Articles

With Scenes of Police Brutality, America’s Beacon to the World Winks Out

2020-06-02

U.S. soft power was already dwindling under Trump. But the new wave of police violence and racial injustice may be drying up the reserves.

details

A Chronicle of a Lost Decade Foretold

2020-05-31

Many on the left still cling to the hope that the COVID-19 crisis will translate into the use of state power on behalf of the powerless. But those in authority have never hesitated to harness government intervention to the preservation of oligarchy...

details

Pandemic politics: Will COVID-19 exacerbate or mitigate conflicts in Libya and Syria?

2020-05-27

Will COVID-19 prolong conflict in Libya and Syria, or will such wars exacerbate the pandemics spread?

details

How Germany Contained the Coronavirus

2020-05-27

Compared to many other countries, Germany has managed the COVID-19 crisis well, owing to its properly funded health system, technological edge, and decisive leadership. But beyond any unique feature of the German system is something that all countries can

details

We’ll Be Wearing Things on Our Faces for a Long Time

2020-05-23

You can choose between a mask and a face shield, but you can’t choose nothing.

details

Nature Is Our Best Antiviral

2020-05-18

Many countries are already demonstrating how we can build stronger bonds between nature, our economy, and our health.

details

Series of discussions in Annabaa Forum for Dialogue: The crisis of the Rentier State

2020-05-15

Annabaa forum for dialogue held an extensive discussion entitled "The Crisis of the Rentier State".

details

On Third Try, a New Government for Iraq

2020-05-13

The new Iraqi prime minister has several daunting tasks. Not only must he navigate the politics that delayed his cabinet...

details

Where Is the Local News About COVID-19?

2020-05-04

As if disinformation and confusion about COVID-19 at the national level were not bad enough, the pandemic also coincides with rising authoritarianism and declining local news coverage in many countries. Now more than ever...

details

Building a Post-Pandemic World Will Not Be Easy

2020-05-04

While both remind us that the Anthropocene epoch may jeopardize our continued existence, and that benign everyday behavior can result in catastrophic outcomes, such similarities must not obscure crucial differences.

details

Target R and Wait for the Vaccine

2020-04-29

Opening up the economy means allowing more human interaction and hence greater potential for new #COVID19 infections. Two numbers matter for deciding whether this can be done safely any time soon.

details

The International Order After COVID-19

2020-04-28

At first blush, the coronavirus pandemic seems likely to corroborate the argument for deeper international cooperation to confront shared global challenges. But crises tend to intensify and accelerate preexisting trends – in this case, the rise of anti-gl

details

Disunited States

2020-04-26

Long held up as a model for Europe, the United States is now also suffering from balkanization, internal competition, out-of-touch and short-sighted leadership

details

The Chinese Health Organization?

2020-04-26

If the World Health Organization is to spearhead international health policy and respond to disease outbreaks effectively, it must pursue deep reforms aimed at broadening its jurisdiction and authority.

details

COVID-19: The Capitalist Emperor Has No Clothes

2020-04-20

The systemic failure of the capitalist order triggered by the coronavirus has reinforced the growing awareness that extreme wealth inequality...

details

The Moral Crisis of the Pandemic

2020-04-20

COVID-19 has intensified our dependence on local communities, and we are riveted by stories of community resilience in the face of an unseen peril.

details

I Can’t Stop Thinking About Patient One

2020-04-16

Italy shows us that controlling the pandemic will require reshaping family life in much of the world.

details

Will COVID-19 Remake the World?

2020-04-13

No one should expect the pandemic to alter – much less reverse – tendencies that were evident before the crisis. Neoliberalism will continue its slow death, populist autocrats will become even more authoritarian, and the left will continue to struggle to

details

Iraq Goes from Zurfi to Kadhimi: U.S. Policy Implications

2020-04-12

If Kadhimis nomination goes through, it would be good news for Iraq, but Washingtons troubled relationship with Baghdad still needs a radical strategic reset.

details

Can Liberal Democracy Survive COVID-19?

2020-04-12

Even if Western leaders manage to limit the COVID-19 outbreaks immediate fallout, it will mean little without forward-looking efforts to strengthen liberal-democratic systems from within. Such a failure would could well amount to handing China victory in

details

Beware Viral Enabling Acts

2020-04-05

It is crucial that opposition parties are broadly on board with measures taken to address what seems like a once-in-a-century public-health crisis.

details

Face Masks Are In

2020-04-02

The West has long stigmatized mask-wearing, unlike in many Asian countries, where those who do not wear masks during public-health crises are the ones who are stigmatized.

details

Iran cannot fight covid-19 with conspiracy theories

2020-04-01

As covid-19 began spreading across Iran in February, the regime held a rigged election. Weeks later, when nearly 10% of Iranian mps were infected and it was clear the country had a problem, the ruling clerics refused to close crowded holy spots.

details

China Is Not the Hero of the Pandemic

2020-04-01

You can criticize Trump without parroting Beijings propaganda.

details