Monthly Archives: July 2012
A China Problem?
By: Christopher Linnan With the Olympics starting today, most Americans are excited by the prospect of cheering for our country as we compete against the rest of the world. The Olympics have always been advertised as fostering cooperation and sportsmanship, but underneath this utopian display is a fierce determination by countries to prove their vitality […]
The Shining example of…Iceland?
By: Kate Cyr I’m going to take an educated guess and say that few of you followed Iceland’s election last week. I wouldn’t have either, given that the last time I even thought about Iceland was when that unpronounceable volcano erupted. Until I heard about Thora Arnorsdottir, that is. Arnorsdottir was the closest challenger to […]
Japanese Nuclear Proliferation: a Coming Firestorm
By: Martin Sigalow Japan’s newfound commitment to deploying nuclear technology for potentially military means should be a concern for the United States and its allies around the world. In early June, Japan amended its Atomic Energy Basic Act to add a clause that listed “guaranteeing the nation’s security” as one of the goals of nuclear […]
China, Cigarettes, and the Rise of the Smoking Industry
By: Lauren Webb Throughout much of the 20th century, smoking was part of the American culture. Beyond being socially acceptable, it was practically encouraged as part of adulthood—advertisements portrayed the “Marlboro Man” and smoking soldiers as both manly and uniquely American, cigarettes were an encouraged gift; and young women saw it as an assertion of […]
Contracting Gone Wrong?: The Reality of Private Military Contractors
By: Matthew Pesce The use of mercenaries and their offshoots, private military contractors (PMCs), is a practice as old as warfare itself. Armies around the world have for centuries employed mercenaries and PMCs to supplement their existing manpower and replace the use of standing professional armies. Over the past two centuries, though, the nature and […]
The Need for Trust in the U.S.-China Relationship
By: Lauren Webb In April of 2012 a new scandal seemed to threaten the U.S.-Chinese relationship. Chen Guangcheng, a blind dissident and advocate against forced sterilization and China’s one-child policy, escaped house arrest in China. When he reemerged into public view, he was sheltered in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, begging the question—did the United […]
