In February 2011, tens of thousands of protestors took to the streets of Madison and occupied the Wisconsin State Capitol. In demonstrations modeled after those which took Egypt by storm, activists protested a proposed bill by Governor Scott Walker which would curtail the collective bargaining rights of state and municipal employees. Although the Wisconsin protestors … Read more
With legal challenges from 26 states en route to the Supreme Court, the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) has been called into question. The case is sure to be historic. “This will be the most important Commerce Clause case since cases upholding the Civil Rights Act of 1964,” Richard H. … Read more
Almost every year, it seems, Harvard sets a record for the “diversity” of its newly admitted students. “Harvard Accepts a Diverse Class of 2015” announces the Boston Globe this year, rather blandly, in an article that reads exactly like a press release from the Harvard admissions office. But how to measure diversity? While there has … Read more
The Neoconservative Persuasion: Selected Essays, 1942-2009 By Irving Kristol. Basic Books, 2011. Hardcover: $29.95, 416 pp. Irving Kristol may have passed away in 2009, but his spirit lives on in the latest collection of his writings, The Neoconservative Persuasion: Selected Essays, 1942-2009. As a founder of such magazines as The Public Interest, The National Interest, … Read more
From 2004 to 2006, Abdulrahman worked as a special assistant to the representative of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (one of Iraq’s leading Kurdish political parties) in D.C., and later as the Deputy KRG Representative and PUK deputy representative from 2004 to 2009. He is currently working as a political commentator and has written extensively on … Read more
For a nation often referred to as the economic powerhouse of Europe, Germany has dealt with the global economic recession characteristically well. The nation currently boasts unemployment of just 6.6 percent, compared to 9.6 percent in the rest of the E.U. Further, Germany’s GDP growth of 3.6 percent remains substantially higher than any other developed … Read more
Smoking has long been a source of contention among many Americans, but lately anti-smoking campaigns have made serious progress throughout the country. By one count, 3,270 municipalities have some ban against smoking, and cities like Cambridge have recently investigated banning smoking in public places. More than 365 colleges nationwide have joined this trend by banning … Read more
Kabuki Democracy: The System vs. Barack Obama By Eric Alterman. Nation Books, 2011. Paperback: $14.99, 224 pp. Eric Alterman, like many Americans on the far left, is frustrated. Despite Barack Obama’s bold and inspiring campaign rhetoric, the president, even with supermajorities in both houses, “wasn’t able to deliver on the bulk of his promises,” said … Read more
As a member of the audience for the panel discussion on challenges facing the US and Mexico, I really enjoyed the discussion on the drug war and its implications for public policy. Moderated by Harvard Law School Professor Phillip Heymann, there was plenty of discussion about the implications of sustained violence and drug trafficking from what … Read more
Throughout the 19th century, the United Kingdom and Russia engaged in the so-called “Great Game,” a strategic rivalry for influence over Central Asia. Today, the region’s location at the crossroads of two emerging superpowers, Russia and China, along with vast natural gas reserves, places the land west of the Caspian at the center of international … Read more