Current Events and Politics

European Union in Crisis

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:00:00 GMT

Two decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Europe appears poised for another moment of pivotal historic change. European leaders recently met in Brussels to seek a way forward for the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty. Their efforts were rewarded on November 3, when the lone holdout, Czech President, Vaclav Klaus signed the accord.

Is Democracy the Guarantee?

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 12:00:00 GMT

While democracy is our best hope against totalitarianism and oppression, it is no guarantee that some variety of dictatorship will not haunt the world again. The lesson that has yet to be learned is how quickly it can all happen, despite our best political hopes.

From Globalization to Global Peace?

Sat, 15 Aug 2009 12:00:00 GMT

The idea that world peace can be achieved through world government has a long history. Though all previous efforts in that direction have failed, some are hoping that globalization-regulated by the emerging European style of governance-will lead humanity to its elusive goal.

Special Report : Global Finance, Human Fallout

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:00:00 GMT

As the U.N. hosts a summit of world leaders to " assess the worst global economic downturn since the Great Depression," it also notes that wide-scale hunger is deepening. Of course, humanity has been here before. And we'll be here again, unless we take a fundamentally different approach.

From the Publisher: Who Will Save Us?

Fri, 29 May 2009 12:00:00 GMT

History teaches some sad lessons about leaders who answer the self-perceived call of destiny, abetted by publics overwhelmed by social, economic and political disorder. Interestingly, the present global financial upheaval is just the kind of crisis that brings renewed interest in reforming the capitalist order.

Capitalism: Unknown Ideal?

Wed, 27 May 2009 12:00:00 GMT

On the heels of extensive government intervention in economies around the world, writer-philosopher Ayn Rand is making a comeback. Her philosophy emphasized the right of the individual to pursue wealth and happiness through capitalism. Does our economic salvation depend on separating government and commerce?

Politics and Religion, Politics as Religion

Wed, 27 May 2009 12:00:00 GMT

In times of crisis, people look for someone to deliver them. Historically, those who stepped in to fill the role often made use of religious symbolism to establish and further their power. Italian author and historian Emilio Gentile discusses what happens when politics and religion mix.

Mortally Wounded? Global Finance and Banking-Systems in Crisis

Tue, 05 May 2009 12:00:00 GMT

"A series of secret calls took place between the world's leading central banks," reported the London Times. "Ben Bernanke, chairman of America's Federal Reserve, and [Mervyn] King at the Bank of England were said to be instrumental in driving the action plan forward. Their market specialists then worked out the fine details." The massive venture by the U.S. Federal Reserve, central bank for the world's largest economy, in conjunction with the Bank of England, the European Central Bank, the Swiss National Bank and the Bank of Canada was an admission that the global monetary system was critically ill and that they needed to do something, as the central bankers expressed it, to "address elevated pressures in short-term funding markets." Those meetings led to a joint announcement from the world's central banks of their intention to infuse multiple billions of dollars into the system-an action taken almost immediately following the announcement. The Times characterized it as "the equivalent of the central-bank cavalry arriving to head off a massacre in the money markets." It might sound like autumn 2008, but in fact these events took place a year earlier, from November to early December 2007.

Eyes on Gaza

Tue, 10 Feb 2009 12:00:00 GMT

If there's one thing that's evident about the ever-sickening situation in Gaza, it's that the ordinary suffering citizen is getting little help from Hamas or Israel or apparently anyone else. According to the New York Times, even the U.N. refugee agency in Gaza can obtain only a portion (in volume and range) of its much-needed supplies from across the Israeli blockaded border. To make matters worse, armed Hamas police have recently stolen some of the essential supplies-food and blankets-from a U.N. distribution center in Gaza City. And now the U.N. has temporarily suspended sending any supplies into Gaza because of a second Hamas theft of ten vehicles loaded with flour and rice.

Fritz Haber - Plowshares and Swords

Wed, 31 Dec 2008 12:00:00 GMT

The prophet Isaiah wrote of a time when swords would be turned into plowshares-when instruments of war would be turned into implements for farming-heralding lasting peace for humankind. But history reveals that plowshares turn into swords when knowledge used for good becomes knowledge used for evil.