American Opinion

Spectre of 9/11 haunts America

2013-05-08T09:58:27+10:00

This year is already a reminder of two important security lessons of the post-9/11 era: that heightened defences against very real terrorist threats in the US remain necessary; and that the twin strategy of containment and deterrence remains the most effective way of dealing with rogue states.… more»

Tweets & Tanks

2013-03-11T12:18:12+10:00

What does social media mean for the big issues of war and peace? Is the endless conversation of Twitter and the blogosphere going to break down barriers of misperception or reinforce the worst kinds of misunderstanding between nations? And when war occurs, how will the new information realm shape its nature and outcome? These… more»

The cycle turns

2013-02-18T12:41:30+10:00

“I think Ronald Reagan changed the trajectory of America, in a way that Richard Nixon did not, and in a way that Bill Clinton did not,” Barack Obama remarked in one of the most revealing moments of the 2008 presidential primaries. “He put us on a fundamentally different path because the country was ready… more»

Whither the Republican Party

2013-02-18T11:51:41+10:00

The United States is facing two interlinked domestic challenges which are unprecedented in their scope. The first is the rise of the Latino (and, to a lesser extent, Asian) populations as the chief driver of an inexorable shift towards a non-white majority within the next 30 years. The second are… more»

The great untold environment story

2013-02-18T10:25:17+10:00

The American Midwest, that great belt of farms and factories stretching south and west from the Great Lakes, has always lived on nature’s gifts. First was the farmland, perhaps the richest in the world. The same land yielded coal and iron, and so the Midwest became the nation’s foundry as… more»

People's diplomacy

2013-01-15T18:13:15+10:00

Does social media help start wars or stop them? This has lately become a topical question, not least as China and Japan face off over the contested islands and resources of the East China Sea.… more»

The Midwest drought

2012-11-30T17:35:41+10:00

Finally, the rains have come, flung up the Mississippi River valley by the tail of Hurricane Isaac, cooling temperatures and greening the crops—or what’s left of them. It’s been a cruel summer, the worst in 50 years: day after day of unrelenting sun, temperatures above 100 degrees Fahrenheit (that’s about 38 degrees Celsius), hot… more»

Empire in retreat

2012-11-30T17:20:57+10:00

Whatever happens, the United States is going to try to redeploy a large part of its armed forces, diplomatic attention, and (perhaps) development aid to East and Southeast Asia. That is now the official position of both US political parties and it’s strongly backed by the Pentagon.… more»

Rocks of discord

2012-11-29T17:29:37+10:00

This was supposed to be the Year of Sino-Japanese Friendship, but rather than celebrating the 40th anniversary of normalising relations, the two nations have derailed bilateral relations over disputed islands in the East China Sea known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China. This test of wills is a high stakes contest and… more»

Gridlocked and broke

2012-11-19T10:47:25+10:00

Politicians, political parties, and a hoard of billionaires supporting them have spent upwards of $5 billion on America’s presidential and congressional elections in 2012, a record amount by a wide margin.… more»

America, all alone

2012-10-23T10:34:29+10:00

Twilight has come to the lonely superpower. We are witnessing the beginning of the end of the era of American primacy. The emergence of China and India in the East, Brazil in the South and a German-dominated EU within the West has precipitated a steady sapping of America’s strength relative… more»

The Afghan gamble

2012-10-15T16:18:01+10:00

As far as US strategy in Afghanistan is concerned, the die is now cast and the gamble made. The United States will continue to support the Karzai administration and whatever its successor in Kabul may be. Ground forces will withdraw by the end of 2014, but US military bases and Special Forces will remain… more»

Latino dreaming

2012-09-05T10:41:12+10:00

In Phoenix earlier this year, I met Tony Valdovenos, one of a small army of on-the-ground volunteers deployed by Barack Obama’s campaign to register new voters in Arizona.… more»

Giant tweets

2012-08-13T16:15:24+10:00

Can the microblog change the megastates? In China and India, social media is leapfrogging official and mainstream media narratives, giving voice to the wants and frustrations of the new middle classes.… more»

Beyond NATO

2012-07-31T17:05:46+10:00

The last session of the NATO summit in Chicago in May was devoted to a salute to 13 NATO “partners”, which are nations that don’t belong to NATO but take part in alliance operations. The session didn’t get much attention. It should have.… more»

Changing of the guard

2012-07-19T16:17:09+10:00

In a relatively rare occurrence, early 2013 will see two newly mandated administrations setting up at the same time in the United States and China. If President Obama returns to the White House for another four years, he will do so with the knowledge that China’s new leaders will be in place for the… more»

War traps

2012-04-19T11:48:02+10:00

The two most powerful lobbies in Washington, so the town’s old hands will tell you, are the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). Members of Congress, not to say presidents, cross them at their peril.… more»

Hold the champagne

2012-04-19T11:39:18+10:00

After an economic winter that has lasted nearly a decade, the first green shoots of thaw are appearing in America’s industrial heartland. Headlines sprout words like “recovery” and “revival”. Factories that had slashed workforces are hiring again. There are even signs of jobs coming back from China.… more»

Discontent postponed

2012-04-19T11:29:14+10:00

So far, President Vladimir Putin of Russia has exercised power well—by the standards of the former Soviet republics. His administration has presided over quite impressive rates of economic growth (admittedly aided by high energy prices), and has not been as oppressive as the Central Asian regimes, as corrupt and chauvinist as the Caucasians,… more»

Drawing the line

2012-04-19T10:34:22+10:00

From coup rumours in China through crusade-mongering in Africa to revelations of revolution in the US State Department: social media is cutting a trail of creative destruction across international affairs in 2012.… more»