Categoria

History

Armed conflicts

Trump’s Middle East plan marks the end of the two-state solution

By Ishaan Tharoor* – The Washington Post President Trump called his plan for Middle East “peace” an “unprecedented” development that swept past “even the most well-intentioned plans” of his predecessors. It is in keeping with the guiding animus of his presidency — a ceaseless…

Civil Society

The Fragmentation of the European Union

By George Friedman* – Geopolitical Futures At the end of this week, the United Kingdom, the second-largest economy in Europe, will exit the European Union. Meanwhile, Poland is under intense attack by the bloc for violating EU regulations by attempting to limit the independence…

History

TOWARD A NEW UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS – I

By Boaventura de Sousa Santos* Baruch de Spinoza, the great 17th century philosopher, wrote that the two basic human emotions (or “affections”, as he called them) are fear and hope, and he suggested that a balance needs to be struck between the two, because fear unmingled with…

Armed conflicts

Evaluating the Importance of Recent Events

By George Friedman* – Geopolitical Futures There are moments when the entire world seems to be coming apart, as if Armageddon itself were upon us. Public attention tends to be able to handle just one Armageddon at a time, and even though the end of the world would probably…

Armed conflicts

Rambo Politics from Reagan to Trump

By Bonnie Honig* – Boston Review In linking the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani to the 1979 Iran hostage crisis, Trump invokes a fantasy of poetic justice—positioning himself as Rambo, the avenger of American humiliation abroad. Last week, after ordering…

Armed conflicts

Iran and the United States: What Comes Next

By George Friedman* – Geopolitical Futures In order to understand the current confrontation between Iran and the United States, we might begin with the Persian-Babylonian wars. Alternatively, we could begin with the decision of the United States to withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq…

Commerce

As Digital Earth gains momentum, China is setting the pace

By Davina Jackson * – The Conversation Al Gore’s 1992 forecast of a Digital Earth — where satellites beam data to reveal all the planet’s environmental dynamics – has gained momentum with the publication of the Manual of Digital Earth last month. The major anthology is sponsored…

Democracy

Evo Morales: An Indian out of place

By Boaventura de Sousa Santos* The dramatic events in Bolivia in recent months have followed an imperial script that Latin Americans are becoming more and more familiar with, and which consists in paving the way for the replacing of a democratic government deemed hostile to the…

History

The Breakup

Evans* – The Nation The unmaking of the postwar international order. Almost immediately upon entering the White House in 2017, Donald Trump began a series of assaults on the existing global order, which has lasted in its essentials since the end of World War II.