Pessimists move so fast they can make your head spin. A few months ago, the conventional wisdom held that America was running out of oil and gas—and so was the whole world. Peak oil and an age of scarcity were falling upon us. Alas and alack, o woe!But then a few people and publications, including […]

Japan today took steps to strengthen its relationship with Myanmar, a potential new ally as it continues to jockey for resources and influence: Japan’s new government confirmed its support for the emerging democracy in Myanmar on Thursday when Finance Minister Taro Aso visited the country to reaffirm Japan’s intention to cancel debt and help develop a […]

China is building a railroad from Kunming in southeastern China through Laos to Thailand, a significant upgrade to the Laotian transport network and an extremely lucrative link between China and Southeast Asia. But because of a very skewed financing agreement between Chinese, Laotian, and international banks, Laos is footing the bill for its section of […]

There’s nothing new about governors competing to bring jobs to their state, but rarely has it been this brazen. The Wall Street Journal reports that neighboring states, as well as some states as far flung as Georgia and Tennessee, are stationing official “business recruiters” in California to convince businesses to move their operations out of state.It’s […]

How much of the Christmas story is “real” and how much of both this story—and ultimately the entire record of the the Scriptures—is historically accurate? This is a much more complicated question than it may appear at first glance.

Over the past several years, the pace of the changes in China’s volatile housing market could give anyone whiplash. The Chinese government, worried that property prices were climbing too high, first started taking steps to hold down prices. In some places, they fell by as much as ten percent. Then, fearful of the disastrous economic effects of a bursting […]

By now, the Three Kings are well on their way to Bethlehem, and the Christmas season is drawing to a close. But the Three Kings (actually, ‘wise men’ according to Matthew’s gospel) aren’t just bringing their famous three gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. They bring with them another set of questions that we have […]

Is Zanzibar jumping on the Islamist bandwagon? The tide of extremism washing through the Mediterranean basin seems to be reaching the shores of the traditionally laid back tourist Mecca off the Tanzanian coast.According to the Financial Times, radicalism is spreading rapidly via extremist madrassas that receive substantial funding from the usual sources. This outside funding […]

A new UN report estimates that 60,000-plus people have been killed in Syria between March 2011 and today. Worse, the rate of casualties is increasing as the war drags on, as both sides begin to use heavier weapons. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay put it bluntly: “Collectively, we have fiddled at the edges […]

The New York Times reports that, in an echo of last month’s tragedy, seven more aid workers in Pakistan have been killed by two armed gunmen while returning from work. It is widely believed that this attack and others like it have been perpetrated by the Pakistani Taliban, which has earned a reputation for attacks against aid workers. […]