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SPENGLER
Speaking truth to impotence
President Barack Obama's advisers who anguish over blood spilt in Syria's civil war have good cause: they helped the US (with European assistance) set going a regional Sunni-Shi'ite war, with minorities involved in a fight to the death. The do-gooders may not want to see the consequences of their mistakes, while the response from Republican hawks is to switch off the world news for a generation.
(Mar 18, '13)
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THE ROVING EYE
Crisis? What crisis?
Let's hit Syria
Members of the European Council just got together to tie themselves up, autocratically, in the red-tape that passes for democracy and screams "no exit" in the crisis-hit region. Luckily, the men in tights, David Cameron and Francois Hollande, were on hand to raise pulses with an Anglo-French offensive to weaponize Syrian "rebels". As with all matters EU, if it can get more pathetic, it will.
- Pepe Escobar
(Mar 18, '13)
Obama's dangerous Iran nuclear gambit
US President Barack Obama's categorical allegation that Iran is "over a year or so" from developing nuclear weapons has thrown a grenade at progress in nuclear negotiations and flies in the face of assertions from his own advisers. His comments were clearly aimed at good PR for Israel on the eve of his official visit there, but Obama may yet see the imposition of a fake timetable as a blunder.
- Kaveh L Afrasiabi
(Mar 18, '13)
China counter-pivots on Myanmar
A beefed up Beijing diplomatic interest in Asia, with particular focus on Myanmar, is an apparent response to the United States' renewed focus on the region and its warming relations, at China's expense, with Myanmar's government. Washington should be wary of overreacting to this Chinese "pivot", or, in turn, fall out of favor in Naypyidaw.
- David I Steinberg
(Mar 18, '13) |
Beijing underlines 'stability' beats reforms
China's new leaders, Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang, have dealt an early blow to hopes that they would introduce a series of liberalizing reforms, instead underlining the paramount importance of "stability", Party dominance and the failures of Western democracy, backed up with arrests and warnings to intellectuals who want things otherwise. - Willy Lam
(Mar 18, '13)
SPEAKING FREELY
India blots out Israeli issues
Israel has used wide-ranging outreach in India to overcome public opposition to burgeoning bilateral ties in defense, trade and people-to-people contacts. That some surveys now rank India as the world's most "pro-Israel country" suggests the latter's image molding has persuaded many Indians to forget points of difference like Iran and the Palestinian issues.
- S Samuel C Rajiv
(Mar 18, '13)
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China cyber-war: Don't believe the hype
Anyone hoping for a reset in US-China relations might feel a twinge of disappointment at Washington's decision to hype Chinese cyber-intrusions. If a measured escalation was its aim, the Obama administration was hijacked by the sequestered US military and security industry's desire for more power and profit. Besides, occupants of the White House throw cyber-stones too. - Peter Lee
(Mar 15, '13)
Beijing's pit bull alliance
China not only benefits from North Korea stealing its limelight as one of Asia's biggest human-rights violators, Pyongyang also serves a key political weapon against the strangulation strategy being visited on Beijing by the US and its allies. Diplomatic efforts to paint China as "renegotiating" terms of bilateral cooperation with the North are a "dog-and-pony" show.
- Brett Daniel Shehadey
(Mar 15, '13)
COMMENT
Europe makes odd policy in Palestine
The European Union has gained a reputation for a more balanced stand than the US on Israel's treatment of Palestinians, as evinced in recent condemnation of the illegal occupation of their land. Yet as much as the EU takes from Israel by professing abhorrence of institutionalized Apartheid, it gives back more by funding the same settlement programs it denounces.
- Ramzy Baroud
(Mar 15, '13)
A papal mission to close gap with Beijing
Pope Francis is a Jesuit, as was Francis Xavier, the missionary who oversaw the Catholic Church's 16th century near-successful efforts to convert China, which today is the only real opening for the Church to expand in Asia. Perhaps Pope Francis and President Xi Jinping, elected within hours of each other, can close the gap in trust between Beijing and the Holy See.
- Francesco Sisci
(Mar 15, '13)
US takes wrong turn on Iran
Divining the Obama administration's foreign policy intentions can be challenging at times - mark US Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice's words, spoken last week as though nothing has changed over Iran's nuclear program even as recent talks produced positive developments. The US has a plan, but it is perplexing and a strange way to build trust. - Peter Jenkins
(Mar 15, '13)
CULTURE
The conquest of nature and what we lost
Animals have succumbed to the identities pinned on them by man, becoming a plague of anthropomorphized pets or labels for marketing frozen-food and a far cry from their position as agents of nature or symbols of culture in millennia of human existence. That the "beasts" live at ease within the great chain, in concert with the tides and in the presence of death, is a lesson almost lost on humanity.
- Lewis H Lapham
(Mar 15, '13)
SPEAKING FREELY
Now is the time for a solution in Kashmir
Increased repression in Indian-administered Kashmir and growing tensions with Pakistan along the Line of Control highlight that the status quo there cannot last. There has never been a better time for a comprehensive solution to the conflict - most of what that will take is clear. What is eminently lacking is the will to take action now. - Shubh Mathur
(Mar 15, '13)
Japan's cyber-bullies fight comments war
Online attacks by young, hyper-nationalist Japanese commenters on articles or people seen as critical of the country have focused on journalists, anti-nuclear campaigners and sometimes foreign teachers. Expatriate Western workers are also contributing or even at times shaping the online debate, suggesting a disregard for Japanese culture and for the implications of cyber-bullying.
