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In the NewsSeptember 17, 2011When death came hand-deliveredEdward Jay EpsteinWall Street JournalBiological warfare came to America soon after the 9/11 attack. In Florida, a photo editor died of inhalation anthrax. At the time it was thought to be an isolated incident. But then anthrax was found in New York in the newsrooms of NBC and the New York Post, together with letters dated "09-11-2001" and warning: "Death to America Death to Israel Allah Is Great." |
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In the NewsSeptember 15, 2011Tokyo's transformationEric Heginbotham, Ely Ratner, and Richard J. SamuelsForeign AffairsHow Japan is changing -- and what it means for the United States. |
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In the NewsAugust 19, 2011Japan after KanChris AchesonNBRAlthough Kan’s resignation may assist the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) in rebuilding public trust in its ability to lead, questions remain about the future of the DPJ and the political structure of Japan as it stands today. Japanese domestic politics expert, Richard J. Samuels, provides insight into the DPJ, its political strategy, and the challenges the next administration will face. |
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In the NewsAugust 11, 2011In profile: Kenneth OyePeter DizikesMIT NewsA political scientist aims to help governments assess the potential risks of new technologies. |
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In the NewsJuly 4, 2011Supreme tragedyHussein BanaiMuftahAlthough he does not wear a crown (his black turban is as indistinguishable as the next cleric’s), Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has increasingly become regarded as a potentate in the tradition of Middle Eastern autocrats. As the renowned Iranian journalist and dissident, Akbar Ganji, has written of “Sultan Khamenei”’, “[he] has used his broad mandate to exercise control not only over all three branches of government but also over economic, religious, and cultural affairs, sometimes directly and sometimes through various councils or through the Revolutionary Guards. |
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In the NewsJune 28, 2011'Collective autism' about the costs of warChris LydonRadio Open SourceJohn Tirman is trying to explain how the United States got in the habit of fighting wars without a scorecard. We’re a country, curiously, that can focus like fiends on earned-run averages and on-base percentages. But who among us, on a pop quiz, could come up with the figures on how many died in the Iraq war, compared to the Vietnam war, Korea, the two World Wars, and the annexation of the Philippines at the turn of the 20th Century. |
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In the NewsJune 22, 2011David Singer on the Greek Euro-tragedyPeter DizikesMIT NewsThe economic and fiscal woes of Greece remain at the center of European politics. In recent months, a variety of economists and commentators have asked if Greece should consider the unprecedented move of leaving the European Currency Union, so that it could control and lower its own currency rate, in order to spur exports and growth at a time when its economy is struggling badly. David Singer, an associate professor of political science at MIT, discussed Greece and the Euro-mess with MIT News. |
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In the NewsMay 26, 2011Is it really a new start for Palestinians?Peter KrauseProvidence JournalThe unity deal between Fatah and Hamas may well be "historic," but not in the way most news outlets have suggested. Not only is this one of hundreds of unity deals signed by Palestinian factions over the past 50 years, but it is not even the first unity deal signed between Hamas and Fatah, the most recent such agreement coming in 2007. |
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In the NewsMay 16, 2011IMF turmoil unlikely to derail Euro debt talksBob MoonNPR's MarketplaceJust last week, a Bloomberg survey of international investors found 85 percent expect Greece to default on its debt -- that's a stark indicator of the urgency facing the International Monetary Fund in pushing for a resolution to the ongoing crisis. As the former finance minister of France, Dominique Strauss-Kahn's authority on Europe's debt crisis has been widely respected. And his political clout had moved negotiations toward agree. Now these talks face new uncertainty. |
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In the NewsMay 5, 2011The President's triumph: Obama gets his manChristian CarylRadio Free Europe/Radio LibertyThe U.S. Special Operations Forces raid that killed Osama bin Laden drew on the efforts of a large team of people from myriad branches of government working in locations around the world. All of them -- including many whose roles may never become public -- deserve a share of the credit. Yet it seems likely that it's the most public figure in the operation who stands to gain the greatest benefit from its success. And if many of the experts are right, he's earned it. |
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In the NewsMay 3, 2011Fotini on the war in AfghanistanPeter DizikesMIT NewsWhat impact will the death of Osama bin Laden have on the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan? And what effect will it have on the often-tense relationship between the United States and Pakistan? Fotini Christia, an associate professor in the Department of Political Science, is conducting ongoing research in Afghanistan and has written widely on the subject. MIT Newsspoke to Christia about the outlook in the region. |
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In the NewsMarch 24, 2011Japan after the quakeWBUR: On PointJapan is no stranger to natural disaster and struggling back. From shogun, samurai days and far earlier, the Japanese have faced earthquake and tsunami and war, and famously persevered. But some epic events have changed Japan, within that perseverance. |
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In the NewsMarch 23, 2011Cold water from the TalibanChristian CarylRadio Free Europe/Radio LibertyOutpost's recent piece on the idea of opening a diplomatic office for the Taliban in Turkey has inspired quite a bit of comment. Now we've received some feedback from a source who boasts a long track record of good access to Taliban leaders. One of RFE/RL's reporters just caught up with Rahim Ullah Yousafzai, an executive editor at the Pakistan newspaper "The News International," and asked him about the story. |
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In the NewsMarch 22, 2011Egypt: the path forwardBy M. Shafik GabrThe legitimate demands of the Egyptian protestors have been heard loud and clear, and an irrevocable process of change is now underway. But we should have no illusions. |
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In the NewsMarch 16, 2011A eulogy for PakistanChristian CarylRadio Free Europe/Radio LibertyLast week Outpost had the honor of attending a memorial service for Shahbaz Bhatti at the Embassy of Pakistan here in Washington, D.C.. As you may recall, Bhatti -- the minorities minister in the current government of Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani -- was shot on his way to work in Islamabad on March 2. |
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In the NewsMarch 16, 2011Japan's black swanRobert Madsen, Richard SamuelsForeign PolicyThe earthquake changed everything. What will Tokyo do next? |
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In the NewsMarch 15, 2011Leaks in all the wrong placesChristian CarylForeign PolicyWhy the Japanese public has good reason to distrust official information. |
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In the NewsMarch 15, 2011Why Japan relies on nuclear powerWayne DrashCNNJapan has more than 50 nuclear power plants and had planned to build two dozen more by 2030, according to a professor who has written on Japanese energy and security policy. |
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In the NewsMarch 13, 2011Japan disaster may have global economic impactNPRJapan's economy — like much of the world — was already facing serious challenges before the earthquake struck. Economist Robert Madsen, a senior fellow at MIT's Center for International Studies, discusses the effects of the disaster in Japan on the economy there and around the globe. |
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In the NewsMarch 2, 2011How dictators fallPeter BeaumontThe GuardianFrom the streets of Bucharest to the slums of Manila, people power invariably wins out in the end. As Libya recovers its voice, foreign affairs editor Peter Beaumont examines the dynamics of bringing down a despot. |
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