seem to threaten are […]
Haitian-born philanthropist, Wyclef Jean is the first Haitian presidential candidate to make an announcement to run from abroad. Jean told the press last week that he would resign from Yele Haiti, his charity organization to focus on his campaign, amidst reports that he owes millions in back taxes to the U.S. government and accusations that […]
Contrary frequent assertions that the development of physical infrastructure is the key to ensuring India’s future, two important speeches last week underscore how the country’s destiny actually lies in the aggressive nurturing of its human capital potential.
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