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Britain, Ireland, and Europe

David Miliband — Thu, 23 May 2013 20:13:06 +0000

British Prime Minister David Cameron is increasingly beholden to Conservative backbenchers who want to pull the UK out of the EU. On May 22, former British Foreign Secretary David Miliband delivered the Irish Business and Employers Confederation Annual Lecture, in which he defended continued EU membership.

Misreading the Global Economy

Ashoka Mody — Thu, 23 May 2013 09:00:00 +0000

Over the last three years, the IMF's economic forecasts have repeatedly proved to be overly optimistic. The problem is rooted in a misdiagnosis of the global economy's problems, including the impact of the eurozone crisis and slowing GDP growth in emerging economies.

Europe’s Clash of Generations

Gene Frieda — Thu, 23 May 2013 09:00:00 +0000

EU leaders are under pressure from a new generation of voters, for whom the original purpose of European integration – preventing war – holds little significance today. If EU leaders do not respond effectively, emerging political parties will seek to restore the protective national barriers that their predecessors demolished.

Nationalism, Madness, and Terrorism

Liah Greenfeld — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:00:33 +0000

If we want to understand what drove the Boston Marathon bombing suspects to terrorism, the answer almost certainly does not lie in Dagestan, where the brothers lived before moving to the US, or in Chechnya's two wars in the last 20 years. Instead, the key to the Tsarnaevs’ behavior lies in developments in England 500 years ago.

A New Deal for Fragile States

Erik Solheim — Thu, 16 May 2013 12:50:12 +0000

Today, roughly one-fifth of the world’s population lives in conflict-affected and fragile states, despite vast sums of money spent aiding such states over the last 50 years. Obviously, the way that international and national partners engage such states must change radically.

The Importance of Doing Business

Ana Palacio — Thu, 16 May 2013 09:00:00 +0000

There is much speculation that an independent panel currently reviewing the World Bank’s Doing Business project will recommend outsourcing it, removing its country rankings, or even eliminating it altogether. But gutting or cutting the annual report would be a serious mistake.

The Endangered Arab Christian

Fiorello Provera — Mon, 13 May 2013 13:20:17 +0000

In the wake of the Arab Spring, Christian communities across the Arab world have been facing a surge in discrimination and violence, driven primarily by Islamist militancy and the rise of political Islam. With few remaining options, Christians are increasingly seeking to flee the Arab world altogether.

The Mismeasure of Poverty

Jomo Kwame Sundaram — Fri, 10 May 2013 09:00:00 +0000

In 2012, outgoing World Bank President Robert Zoellick announced that the goal of halving global poverty relative to its 1990 level had been achieved in 2010 – five years ahead of schedule. But three problems – insufficient survey data, flawed survey execution, and faulty price conversions – undermine the accuracy of such estimates.

Less of an Ass

Aryeh Neier — Thu, 09 May 2013 09:00:00 +0000

Freedom of expression worldwide received a boost – and Britain’s reputation for commonsense was somewhat restored – in April, when Parliament adopted legislation revising the country’s libel law. The amended law should go a long way toward preventing deep-pocketed plaintiffs from using British courts to silence their critics.

Debt Without Drowning

Paul De Grauwe — Thu, 09 May 2013 09:00:00 +0000

Given that dismantling the eurozone would trigger profound economic, social, and political upheaval throughout Europe, its leaders really have only one option: develop strategies aimed at bringing the eurozone closer to a fiscal union. They should begin with a debt-pooling scheme that satisfies three crucial requirements.

Europe’s National Wild Cards

John Bruton — Tue, 07 May 2013 13:50:19 +0000

After almost 70 years of peace, Europeans seem to have forgotten why unity was so important, indulging nationalist sentiment without regard for its potential consequences. At the same time, they fail to grasp that their economies are too closely interconnected for independent economic policy to work.

The Problem with Poor Countries’ GDP

Bill Gates — Mon, 06 May 2013 09:00:00 +0000

Traditionally, one of the guiding factors for development aid has been per capita GDP – the value of goods and services produced by a country in a year divided by the country’s population. Yet GDP may be a very inaccurate indicator in the poorest countries, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Lives versus Profits

Joseph E. Stiglitz — Mon, 06 May 2013 09:00:00 +0000

The US Supreme Court recently began deliberations in a case that will determine whether human genes may be patented. But we already know that permitting gene patents results in inefficiencies – including monopoly profits and a failure to maximize the use of knowledge – that impede the pace of innovation.

The Erosion of Europe

Joschka Fischer — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:00:00 +0000

The Cyprus crisis revealed the full extent of the political disaster that the eurozone crisis has wrought: the EU is disintegrating at its core. Europeans’ current crisis of confidence concerning Europe is far more dangerous than renewed market anxiety, because it cannot be overcome with another liquidity injection by the ECB.

A Wiser America

Naomi Wolf — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:00:00 +0000

When America absorbed the bombing at the Boston Marathon, what was striking was what did not happen. Twelve years after the attacks on September 11, 2001, the country was saddened, but it was also better informed – and thus less susceptible to official manipulation.

Syria’s Hijacked Struggle

Ribal al-Assad — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 09:00:00 +0000

As Syria’s civil war has progressed, the West’s views on arming the opposition have become increasingly confused, and defining the conflict according to the proverbial “good versus evil” dichotomy has become increasingly difficult. Syria needs a new narrative – one that is not shaped exclusively by Western-backed Islamist groups.

Sustainability at a Profit

Achim Steiner, et al. — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 14:20:11 +0000

Many industries that seem lucrative in fact dump massive environmental and social costs on third parties through their unsustainable production methods. Governments, consumers, and, most of all, companies worldwide must work to transform existing systems and move toward a low-carbon, resource-efficient economy.

The Competition Factor

Joaquín Almunia, et al. — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 09:00:00 +0000

So far, macroeconomic policy has borne both the blame for economic malaise and the hope that it can be overcome. But we should be devoting as much attention to the microeconomic problems – such as poor incentives and market failures – that led us into the crisis in the first place.

The Boston Paradox

Nina L. Khrushcheva — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 09:00:00 +0000

There is another sense in which the Tsarnaev brothers might be right that Russia and the West are not so different from each other. Just as Russia must deal with a growing wave of fundamentalism that its own policies have fueled, the summary condemnation of Muslims in America will breed more alienation and retribution from within.

Toward an Immunized World

Ban Ki-moon, et al. — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 09:00:00 +0000

For a child, receiving a vaccine takes just a moment (and perhaps a few tears). But such moments are crucial for getting children off to a healthy start in life, and for advancing progress on global health and development goals.