A muted, cautious response from China greeted President Obama’s re-election. Reuters reports: A commentary issued by state-run Xinhua news agency shortly after Obama’s election win seemed to indicate a sense of relief that continuity will be assured as Chinese leaders embark on their own transition of power. But it acknowledged that sore issues remained between […]

11:38 It’s been a long day but a short night; however, station WRM is signing off for the evening. I’ll have more to say about what the election means about the state of the country in the next few days, but for now it’s enough to know that President Obama has been elected to a […]

Election day in America isn’t the only important news today. Reuters reported this morning that Chinese President Hu Jintao is calling for a more democratic system for selecting members of the ruling politburo in his country, partially due to the crises of legitimacy and popular unrest that have plagued China for the past few years.Although his proposals fall far short […]

One of the best ways to understand what’s going on in Asia these days is to watch the relationship between Japan and India. The world’s largest democracy and the world’s third-largest economy are both growing wary of their Chinese neighbor. As a result, ties between Japan and India, always strong, have been getting stronger.India never experienced […]

Newsweek’s announcement that it would cease its print publication was shocking even though we’ve become accustomed to rapid changes in the publishing industry. Newsweek and its counterpart Time have been shells of their former selves for well more than a decade now, but the loss of one of our most storied publications is not something to […]

We’re approaching the moment of truth for election analysts. Twenty-four hours from now, some will have egg on their face and others will look like geniuses, but the world will swiftly move on. Via Meadia isn’t overly concerned with horse-race coverage, particularly when the results will soon be obvious, but we believe that Sean Trende’s final analysis of the […]

The past few weeks have given American news junkies more election analysis than anyone could possibly ask for. But Americans aren’t the only ones following the election, and the foreign press is filled with analyses and prognostications of its own. Putting aside their predictive power, these can be a useful guide to how other countries […]

Is it Qatar? Turkey? The CIA? A charity group in Saudi Arabia? A wealthy Lebanese businessman? Actually, according to (public) records, none of the above.According to the official budget of the Syrian National Council, the top source of cash is Libya. The oil-rich country that just fought its own rebellion against a hated dictator is […]

Pakistan’s army chief lashed out at the country’s civilian leadership yesterday, the AP reports: “Armed forces draw their strength from the bedrock of the public support,” [Gen. Ashfaq Parvez] Kayani told a group of officers at army headquarters in the city of Rawalpindi. “Therefore, any effort which wittingly or unwittingly draws a wedge between the people […]

I voted this morning between 6 and 7 AM; if the early turnout at one Queens polling station is any indicator, expect a blowout today. But also expect a civil and peaceful election. While we were using paper ballots rather than the voting machines most of us have grown used to, there were plenty of […]