Medvedev: Glasnost and Perestroika all over again?
November 13, 2009 6 min. read

Not so fast.  President Medvedev has resounded the main themes of reform for some time now, without his government (or, rather, Putin’s) following through.  See a NYTimes article from yesterday on President Medvedev’s annual address to the Russian nation, as well as a report on the matter below in a CSFB Emerging Markets report. Reducing Russia’s humiliating […]

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The Stupak Amendment: Entrenching Barriers to Women's Health Care and Institutionalizing Inequality
November 13, 2009 4 min. read

At almost the same time that the World Health Organization (WHO) released a report lamenting the many barriers that women face to accessing health care, the United States Congress threw up another such barrier in the form of the Stupak amendment blocking access to abortion.  Fittingly, the WHO report noted that “The obstacles that stand […]

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You Can Bank on It
November 13, 2009 2 min. read

An overseas trip by a U.S. president is always costly, logistically challenging, and full of colorful backdrops.  President Obama’s trip to Japan, Singapore, China and Korea is no exception.  If anything, there will be more excitement than usual, since it is his first trip to the region as President and there is still tremendous foreign […]

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Must Read: 'On Fooling People All the Time'
November 13, 2009 3 min. read

Fooling Some of the People All of the Time is the gripping chronicle of that revealing saga. Page by page, it delves deep inside Wall Street, showing how the $6 billion hedge fund Greenlight Capital conducts its investment research detailing the maneuvers of unscrupulous companies, greed-laden executives and the previaling orthodoxies of Wall Street leading up to the precipitation of the 2008 financial crisis. It is a compelling read.

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Was it Terrorism?
November 12, 2009 2 min. read

How the Fort Hood crime is prosecuted depends on how the word ‘terrorism’ is defined.  However, as Slate notes: There’s no precise, internationally accepted definition of terrorism or who qualifies as a terrorist. One 1988 study identified 109 definitions for terrorism, and it’s a safe bet there are now many more. The U.S. Code contains […]

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China Continues Robust Economic Growth
November 12, 2009 3 min. read

China’s industrial production and trade surplus posted robust double-digit gains in October, indicating a strengthening recovery in the world’s third-largest economy. China, unlike the U.S. and other western industrial nations, has managed well in the advance of the global economic crisis.

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Health Care for Undocumented Immigrants?
November 12, 2009 2 min. read

This past weekend the US Congress passed a bill to reform the country’s health care system. It must now be merged with legislation in the Senate and pass through an additional vote in that house. One aspect of the bill rarely mentioned in the past week, but which attracted scrutiny, is health care coverage for […]

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IMF: Asia’s Savings & Investment Dilemma
November 12, 2009 4 min. read

As Asia starts down the path to recovery, it is going to have to tackle two issues which are constraining its long-term growth potential: firms that save but do not invest and wealthy households that are reluctant to consume.

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Veterans Day 2009
November 11, 2009 1 min. read

I’m taking a moment to honor Veterans Day. Originally established by President Woodrow Wilson to mark the end of World War I the day now recognizes the service and sacrifice of veterans of all our wars. The VA website has a nice historical overview if you would like to learn more. As a “military brat” […]

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Development Marketplace 2009
November 11, 2009 1 min. read

The World Bank is sponsoring this global competition to find the best “100 Ideas to Save the Planet.”  The 100 ideas on display now at the World Bank headquarters in Washington were chosen from among 1,755 proposals.  From Argentina to Vanuatu, there are some wonderful ideas:  bioculture to enhance the value of maize in Mexico; […]

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"Gillette v. United States" and Hasan
November 11, 2009 3 min. read

The New York Times earlier this week on Major Nidal Malik Hasan: In recent years, he had grown more and more vocal about his opposition to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and tortured over reconciling his military duties with his religion. He tried to get out of the Army, relatives said, and apparently believed […]

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America's shame: Homeless Children
November 11, 2009 3 min. read

According to the National Center on Family Homelessness, one in every 50 American children experiences homelessness.  Homelessness affects children in a multitude of ways, including both their physical and mental health.  Over two million youths, between the ages of 12 and 24, will experience at least one episode of homelessness each year.  More than 100,000 […]

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