June 26 may have been the last day of the U.S. Social Forum (USSF) in Detroit, but it might very well be the emergence of a more powerful antiwar movement in this country.
Move the Money, Starve the Empire
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How the World’s Poorest Could Lose Out Again
At its London Summit in April 2009, the Group of 20 (G20) committed to “mitigate the social impact of the crisis to minimize long-lasting damage to global potential” for the most vulnerable citizens who had no hand in creating the global economic crisis. These world leaders — who represent 85 percent of global economic output — promised a total of $1.1 trillion to developing countries, 5 percent of which was committed to low-income countries. More than a year later, at their third post-crisis summit, the G20 continues to foster recovery in high and middle-income countries, but the world’s poorest suffer in economic anonymity.
Doesn’t a Spy Need, Like, Secrets?
American officials don’t understand why the Russians set up this spy system when the prospect of a pay-off was so slim.
Hummer Rules
Anti-government rhetoric is all the rage these days. And “rage” is the operative word here. Small-government enthusiasts are like the drivers of Hummers incensed at all the difficulties they encounter on the roadway — pesky speed limits, red lights, construction-related delays. Fuming at these restrictions on their liberty, they suddenly have a profanity-laced meltdown and take it out on those around them.
The Future of Irish Peace
Despite the striking political gains made in Northern Ireland since 1998’s Good Friday Agreement, its power-sharing government again verged on collapse in early February, due to a policing and justice dispute. In the end, marathon negotiations forged a deal to keep afloat the 12-member cabinet.
60-Second Expert: U.S.-Iran Relations
Iran’s nuclear program has become the focal point of international discussions about the region’s future, and the United States and its allies have made the resolution of the nuclear standoff a precondition for future discussions of Iran’s broader interests. Therefore, despite President Obama’s emphasis on diplomacy, U.S. relations with Iran remain strained. It would be in the best interest of both countries to put aside their history of conflict and often baseless mutual suspicion in favor of a more forward-looking approach.
Unified Budget Would Spread Security Revenue
Obama administration officials fanned out over Washington, convened conference calls, and took to the airwaves in May to sell the new National Security Strategy. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made her pitch at the Brookings Institution. Foreign Policy magazine identified the nugget of actual news in her remarks, which came, not in the speech, but at the tail end of the Q&A session that followed.
U.S. Men’s World Cup Team Rides a Wave of Jingoism
The U.S. Men’s World Cup victories are not symbols of a melting-pot nation which has somehow, magically erased its history of slavery, genocide, and imperial expansion. It’s 23 men and their coaches who have done rather well in just the first round.
Getting Beyond the Usual Suspects on Foreign Policy
With few exceptions, white pundits, politicians, military brass, think tankers, and academics have long dominated foreign-policy debates. We need to expand the diversity of those deemed foreign-policy experts beyond the usual suspects.
BP and Sado-Messochism
Aside from the occasional asteroid and volcanic outburst, human beings are responsible for the greatest messes on the planet. We’ve polluted the air and water, punched holes in the ozone, and pumped enough carbon into the atmosphere to overwhelm the global thermostat. Nor is this merely a modern attribute of homo sapiens. As Jared Diamond points out in his book Collapse, we’ve repeatedly taxed the limits of our environment, from the heart of the Mayan civilization to far-flung Easter Island. We’ve hunted countless species into extinction and exhausted the soil to feed burgeoning populations. And what we once did on a local basis, we are now applying on a global scale.