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Curated by Project Syndicate

PS Ten Most-read Commentaries on Politics 2016

10 commentaries

Political rage went global in 2016, fueling a populist backlash across the democratic world and appalling terrorist violence in the Middle East, Europe, and beyond. Here are ten commentaries – of the 1,140 published by Project Syndicate during the last 12 months – on the political upheavals of 2016 that resonated most with readers around the world.

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  1. Russia’s Hybrid War Against the West
    NATO Stratcom Ilmars Znotins/Stringer
    Free to read

    Russia’s Hybrid War Against the West

    Dec 23, 2016 Guy Verhofstadt urges Europe to strengthen its defenses against Russian electoral meddling, before it's too late.

  2. Goodbye to the West
    Lincoln Memorial (neoclassicalism) Mladen Anonov/Getty Images
    Free to read

    Goodbye to the West

    Dec 5, 2016 Joschka Fischer sees little hope for the survival of the post-war global order under Donald Trump's US presidency.

  3. Ban the Burkini?
    singer138_Peter Macdiarmid_Getty Images_burqa Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images
    Free to read

    Ban the Burkini?

    Sep 8, 2016 Peter Singer thinks societies have a right to prohibit some cultural practices – within limits.

  4. The Meaning of Brexit
    Brexit Dan Kitwood/Getty Images
    Free to read

    The Meaning of Brexit

    Jun 25, 2016 Jeffrey D. Sachs views the UK's decision to leave the EU as a signal of the need for a new kind of globalization.

  5. Britain’s Democratic Failure
    rogoff143_Dan KitwoodGetty Images_davidcameronsad Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

    Britain’s Democratic Failure

    Jun 24, 2016 Kenneth Rogoff explains why nation-defining decisions should not be put to a simple majority vote.

  6. The Queen’s Chinese Guests from Hell
    khrushcheva75_WPA Pool_Getty Images WPA Pool/Getty Images
    Free to read

    The Queen’s Chinese Guests from Hell

    May 17, 2016 Nina L. Khrushcheva sees a deeper message in the "rude" behavior of President Xi Jinping's entourage in London in 2015.

Our Pick

Featured

  1. skidelsky200_Getty Images_speech Getty Images
    1

    The Language of Political Control

    Robert Skidelsky views recent linguistic innovations as manipulative efforts to compel “correct” thought and perception.
  2. basu101_Alfonso Sangiao iStock Getty Images Plus_voting Alfonso Sangiao/iStock / Getty Images Plus
    1

    Globalization vs. Democracy

    Kaushik Basu highlights the contradictions and vulnerabilities inherent in the current international order.
  3. coyle36 Alishia AbodundeGetty Images INFRASTRUCTURE Alishia Abodunde/Getty Images
    0

    The West’s New Infrastructure Imperative

    Diane Coyle explains why a broader conception of the term could reflect a renewed interest in investing in the future.
  4. bp iran israel Photo by Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images
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    An Iran-Israel War?

    Iran’s mass ballistic missile and drone attack on Israel last week raised anew the specter of a widening Middle East war that draws in Iran and its proxies, as well as Western countries like the United States. The urgent need to defuse tensions – starting by ending Israel’s war in Gaza and pursuing a lasting political solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict – is obvious, but can it be done?

  5. nasheed3_MANDEL NGANAFP via Getty Images_georgieva MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images
    0

    What a Climate-Aligned IMF Would Look Like

    Mohamed Nasheed & Rakesh Mohan explain how the managing director can fully position the institution to help the most vulnerable countries.
  6. ghosh76_Kristin Palitzapicture alliance via Getty Images_afrigen Kristin Palitza/picture alliance via Getty Images
    0

    The Key to Transforming African Health

    Jayati Ghosh highlights efforts to foster scientific innovation and drug manufacturing on the continent.
  7. op_roach3_ Kevin FrayerGetty Images_china lagging consumption Kevin Frayer/Getty Images
    0

    China’s Rebalancing Imperative

    Stephen S. Roach

    The most successful development stories almost always involve major shifts in the sources of economic growth, which in turn allow economies to reinvent themselves out of necessity or by design. In China, the interplay of mounting external pressures, lagging household consumption, and falling productivity will increasingly shape China’s policy choices in the years ahead.

     explains why the Chinese authorities should switch to a consumption- and productivity-led growth model.
  8. castaneda88_GERARDO MENOSCALAFP via Getty Images_latin america safety GERARDO MENOSCAL/AFP via Getty Images
    0

    From Welfare State to Safe State in Latin America

    Jorge G. Castañeda & Carlos Ominami

    Designing a progressive anti-violence strategy that delivers the safety for which a huge share of Latin Americans crave is perhaps the most difficult challenge facing many of the region’s governments. But it is also the most important.

     urge the region’s progressives to start treating security as an essential component of social protection.
  9. ocampo57_Celal GunesAnadolu Agency via Getty Images_imf Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
    0

    The Urgency of Sovereign-Debt Restructuring

    José Antonio Ocampo highlights the need for a comprehensive mechanism to deliver relief to low- and middle-income countries.

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