By Wolfgang M?nchau The financial crisis has given rise to several historical comparisons, not least the Great Depression. I would like to invoke another for the eurozone crisis ? the 30 years war, which ravaged central Europe from 1618 to… Continue Reading
Yves Smith – Naked Capitalism As much as I?m fond of the name ?Naked Capitalism,? I am beginning to wonder whether a more accurate description of this blog?s beat might be ?Naked Corruption.? Our continuing discussion of the Office of… Continue Reading
By Taro Ichikawa IDN-InDepth NewsReport TOKYO (IDN) – While the ‘Pyongyangologists’ are studying the emerging power equations in North Korea and the mainstream media has been reporting the elaborate state funeral of Kim Jong Il, scant attention has been paid… Continue Reading
By Rebecca Murray KABUL, Dec 29, 2011 (IPS) – Activists voice concern that Afghan women?s rights continue to be marginalised, and nowhere is gender inequality more starkly illustrated than in the country?s flawed justice system. Yasmin?s case is one. Although… Continue Reading
Patricio Navia* The year 2011 is ending with more negatives than positives for the United States. The economy remains stagnant. Unemployment has barely receded, after millions have given up looking for new jobs. Gridlock in Washington trumped all modest efforts… Continue Reading
By Ignacio Ramonet (*) PARIS, Dec (IPS) It is clear that the European Union cannot summon the political will to stand up to the markets and resolve the crisis. Until now the lamentable behavior of European leaders has been blamed… Continue Reading
By Johan Galtung* The church was not as overfilled as it used to be for midnight mass on Christmas eve. But the ritual unfolded as it has done for centuries, around John 3:16 ?little bible?, ?For God loved the world… Continue Reading
By Jillian Kestler-D?Amours JERUSALEM, Dec 27, 2011 (IPS) – In a case that has highlighted Israel?s abuse of Palestinian detainees, an Israeli military court recently acquitted a Palestinian man after it became clear that Israeli interrogators used excessive physical and… Continue Reading
Roger Backhouse and Bradley Bateman Solving the financial crisis rests on facing up to the moral failings that Keynes originally identified ‘To convert the business man into the profiteer is to strike a blow at capitalism ? The business man… Continue Reading
By TAKASHI NAKAMICHI And LINGLING WEI The Chinese and Japanese governments on Sunday unveiled a broad, innovative package of financial agreements designed to tighten ties between the world’s second- and third-largest economies, moves that could elevate the yuan’s status as… Continue Reading
By Nassir Abdulaziz Al-Nasser (*) UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK, Dec (IPS) Experience shows that South-South and triangular cooperation, backed by adequate funding, are key tools for tackling the development challenges of our time.
By Simon Johnson What happened to the global economy and what we can do about it The American ideal of ?equal and impartial justice under law? has repeatedly been undermined by attempts to concentrate power. Our political system has many… Continue Reading
By Oscar Arias Sanchez (*) SAN JOSE, Dec (IPS) After the announcement that the government of Haiti had decided to reconstitute its army, I asked President Michel Martelly to reconsider his decision, pointing out a lesson written clearly into human… Continue Reading
Paul Krugman* blog And when you bear in mind that the Very Serious People have been wrong about everything, that?s a very good thing. What?s even better is that as the chief economist at the IMF, he?s helping make at… Continue Reading
By Johan Galtung (*) ALFAZ, SPAIN, Dec (IPS) The Arab spring is the third Arab revolt in less than a century. The first, from 1916-18, was against the Ottoman Empire. It was Prussia-Habsburg-Turkey versus England-France-Russia, which promised the Arabs freedom… Continue Reading
By Shane Romig ? WSJ MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay?Members of South America’s Mercosur trade bloc decided at its annual summit Tuesday to slap steep tariffs on a host of cheap imports to shield the region from a slowing global economy.
Kim Lane Scheppele – NYT Last week I devoted a column to the unsettling political developments in Hungary. To expand on all this, I?ve asked my Princeton colleague Kim Lane Scheppele, who has been working extensively on the situation, to… Continue Reading
By Clarissa Sebag-Montefiore BEIJING, Dec 20, 2011 (IPS) – In a country which houses 21 of the world?s 100 most polluted cities, outcry over official underplaying of pollution is escalating as residents refuse to take government readings of the problem… Continue Reading
By Mairead Maguire* Ten years after the US led NATO invasion and war against Afghanistan, the Afghan people are trapped in a downward spiral of violence. The US and British generals for war are upbeat and optimistic but the facts… Continue Reading
By PAUL KRUGMAN ? The New York Times Consider the following picture: Recent growth has relied on a huge construction boom fueled by surging real estate prices, and exhibiting all the classic signs of a bubble. There was rapid growth… Continue Reading
