Iraq’s Budget Stalemate and the Danger this Poses to Future Stability By Kirk H Sowell - Dec 11, 2018

Iraq’s prime minister, Adil Abdul-Mahdi, is just two months into his job, but already has had to make his first major policy retreat – over the upcoming year’s budget. Abdul-Mahdi’s position of weakness derives from the fact that because he did not participate in the May parliamentary elections, he has no legislative base. Furthermore, although … Continue reading “Iraq’s Budget Stalemate and the Danger this Poses to Future Stability”

Politics in Turkey Is More than Just the Tension Between Islam and Secularism By Ömer Taşpınar - Dec 10, 2018

The polarity of Islam and secularism has long defined Turkish politics. But despite its continuing popularity among the commentariat, this binary mental map in fact often generates only superficial thinking and lazy analysis of the nature of the Turkish state. More importantly, it no longer captures the complex nature of politics. The time, thus, has … Continue reading “Politics in Turkey Is More than Just the Tension Between Islam and Secularism”

How Will Oil Producing Countries and Companies Meet the Challenge of Climate Change? By Robin Mills - Dec 9, 2018

As an organization of the fossil-fuel industry, Opec, meets in Vienna, the United Nations’ COP24 climate talks are taking place nearby in Katowice, Poland. The coal-rich province of Silesia, where sits Katowice, was wrested from Austria by Frederick the Great of Prussia. Now, major oil producers must decide whether to fight the new energy transition … Continue reading “How Will Oil Producing Countries and Companies Meet the Challenge of Climate Change?”

The Killing of Raed Fares Shows How Syria’s Revolution of Ideas Is Literally Dying Out By Faisal Al Yafai - Dec 7, 2018

Standing up at the Oslo Freedom Forum last year, Raed Fares, a charismatic and good-humored activist who had become a face of the Syrian revolution from his small hometown of Kafranbel in the northwest, showed the audience photographs of the devastating aftermath of a regime bombing raid. He then asked the question millions of Syrians … Continue reading “The Killing of Raed Fares Shows How Syria’s Revolution of Ideas Is Literally Dying Out”

Europe Turns Its Back on Its Liberal Principles as Refugees from the Middle East and Africa Drown By Jonathan Gornall - Dec 6, 2018

For just a moment in September 2015 it seemed that the wave of compassion generated by the photograph of a three-year-old boy lying dead on a Turkish beach might lead to meaningful change. Alan Kurdi, along with his 35-year-old mother, Rehan, and five-year-old brother, Galip, drowned in a desperate attempt to cross the five-kilometer stretch … Continue reading “Europe Turns Its Back on Its Liberal Principles as Refugees from the Middle East and Africa Drown”