- Christopher Johnson (Mar 15, '13)
QE for the people
Beppe Grillo, comedian and kingmaker in Italy's hung parliament, has exit from the euro, bank nationalization and a guaranteed basic income among his party's goals. They sound a joke, but his proposals have a solid history of success elsewhere. "Quantitative easing" funds do not have to go to bankers. - Ellen Brown (Mar 15, '13)
<IT WORLD>
Spartacus in China
China's plans to enforce real-name registration on the Internet, fearing "netizens" could lead a revolution. Ironically, the real source of government concern is demand for political reform from Maoists on the left, rather than democrats on the right.
- Yu Jing Shen Tu (Mar 15, '13)
Bangladesh political crisis deepens
Bangladesh's main opposition party threatened to call another nationwide strike if its leaders continue to languish in police custody after their arrest for allegedly inflaming violence at a rally in Dhaka on Monday. With sporadic attacks and protests leaving a long trail of destruction through the country and the death-toll climbing, the tense standoff between political foes shows no sign of abating. - Syed Tashfin Chowdhury
(Mar 14, '13)
Death of a killer in Cambodia
Ieng Sary, Cambodian foreign minister during the Khmer Rouge's genocidal rule, has died aged 87 in a Phnom Penh hospital before a United Nations-backed tribunal could deliver a verdict on his role in the regime's bloody crimes. That is a set back for the court, which faces allegations of political interference, a funding crisis and two remaining elderly Khmer Rouge defendants in declining health.
- Sebastian Strangio
(Mar 14, '13)
Japan and Philippines align interests
The convergence of Japan's and the Philippines' threat perceptions of China will ultimately determine the depth of the two sides' strategic cooperation. Domestic concerns have also influenced Manila's receptiveness to Tokyo's soft power diplomacy and strategic overtures, as bilateral ties with Tokyo moved from platitudes to genuinely empowering military assets and economic assistance.
- Julius Cesar I Trajano
(Mar 14, '13)
South Korean right on target
A South Korean conservative activist throws a water balloon onto a banner showing North Korean leader Kim Jong-eun and his troops during a rally in Seoul denouncing North Korea's threat to "wipe out" a South Korean island as Pyongyang came under new economic and diplomatic fire from US sanctions and UN charges of rights abuses. |
Securing the Indian state from the people
Renewed demands to repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in Jammu and Kashmir by activists who say it protects human-rights violators underline the draconian nature of numerous statues in Indian enforced for "national security". Often security and "anti-terror" laws not only contradict the tenets of democracy, they continue colonial-era legislation enacted to control a rebellious population fighting the British Empire. - Ninan Koshy
(Mar 14, '13)
Turkmenistan goes green, and is happy
A drive by Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov to have 3 million trees planted aims to transform his country into a ''blooming garden and further enrich its beautiful nature in the era of power and happiness''. He seems to be succeeding, with young women lauding him at one planting, ''The whole nation is clapping for you.The country is stable, people are happy. Long live our protector.'
- Deana Kjuka (Mar 14, '13)
India's production strength a mirage
India's industrial production started the year with an expansion welcomed by the government in glowing terms. That song has been used before and it will take the next couple of months to confirm whether this is a green healthy shoot or a withering weed.
- Kunal Kumar Kundu (Mar 14, '13)
Afghanistan faces cash hole
The Afghan economy faces severe constriction following the withdrawal of US troops, in part because much of the billions of dollars in aid has been ''lost'' due to waste and massive corruption. One consequence will be the inability of security forces to maintain a stable state. - Richard Sale (Mar 14, '13)
China seizes day
for market forces
A roll-back of the state by restructuring the functions and philosophy of ministries in China and a strong push to hand control of vital concerns such as energy policy back to the center are the deep and long-term changes emanating from this month's National People's Congress. Together they suggest real urgency to give space to market forces. - Francesco Sisci
(Mar 13, '13)
Bo Xilai airbrushed from family album
Defiant gestures by deposed Chongqing chief Bo Xilai from jail, from reported beard-growing protests to hunger strikes, underline why the party needed him gone before Xi Jinping is endorsed as president. US pop historians may overplay Bo's significance, but his is a cautionary tale and highlights that no one is bigger than the party.
- Muhammad Cohen (Mar 13, '13)
Pakistan tests US will with Iran pipeline
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari this week joined hands with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to mark the start of the final phase of a pipeline planned to carry Iranian natural gas into the energy-starved Pakistani economy. If built, it would be diplomatic and economic blow to US sanctions against Tehran, while showing India the benefits of energy independence from Washington. - Kaveh L Afrasiabi
(Mar 13, '13)
US 'rebalancing' to Asia still a priority
US National Security Advisor Thomas Donilon, in a major policy address, put US heft behind South Korea against the provocations of the North and criticized China over cyber-attacks. Amid growing tensions and concerns about the White House's intense focus on the Middle East, the intended message appeared to be that the Asian "pivot" remains on track.
- Jim Lobe
(Mar 13, '13)
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India's foreign funds flood not guaranteed
Indian stock market gains over the past few months coincided with strong inflows of foreign funds, in turn attributable to quantitative easing by the US Federal Reserve. Hopes that further easing will be a boon for Indian stocks might, however, prove ephemeral.
- Kunal Kumar Kundu
CREDIT BUBBLE BULLETIN
Ex-Fed chiefs run to form
Recent comments by former Federal Reserve chairman revealed at least two key points. Paul Volcker is as much on the ball as ever with welcome pertinent insights, while Alan Greenspan, touting an equities valuation model and market undervaluation, is just spouting more nonsense.
Doug Noland looks at the previous week's events each Monday.
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How India's Italian
wound turned gangrene
The sense of gratification for any writer peaks when it transpires that he was prescient. But this is not an instance of vanity fair. India's traditionally close and friendly ties with Italy - a major power in the western alliance - are in tatters today. How did it happen?
- M K Bhadrakumar
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