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A Guide to the Crisis That Is Iran
When we imagine the problems that will vex the world in the coming decades, often there is an abstract quality to the exercise. What posture will a Chinese superpower adopt in Asia. Will Russia, post-Putin, take another shot at democratic reforms? Can Germany continue to defy economic gravity? Climate change is the classic in this [...]
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Shameless Commerce Division
Yes, it’s official, my book, The Reckoning, with a forward by Nouriel Roubini, is on sale on Amazon – five months before it’s available in stores. There’s a significant discount, apparently, for these pre-orders. Do you think the publishing industry has a business model problem? Anyway, here’s the link, folks. All contributions to the Griffin, Hannah [...]
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Vice Chairman of China’s CIC Says It’s Become Harder to Defend the U.S. Model
For anyone who tracks or covets the attention of China’s huge sovereign wealth fund (SWF), the China Investment Corporation (CIC), a dose of straight talking from senior CIC officials is a coveted and rare thing. SWFs, with the exception of Norway’s perhaps, are notoriously opaque creatures, not only in motive, but also in actual operations. [...]
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Taiwan: Time to Deal From a Position of (Relative) Strength
The egg-shell walk of American diplomats over the sale of what amount to spare parts for a portion of Taiwan’s air force should put to rest any question about where the island, regarded by China as a renegade province, is heading. As recently as 2007, American carriers hovered nearby and the RAND Corporation predicted in [...]
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Marco…Marco…Polo
Quite correctly, the focus of concern in the eurozone mess right now is on the potential fallout for the global economy. Should – as appears quite possible – short-term, political myopia prevent the kind of leadership from Europe’s politicians that is called for in this emergency, growth in the developed world ends for the foreseeable [...]
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The Reckoning: Moving Slowly Toward Publication
Yes, at the blistering pace of Victorian England, the publishing industry is racing to push out the book I finished last week. The “Winter” catalog of my publisher, Palgrave-Macmillan, promises it will ship in March. Until then, you (and I) will have to settle for the cover. have to make due with the cover.
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The Sad Case of the Germans
The maiden Europa is engaged To the handsome genius ace Of freedom; lying down, arm in arm, They enjoy their first embrace. The marriage is valid, though no priest Has blessed it with holy waters. Long live the bridegroom and his bride And their future sons and daughters! – Heinrich Heine, Germany, [...]
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Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Arab Spring
Very clever, if a bit sophomoric.
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Press Clips: Turkey’s New Influence, America’s Opportunity
Although he died more than seven decades ago, the image of Turkey’s founding father, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, still adorns key chains and government buildings in Ankara. But in the Middle East today, it is another, less secular, Turk who is stealing the show. That’s the lead of a piece that appeared in Sunday’s edition of [...]
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U.S. Drawdown in Iraq and Afghanistan Masks Another in Europe
With the focus of the 9/11 events on the U.S. this weekend, it is also worth a look at how the U.S. military is recalibrating after 10 years of war. In Europe, the great withdrawal that never happened when Hitler was defeated is finally underway. The story below was published in GlobalPost.com. NEW YORK — [...]