Australia is one of the pillars of America’s new Pacific strategy. It’s a staunch, long-time ally that has backed the United States ever since it realized in the middle of World War II that it could no longer rely on Britain.Lately, its politics have had a melodramatic air. To recap: Kevin Rudd was leader of […]

As if Europe weren’t already weary of bad news, here’s more: The Spanish Prime Minister is begging Brussels to ease his country’s deficit-reduction targets, only one day after an international agreement on a massive bailout fund for his government. Based on a recent European Commission forecast of declining growth in the coming year, Spain believes […]

Here’s an old joke: What would happen if the Soviet Union conquered the Sahara? Nothing for fifty years, and then a shortage of sand.A similar joke could be told about Venezuela, where Hugo Chávez has used his country’s vast reserves of oil to enrich himself and his cronies. Meanwhile ordinary Venezuelans live near old and […]

In the UK, where abortion based on sex selection is illegal, the Telegraph reports that doctors have been caught on film telling patients not to worry—they won’t abort and tell: Doctors at British clinics . . . admitted they were prepared to falsify paperwork to arrange the abortions even though it is illegal to conduct […]

The German economy has remained relatively stable amidst Europe’s ongoing cataclysm, but recent developments suggest that Germans shouldn’t get cocky about their good fortunes. The New York Times paints a grim picture of a slowing German economy strangled by over-regulation and buoyed above its neighbors only because of its renowned export sector.Much of the article’s […]

Officials in New York want to raise the minimum wage: The State Assembly speaker, Sheldon Silver, and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg recently announced that they wanted to raise the state’s minimum wage to $8.50 an hour, or roughly $17,000 a year. It would be a 17 percent increase, and the first since the previous federal […]

The Caucasus, the long neck of land separating Europe and Asia that runs between the Black and the Caspian Seas, is one of the least stable places on earth. Few parts of the world match this one for ethnic and religious diversity, tension, hatred, and fear: the frozen conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan; Kurdish independence […]

Play nice with your neighbors, and they will repay you. That seems to be the new mantra in India’s political and business circles. Diplomats and businessmen are touting a new, benevolent, and open-handed approach to neighbors like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and even Pakistan.The offensive is not aimed at forming political alliances against China, nor […]

Politico is shedding some light on a three year-old sound bite that continues to haunt the Obama Administration: Energy Secretary Steven Chu’s comments that American gas prices should be as high as Europe’s: “Somehow,” Chu said, “we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe.”Unsurprisingly, Republicans have […]

When Obamacare passed after nearly a year of grueling debate, the Democratic faithful popped open the champagne and celebrated a hard-fought victory. Eight short months later, that success turned to ashes. Republicans delivered a “shellacking” to the Democrats in the midterm elections, hammering them on a healthcare bill that has remained stubbornly unpopular despite predictions […]