Articles

An explicit roadmap to restore the state

2021-01-14

A glimpse of hope was seen with the new government formation of Al-Kadhemi that coincided with ending the threat of ISIS...

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Assessing the Seriousness of the Latest Cyber-attacks

2020-12-28

In addition to the rising Covid-19 case numbers in US and most of the world during this holiday season, the US and others have suffered a rash of cyber-attacks...

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Five Cheers for 2021

2020-12-28

After a year of death, despair, and deep uncertainty, there are glimmers of light on the horizon. Not only is responsible leadership returning to the United States, but there is...

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Lebanon’s Food Insecurity and the Path Toward Agricultural Reform

2020-12-13

Without deep legislative and structural reforms, Lebanons agricultural sector could suffer severely, pushing even more people out of work and into poverty.

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The US Military After 4 Years of a Trump Presidency

2020-11-25

How has Trump done in the last four years? The fact is that it is a mixed bag. Trump is drawing down US forces in the Middle East despite serious opposition in the US military bureaucracy...

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The intriguing maps that reveal alternate histories

2020-11-18

What if major elections, wars and events had turned out differently? Samuel Arbesman explores the detail and delights of maps that plot alternative worlds to our own.

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The truth about British stoicism

2020-11-09

Brits, according to many outsiders, are reserved, repressed, resilient, unemotional and self-controlled. But how did the stiff upper lip become so closely associated with Britain?

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The US needs Europe to end the 'forever wars' in the Middle East

2020-11-09

The election and other factors provide an opportunity to design a humbler but smarter transatlantic approach to the Middle East.

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Antitrust Alone Won’t Fix the Innovation Problem

2020-11-03

For all the attention on antitrust enforcement against the biggest US technology companies, the more important issue for the economy concerns the direction of technological change.

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The grim fate that could be ‘worse than extinction’

2020-10-25

What would it take for a global totalitarian government to rise to power indefinitely? This nightmare scenario may be closer than first appears.

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Divided We Stand

2020-10-25

With America heading for one of the most fraught and potentially disastrous presidential elections in its history, it is difficult to see how such a deeply polarized ...

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Listen to the Science

2020-10-22

There are also deepening social and economic crises. The pandemic has battered national economies, exacerbated many forms of inequality, and sown distrust and social unrest around the world...

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Five lessons for successfully investing in people

2020-10-21

Access to health services in Morocco has been significantly enhanced as a result of the expansion of health insurance coverage and the establishment of a system for providing subsidized care...

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The Rise of Chinese AI in the Gulf: A Renewal of China’s ‘Serbia Model’

2020-10-20

Already a global leader in 5G infrastructure, China is investing heavily in a broader range of advanced technologies and seeking to introduce them globally as a means of achieving even...

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The uncertain future of capitalism after coronavirus

2020-10-19

The pandemic made a global economic slowdown much worse. Maybe its time to rethink a system based on endless growth.

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Why arrogance is dangerously contagious

2020-10-18

Overconfidence can delude us into dangerous thought or actions – and that same arrogance can also spread to others like wildfire, too.

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Washington Confuses Tactics with Strategy: The Perils of Shuttering the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad

2020-10-13

In threatening the closure, the U.S. administration is undermining the reform-minded Iraqi prime minister’s efforts against Iran-backed militias and risking Baghdad’s relationship with Washington.

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Were Iran and the United States Really ‘On the Brink’? Observations on Gray Zone Conflict

2020-10-05

Tehran’s entire modus operandi is designed to pressure Washington and its allies but avoid all-out conflict, and distorting this reality so close to a U.S. election will only hinder an effective policy response.

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The History Behind America’s History Wars

2020-10-03

When history becomes worth fighting over, it begins to exist. And, crucially, the fight is now occurring in the mainstream of American media, politics, and culture

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Why the US shouldn’t withdraw all its troops from Afghanistan and Iraq

2020-10-02

The US still has important interests in the regions and pulling out without a plan would only ensure it is forced to return when conditions deteriorate and threats re-emerge.

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The Redistribution Games

2020-10-02

Life is not the Olympics, where talent and training determine an athlete’s performance. It’s more like a Roman arena in which well-armed gladiators vanquish unarmed ...

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Pushing Back on Iraqi Militias: Weighing U.S. Options

2020-10-01

Although halting the escalation of militia attacks on American personnel is crucial, simply evacuating the Baghdad embassy and downscaling the bilateral relationship would allow Iran to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

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Kadhimi’s Rolling Reshuffle (Part 2): Protecting Iraq’s Economic Institutions and Borders

2020-09-24

As technocrats increasingly fill key government roles, U.S. officials need to help Baghdad withstand the inevitable counterpunch from political and militia factions used to dictating such appointments.

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Climate-Friendly Cooling Can Slow Global Warming

2020-09-24

As global temperatures rise and demand for air conditioning and refrigeration soars, all countries must adopt common-sense initiatives to make cooling more efficient...

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