Today America is taking the day off to celebrate Labor Day, Labor day was established in 1882 when New York City's Central Labor Union created a day off for the working class. In 1894 Congress established Labor Day as a federal holiday in 1894. As we gather to take a weekend of rest and honor the hard work and labor […]
As you all know, this is a blog about the US Presidential candidates’ views on the world, and vice versa. Last week we explored the foreign policy outlook of the Democratic vice presidential candidate, Joe Biden. Now that Senator John McCain has named his pick for vice president, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, it's her turn. […]
These, days, advice for the next President is not hard to come by. Everyone seems to be urging the next President to tackle issue x or cause y. But some advice stands out more than others. In particular, the opinion of two respected voices in the field of diplomacy is worth mentioning: First, in an […]
The central Asian nation of Uzbekistan celebrated its independence from Russia on August 28. Praises all around. US Ambassador Richard Norland expressed his firm commitment and partnership with the autocratic regime. Independence. What does it really mean and to whom? For Tashkent, that answer is clear. EU's sanctions against Tashkent are set to expire in […]
California – I wrote last year about Urban Planning as a (Powerful) Tool Against Climate Change and I had the opportunity after that to do an article, also in the context of planning, about the great things that are happening with Sustainability at the Airports. (I’m doing research now for another article on the planning ins […]
The violent situation in the Philippines continues. However, the most recent news is somewhat encouraging. Ruben Pestano Lavilla Jr., who was wanted for the Philippines' worst militant attack has been arrested in Bahrain and returned to Manila. He was allegedly involved in the 2004 bombing of a ferry that killed 116 people. He was also […]
At some point in mid August, al-Qaeda second-in-command Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri released a statement regarding Pakistani instability and the impending departure of President Pervais Musharraf. While the document proceeds with the usual litany of religious excerpts, requests, demands, and injustices, it does contain some interesting and noteworthy news. Uniquely, it is written in English, an […]
Human Rights Watch is calling on the EU to deploy European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP) in Gori, Georgia. While Russian forces starting withdrawing from the region on August 22, reports of kidnappings, beatings, and looting of civilians by Ossetian militias and criminal gangs are emerging. Georgian police were not allowed to move beyond a […]
A week ago, the newspaper Bosnia Daily (no online edition) reported that an arrest of General Ratko Mladic, the highest-ranking war crimes suspect from the 1990's conflict, was still at large. De Weld reports that it's not quite that simple, and Mladic's whereabouts and living situation are the subject of a myriad of contradictory reumors […]
I’d like to recommend Foreign Policy Digest as a resource for information and analysis. Here is how they describe themselves on their About page: FPD focuses exclusively on world affairs and provides a platform designed specifically for the new social media generation. The purpose of the digest is to provide greater access to international issues […]
“Just because a child's parents are poor or uneducated is no reason to deprive the child of basic human rights to health care, education and proper nutrition.” – Marian Wright Edelman, American children's rights activist and president and founder of the Children's Defense Fund. Regardless of the reasons, the state, race, religion or social status […]
On Wednesday, I joined thirty of my fellow citizens to listen as my city and a local non-profit presented a land use and transportation plan for the next sixty years. The meeting, promoted as a call to arms, was slightly lackluster – as the city didn't seem full of passion for the plan, the non-profit […]
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