Immediately after the 2004 elections, U.S. historian Garry Wills described the results as “the day the Enlightenment went out.” He was plainly worried about the impact of fundamentalism not only on the electorate but on Enlightenment values such as “critical intelligence, tolerance, respect for evidence, a regard for the secular sciences.” Wills, by the way,… Continue reading Enlightenment Returns
The Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change released in England last week—and named after the former World Bank economist Nicholas Stern—predicts a 20% cut in global economic activity if climate change continues unabated. Environmentalists have been arguing that global warming will eradicate species, ravage ecosystems, and lead ultimately to the “end of nature”… Continue reading Stern Warning
The Bush administration is getting a drubbing from domestic allies and adversaries alike for its policy in Iraq. Yesterday, The Washington Post declared October 2006 to be the likely tipping point as the public, the politicos, and the punditry have all concluded that U.S. military presence in Iraq is part of the problem, not part… Continue reading Not Just Iraq
George Bush is losing some of his best global buddies. Junichiro Koizumi stepped down last month as the Japanese prime minister, just in time to leave North Korea’s nuclear test in the hands of his successor, Shinzo Abe. Tony Blair will be shortly handing over the reins of the British government to Gordon Browne. And… Continue reading FOG Problems
Wisdom can be very powerful, but the powerful are rarely very wise. The United States is currently going down a well-worn path with its foreign policy. Previous empires have passed this way before, and their wreckage should be visible to the observant. James Fallows titled his book on the Iraq escapade Blind into Baghdad. But… Continue reading Clueless Empires
North Korea claims to have tested a nuclear weapon. Iran refuses to halt its uranium enrichment program. The non-proliferation regime teeters on the brink. Washington’s uncompromising tactics with both Tehran and Pyongyang have failed to achieve anything but the most radioactive results. When President Bush introduced the “axis of evil” of Iraq, Iran, and North… Continue reading Tehran or Pyongyang?
There is so little room in the American consciousness for Africa. “Treat Africa as if it were one country,” Kenyan writer Binyavanga Wainaina advises all would-be chroniclers of the continent in his satirical piece for Granta. “Africa is big: fifty-four countries, 900 million people who are too busy starving and dying and warring and emigrating… Continue reading African Fantasies
The Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano writes about foreign policy with the flair of a poet. He also writes poetry with the geopolitical knowledge of a foreign policy analyst. His one-volume treatise on the colonial pillage of Latin America (Open Veins of Latin America) is a must-read classic, and his three-volume literary meditation on the continent’s… Continue reading Fiesta!
According to the official North Korean version, the Americans were the culprits. In October 1950, the first year of the Korean War, American soldiers massacred tens of thousands of innocent people in the North Korean city of Sinchon. In perhaps the most horrifying incident, US soldiers led 900 residents, including 300 women and children, into… Continue reading Writers from the Other Asia, The Nation
George Bush held a summit last week with a key ally. But if you blinked, you might have missed it. It lasted for about an hour. There was no joint statement or big press conference. It was one of the least newsworthy events in Washington. South Korean president Roh Moo-Hyun had been hoping for more.… Continue reading Roh v. W
When President George W. Bush admitted finally on September 5 that the CIA held suspected terrorists overseas and interrogated them according to an “alternative set of procedures”—an intriguing euphemism for torture—he gave the speech before a hand-picked audience. No pesky journalists were allowed to interrogate the president. In the audience were relatives of those who… Continue reading Now It’s Personal
Every new advance in technology is touted for its revolutionary potential. The washing machine was supposed to liberate the housewife. The computer was supposed to liberate the data technician. Now, according to the Pentagon, the latest generation of landmine will liberate the military from all those messy civilian casualties that have so upset the international… Continue reading Liberation Technology
Remember 1993? Bill Clinton was sworn in for his first term at the beginning of the year, the Mogadishu debacle took place in October, and the fighting in Bosnia was getting worse. You followed these issues in the newspaper, by radio, or on television. It’s not likely you received your news on-line. After all, 1993… Continue reading An Antidote to Info Vertigo
