“The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves to its children." – Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945), German Lutheran Pastor who participated in German Resistance movement against Nazism. The inheritance of our morality is truly that of a child's, it is not merely leaving children the ruins of war, for […]
President Bush will welcome world leaders to Washington this weekend to address the global financial crisis. He has already signaled his resistance to increased regulation of global finance in advance of the competing agendas the leaders will bring to the table. This AP report examines the diverse proposals world leaders bring to Washington and it […]
A two-day meeting at the UN, the "Culture of Peace," was the initiative of the King of Saudi Arabia. It was a large faith-based conference to promote inter-religious dialogue. The result has been a consensus resolution of the UN General Assembly. According to the UN News Centre, the meeting joined the leaders together to "decry […]
This week in which we marked Veterans Day (Remembrance Day for our allies) called to mind our more recent wars, but it's also worth noting the end of the war that gave rise to the holiday, the end of World War I on Nov. 11, 1918. The war saw the end of great empires […]
There are always all sorts of meetings, conferences, conventions and other gatherings ongoing. Here are a few worthy of note. Governors' Global Climate Summit , The Governator, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, will host US governors and some top international policymakers on climate change and energy in LA next week. Governors taking part in this event […]
Amsterdam too easy on its poor The chair of Slotervaart local authority in Amsterdam, Ahmed Marcouch, says the Dutch city's anti-poverty policy is too non-committal and tends to make people more dependent. Marcouch made his remarks at a poverty conference in the Amsterdam district. He said the system of free services and food banks does […]
Western Sahara human rights activist Aminatou Haidar will be receiving the Robert F Kennedy Human Rights Award today at a ceremony in Washington D.C. "For me, as an individual, the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights award represents a great honor. As a Sahrawi human rights activist, I consider it recognition that the cause of the […]
In a report, Human Rights Agenda for the New Administration, issued this month Human Rights Watch (HRW) highlights four crucial initiatives that the new US president, Obama, should take once he takes office in January: 1. Ensure that US Counter-terrorism Efforts Comply with International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law. 2. Make Human Rights a Central Pillar of US […]
I thought that John McCain gave a gracious and meaningful concession speech. What I didn't know was that Sarah Palin wanted to throw protocol to the wind and give a speech of her own. For more, here's a transcript of Palin's interview with NBC's Matt Lauer: LAUER: According to a recent article in Newsweek and […]
This is a follow-up to the previous post about the Russian decision to place short-range missiles in Kaliningrad. In this analsysis for ISN Security Watch, Sergei Blagov suggests that the Russian decision is not an attempt to challenge the new U.S. president (suggested by the timing of the announcement) but instead can properly been seen […]
The November/December issue of Moment Magazine, where I practice my editorial magic, is out on newsstands. My five picks for the foreign policy crowd are: *In her first Moment column, Fania Oz-Salzberger, director of the Posen Research Forum for Political Thought at the University of Haifa (and yes, daughter of the Israeli novelist Amos Oz), […]
It's ultimately a chicken vs. egg debate – do you set up democracy first, then build a hospital; or do you build a hospital and hope it helps democracy to grow? U.S. foreign policy loves spreading democracy and freedom. How this is done* varies by current political climate, prevailing economic theories, and a country's friendliness factor. U.S. public opinion […]
Poland , The major international climate change meetings of the year are taking place in Poznan, December 1 through 12. This is the last "Conference of the Parties" (COP) to the UNFCCC before the critical COP in Copenhagen in December of 2009. (Here is Poland's website for the conference as well.) In the wake of […]
As you read through the United Nations Resolution 1514(XV) you begin to get a feel of its prose, of its ideals, and the people who put it to paper and for all those who benefit and have yet to benefit. This was in 1960, an era of European decolonization and where nations, particularly in Africa, […]
After increased Syrian military activity along its border with Lebanon, and a string of bombings in recent months, the two countries have voiced their interest in increased security cooperation. In a meeting Monday, Lebanese Interior Minister Ziad Baroud agreed with his Syrian counterpart to form a joint-commission charged with improving cooperation on matters of terrorism […]