Hoping to aid in Haiti’s recovery from the January 2010 earthquake, some political leaders and development officials looked at one problem deemed to be a persistent obstacle – overcrowded urban areas. The solution? Redevelopment of Haiti’s agricultural sector as a way of encouraging people to move out of cities, create a market for local food […]
The notion of asymmetric power–referring generally to the danger of lesser powers resorting to unconventional weaponry and tactics as an answer to the United States’ immense conventional military superiority–has been in vogue among American defense analysts since the first Gulf War; Gulf War II and its aftermath, with the devastating appearance of the Improvised Explosive […]
Having done the Year End Review, I’ve been looking a bit at some of the end of year/beginning of year lists lately and thought I’d share some of these. (Sorry to have been off the air for so long, but I had final papers to evaluate, had shopping to do, letters to write, helped out […]
by Robert Latin and Tim LaRocco The National Hockey League tragically lost three members of its family this past off-season. The untimely deaths of three “enforcers” — Derek Boogard, Rick Rypien, and Wade Belak — as well as the NHL’s continuing problem with concussions has rejuvenated criticism of the role of enforcers in hockey. Most […]
Person of the Year – Fatou Bensouda The face of international war crimes prosecution is now an African woman. Fatou Bensouda was chosen to succeed Luis Moreno-Ocampo as the International Criminal Court’s Chief Prosecutor in December. Bensouda has formerly served as Solicitor-General in Gambia, and as an adviser and trial attorney at the International […]
Any suspicions that the US went into Afghanistan to secure access to resources went out the window last week. On Wednesday, Tom A. Peter over at the Christian Science Monitor reported, “China’s National Petroleum Corporation became the first foreign company to tap into Afghanistan’s oil and gas reserves. Chinese officials have estimated that the deal could […]
The IAEA’s confirmation that Iran had a full-fledged nuclear-warhead development program up until 2003 and the agency’s suspicions that come elements of that program have resumed or continued? The fact that an inexperienced and untested young man may now have his hands on North Korea’s nuclear football, with the country’s leadership determined as ever […]
A decoupling of emerging markets from the struggling developed world is a myth, as we saw in 2011 when euro and US shocks caused a sell-off in EM currencies, including in Latin America. Next year could be rough as global growth slows. Countries from Brazil to China are rushing to reverse their earlier policy tightening. […]
Summary of Global Food Security 2011 The Global Food Security blog’s coverage for 2011 started where 2010 left off, with posts about controversial land grabs in Africa. The recovery of Haiti was strained when even the production of rice, a staple crop, was slowed by fears that it might contribute to a growing cholera outbreak. […]
Many things could be said about the past year, but at the very least it could not be considered boring. Within two weeks of the new year, protests over government corruption in Tunisia ousted its long standing dictator, Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali. That event, which took many observers by surprise, triggered a wave of protests […]
Thanks to Real Clear History, I found this fascinating story about how the United States used spy satellites to map Soviet Russia’s territory during the Cold War. It is from The Atlantic magazine and features an informative video that explains the 1950’s program in a very straightforward way for us political, not hard, science nerds. […]
Things have gone from bad to worse for Egyptian civil society since I last blogged about the bleak short term outlook for the sector back in October. This week, the government shut down the Cairo offices of seventeen international human rights and pro-democracy NGOs, which the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces has accused of […]
This is the second in a 3-part year in review series on war crimes around the world in 2011. E.C.C.C. – The Big Four Stand Trial In what has been called the most important trial since Nuremberg, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia commenced the trial of former Khmer Rouge leaders Nuon Chea, Ieng […]
2011 proved a tumultuous year for states. The Arab Spring evidenced that stifling dissent through oppression and supporting autocracies should not be the status quo policy of the United States. Now we see states being made anew. How will these states fully differ from their previous forms? Will their previous economic or political strongmen truly be ousted […]
Vietnam aims to improve minority education With the support of aid agencies like UNICEF, Vietnamese authorities are working to provide primary education in minority languages as part of an effort to promote development and economic growth. Vietnam has 53 ethnic minorities that constitute 13% of the overall population and remain among the country’s most impoverished citizens. […]