Nation-building is a bloody affair. Just ask the Angles or the Visigoths. Oops, you can’t: they don’t exist any more. The Angles and Visigoths were early victims of nation-building, absorbed into the nations of England and Germany respectively. Their disappearance reminds us that war and genocide created nations, though the less violent interactions of inter-marriage,… Continue reading Hubris and Humanitarianism
Welcome to the new e-zine format for Foreign Policy In Focus. The new name of our e-zine, World Beat, emphasizes that our “beat” is the world and that we feature voices from around the planet. We’ll be introducing some new features in the fall, including a section on culture and foreign policy, so the musical… Continue reading Islam’s Two Faces
The US has put North Korea under quarantine. Pyongyang stands accused of a multitude of crimes, from missile exports and drug smuggling to counterfeiting and money laundering. North Korea has long relied on illicit activities to acquire what it has had difficulty obtaining through legitimate means. Yet isolating Pyongyang from the global economy could prove… Continue reading Time to Lift North Korea’s Quarantine
Even though North Korea’s long-range missile turned out to be a dud, Pyongyang has nevertheless achieved its aim by getting the world’s attention. Governments around the world have rushed to condemn Pyongyang. Japan and the United States want to bring the full weight of the United Nations against the country. North Korea, meanwhile, has argued… Continue reading Negotiating Space with North Korea
“To Link or Not to Link: The Human Rights Question in North Korea,” Foreign Policy in Focus, December 19, 2005 Review of Julie Mertus, Bait and Switch, New Politics, Winter 2005 “Chemical Farm,” AlterNet, November 22, 2005 “The End of Anonymity,” ZNet, November 17, 2005 “The Soul of the New Fast Food,” AlterNet, October 20, 2005 “Hunger Strike… Continue reading 2005 Archives
The Internet is a great place for anonymity. A woman can go into a chat room on the Web and pretend to be a man. A teenager can pretend to be a lawyer and give out free legal advice. A blogger with a pseudonym can dispense inside gossip about the government or Hollywood or the… Continue reading The End of Anonymity
The United States currently spends more than $400 billion a year on the military. This is nearly one-half of the entire global expenditure on military affairs. Two nearest U.S. rivals in military spending, China and Russia, are not even close: combined, they spend only one-fourth of what the Pentagon does. North Korea spends about 1… Continue reading The Perils of Imperial Indigestion
Korean Quarterly, Fall 2005
Korean Quarterly, Fall 2005
Korean Quarterly, Spring 2005
When the Bush administration was mounting its attack on Iraq in 2003, former Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz spoke of the chain effect that Saddam Hussein’s ouster would have on the Middle East. Iraq would be the first Arab democracy. Other peoples in the region would rise up against their leaders. The U.S. decision to… Continue reading Connecting the Democratic Dots
The bravest American journalist does not travel to war zones. He does not go undercover to write about organized crime or report on the latest deadly medical epidemic. The bravest U.S. journalist spends most of his time in an office at The New York Times. In fact, he is not even a journalist. Paul Krugman’s… Continue reading What’s Wrong with the U.S. Media
When I lived in Moscow in 1985, in the first year of the Gorbachev era, it was hard to get a decent meal. I waited on line with my friends for hours just to eat a mediocre pizza with a sour tomato at its center. It was not the same everywhere in the Soviet bloc.… Continue reading The Restaurant Theory of Reform
Avoid “dead water,” the website advises, or else risk cardiovascular disease. According to Nanotechnology Limited, dead water is distilled or purified water that lacks minerals the body needs. The Chinese company claims that its product “nano water,” currently available in Hong Kong supermarkets, is not only pure but has enhanced properties that fight inflammation, cancer… Continue reading The Evolution of Frankenfoods
I’ve just ordered the Mixed Message salad at McDonald’s. That’s the Caesar salad of mostly iceberg lettuce, a couple grape tomatoes, a sprinkle of shredded parmesan, croutons, and a generous slab of fried chicken strips. The salad part is not bad for me, particularly since I opt for the low fat vinaigrette, courtesy of Paul… Continue reading The Soul of the New Fast Food
Imagine having to go to a doctor for a prescription to buy the ingredients for dinner. It’s not such a farfetched scenario. From testosterone and tetracycline to zeranol and genetically engineered bovine growth hormone, enough chemicals circulate in our animal products to stock a medicine cabinet. Because our meat and dairy are still over the… Continue reading Chemical Farm
Journal of Asian Studies, August 2005