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Economic illiteracy.
May 12, 2009
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"When once asked about apparent inconsistencies in his economic policy Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran's president, gave a frank reply: 'I pray to God that I will never know about economics.' With a ballooning deficit, falling oil prices, soaring inflation and rising unemployment Iran's economy is in a p...
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Hope in the trade debate?
May 7, 2009
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It has been a rough time for free trade backers. The number of members of Congress supporting trade deals has dwindled in recent years. “New Democrats” are practically extinct. The conventional wisdom used to be that if you got a trade deal through the House, it was a “gimmie” in the Senate. That...
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Wither human rights?
May 6, 2009
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The Washington Post reported yesterday ("Human Rights Activists Troubled by Administration's Approach") that human rights groups are greatly concerned by what they see as the Obama Administration giving "short shrift" to human rights in favor of an approach that "reaches out" to antagonists. Report...
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Smoke on the Horizon; "Kalashnikov sandwiches" in Southern Lebanon
May 1, 2009
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Many are bracing themselves for the results of Lebanon's parliamentary elections set to take place June 7th. An Associated Press article this week ("Hezbollah, allies positioning to win election") warned that with "quiet campaigning and moderate talk," Hezbollah "and its allies stand a good chance ...
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Into Pakistan
Apr 29, 2009
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The other weekend, I did a day trip into Pakistan, arriving from neighboring India. Delegations used to be able to spend the night in Pakistan. But given the security deterioration, that's no longer an option. The contrast to India, which was undergoing a massive, mostly peaceful, democratic elec...
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Job well done; In your face sometimes needed
Apr 28, 2009
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When a host country is lashing out at the U.S. ambassador, there is a pretty good chance that he or she is doing their job - vigorously representing U.S. interests. So Ambassador James McGee, the U.S. Ambassador to Zimbabwe who is set to retire in the coming weeks, should take it as a badge of hono...
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What's wrong with Spot?
Apr 24, 2009
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President Obama's announcement last week easing travel and remittance restrictions towards Cuba was front page news. Far less noticed was a report that U.S. diplomats posted at the U.S. Interests Section on the communist island are continually harassed by the Cuban government, even including the po...
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World’s largest democratic exercise rolls on
Apr 23, 2009
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Today marks the second round of voting in India’s general election. Three more phases will follow as this country of 1.2 billion votes in a new government. I had a front row seat for the first round when I was in India last week to gauge U.S.-India relations, the regional security situation post-M...
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Shoulder-fired missile proliferation
Apr 14, 2009
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MANPADS: It’s probably one of the worst acronyms of all time, but one of the worst terrorist threats out there. MANPADS stand for man-portable air defense systems – think shoulder-fired missiles.
These weapons have proliferated throughout the world and can be purchased on the black market at very ...
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Vive La France!
Apr 10, 2009
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Some good news last weekend that got lost in the hoopla of President Obama’s European trip – France has officially rejoined NATO’s command structure. Between the contentious debate on NATO expansion to Ukraine and Georgia (I’ve been opposed) and the alliance’s performance in Afghanistan (abysmal) –...
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