Diamond-rich Botswana avoided the dreaded resource curse and established a prosperous, stable democracy. But political turmoil has begun to roil the traditionally placid society.
Africa’s Success Story
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World Beat
The Geopolitics of Cheap Oil
Economists said the market would save the planet. It didn’t.
Obama: The Fairy-Tale President?
Obama’s made a lot of Faustian bargains over the last seven years. But given his likely successors, what we got over the last two terms may be as good as it gets.
Trump, the Islamic State, and the Cliché of Civilizations
A few politicians and intellectuals decry “Islamofascists,” but the real target of Islamophobia is the mainstream Islam of mosques, moderate imams, and your friendly Muslim neighbors.
Syria: Mission Possible
There’s no grand, exciting solution to the war in Syria. It’s going to take an endless parade of meetings where people sit and talk. And talk. And talk.
Je Suis Charlie (Manson)
What the psychology of mass murderers — from Charles Manson on up to Bashar al-Assad and ISIS — can teach us about the method behind their madness.
Burma: Democracy with an Asterisk?
Burma’s constitution awards a quarter of its parliament to the military. But that’s not Aung San Suu Kyi’s biggest problem by a long shot.
The Schrodinger Solution for Syria
The only sensible solution to the Syrian crisis is a quantum one in which Bashar al-Assad is simultaneously there and not there.
What Comes After Empire?
Let’s say the U.S. actually curbed its military adventurism, reeled in the Pentagon budget, and closed its global network of bases. Then what?
A Kumbaya Moment for the Middle East? Hardly.
Despite Washington’s move toward detente with Iran, other regional conflicts — especially in Israel-Palestine, where an “intifada of knives” is underway — are looking as volatile as ever.