Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- August 22, 2019

French policemen stand guard near the Grande Plage beach ahead of the G7 summit in Biarritz, France, August 22, 2019. REUTERS/Sergio Perez

Jeff Mason, Reuters: Trump's message to G7 leaders this weekend: Be more like U.S.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump will highlight U.S. economic policies under his stewardship at meetings with other G7 leaders this weekend in France and encourage allies to follow the American model to stave off problems with the global economy, officials said.

Trump will attend the G7 summit in France from Saturday to Monday and plans to hold individual meetings with the leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Japan, India and Canada during his trip, senior administration officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters on a conference call.

The president, who is irritated with the Federal Reserve for not reducing interest rates further as talk about a potential recession makes headlines, will tout the U.S. economic model he has pushed forward through tax cuts and deregulation, one official said.

Read more ....

Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- August 22, 2019

G7 or G5? Trump and Johnson add unpredictability to French summit -- John Irish and Marine Pennetier, Reuters

G-7 summit set to end without an agreement for the first time in history -- Sam Meredith, CNBC

As global economic picture dims, solutions seem out of reach -- Paul Wiseman, David McHugh and Josh Boak, AP

What Trump Doesn’t Get About the Chinese Economy -- Zachary Karabell, Politico

Why is Donald Trump ignoring Germany? -- Rebecca Staudenmaier, DW

If you think Donald Trump is delusional after his 'chosen one' rant, you're playing right into his hands -- Holly Baxter, The Independent

Vladimir Putin shows his hand as Moscow rehabilitates Stalin's conquests -- Konstantin Eggert, DW

Brexit deal solution at risk from ticking clock, not Merkel or Macron -- Jennifer Rankin, The Guardian

Boris Johnson’s Brexit opponents are playing into his hands -- Robert Peston, The Spectator

A century after the Anglo-Afghan peace treaty, the Fourth Afghan War is about to escalate -- Robert Fisk, The Independent

How current Japan-South Korea tensions reflect decades of resentment -- PBS (Video)

Australia’s military flex masks a deeper insecurity -- Helen Clark, Asia Times

Does the US really need land-based missiles in the Asia-Pacific? -- SCMP editorial

Is Acquiring Greenland That Absurd? -- Donald Rothwell, Lowy Interpreter

Amazon wildfires: Who is to blame? -- DW

Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- September 6, 2016

Alex Lockie, Business Insider: Why Iran is 'playing with fire' in the Persian Gulf against US Navy ships

For the fifth time in about a month, Iranian fast-attack craft have harassed US Navy ships with "unsafe and unprofessional" maneuvers at sea in the gulf between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

While experts acknowledge that Iran is "playing with fire" against the best navy in the world, don't expect these incidents to stop anytime soon.

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Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- September 6, 2016

Syria`s southern Front rebels are at risk of disintegrating -- Hassan Hassan, The National

The country that’s holding its own against Islamic State -- Dina Esfandiary and Ariane M. Tabatabai, Reuters

Why Rouhani may become Iran's first one-term president -- Saeid Jafari, Al-Monitor

Saudi Arabia Wants to Roll Back Iran -- Arash Reisinezhad, National Interest

Why China Isn't a Financial Center -- Christopher Balding, Bloomberg

Is China nervous about Hong Kong's recent election? -- Inside Story/Al Jazeera

What's next for Uzbekistan? -- Inside Story/Al Jazeera

Rising Sino-Japanese competition in Africa -- Yun Sun, Brookings

The Battle for the Future of South Africa Intensifies -- American Interest

If Russia Plans to Attack Ukraine, It Will Do So in the Next Several Weeks, Felgengauer Says -- Paul Goble, Window Of Eurasia

Another Billionaire Incurs Putin's Wrath -- Leonid Bershidsky, Bloomberg

No demise of the Merkel era -- Charlotte Potts, DW

Hello Angela, Your Refugee Crisis is Back -- Mish Talk

The EU's Migration Crisis Is Far From Over -- Leonid Bershidsky, Bloomberg

The Unfinished Legacy of Obama’s Pivot to Asia -- Victor Cha, Foreign Policy

In One Week, Obama’s Ambitious Trade Pacts Are Coming Apart -- Patrick Smith, Fiscal Times

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- August 18, 2014

House US President Barack Obama meeting with members of his national security team in the Situation Room of the White House in Washington. White House Photo, Pete Souza

Why We Fight Wars -- Paul Krugman, NYT

A century has passed since the start of World War I, which many people at the time declared was “the war to end all wars.” Unfortunately, wars just kept happening. And with the headlines from Ukraine getting scarier by the day, this seems like a good time to ask why.

Once upon a time wars were fought for fun and profit; when Rome overran Asia Minor or Spain conquered Peru, it was all about the gold and silver. And that kind of thing still happens. In influential research sponsored by the World Bank, the Oxford economist Paul Collier has shown that the best predictor of civil war, which is all too common in poor countries, is the availability of lootable resources like diamonds. Whatever other reasons rebels cite for their actions seem to be mainly after-the-fact rationalizations. War in the preindustrial world was and still is more like a contest among crime families over who gets to control the rackets than a fight over principles.

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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- August 18, 2014

Why Americans Go to War -- Max Boot, Commentary

Nouri Maliki's departure sets stage for deeper U.S. role in Iraq -- David S. Cloud and Brian Bennett, L.A. Times

Obama’s War in Iraq Marks the Return of the Global War on Terror -- Eli Lake, Daily Beast

Into the Iraqi void? Team Obama is over its head -- George F. Will, New York Post

All the President's Men and Women -- Michael Weiss, NOW

Peace may be the true threat to Hamas, Israel’s leaders -- Amy Wilentz, Reuters

The fantasy of Middle Eastern moderates -- Fareed Zakaria, Washington Post

Dem Iraq Vet: If Our Mission Isn’t to Take Out ISIS, ‘We’ve Got a Real Problem Here’ -- Bridget Johnson, PJ Media

If We Must Work with Iran v. ISIS, So Be It -- Malcolm Rifkind, Telegraph

Pope Francis, ISIS, and the Last Crusade -- Christopher Dickey, Daily Beast

In Nigeria, child beggars are easy recruits for Boko Haram extremists -- Robyn Dixon, L.A. Times

North Korea's Dangerous Invasion Bluff -- Christopher Lee, RCD

Behind Closed Doors, Obama Crafts Executive Actions -- Julie Hirschfeld Davis, NYT

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- July 17, 2013

In Homs, Syria, several central areas have been gradually destroyed as they have changed hands several times between the Syrian rebels and the army. Yazan Homsy/Reuters

Ruins In A Center Of Syria’s Uprising -- Anne Barnard and an employee with the New York Times

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Little by little, the central Syrian city of Homs is losing its infrastructure and its landmarks. The national hospital lies in ruins. Rebel-held neighborhoods stretch for blocks without an intact building. Many government offices are closed. The silver-domed mosque of Khalid bin al-Waleed — named for an early Islamic warrior particularly revered by Sunnis — stands pockmarked and perforated.

Abandoned cars rust beneath piles of rubble and downed wires.

Homs was an early bellwether of what Syria would become. One of the first cities to rise up in rebellion, it was home to mass demonstrations. As protests turned to armed revolt, the city began to split, largely along sectarian lines, with much of the Sunni majority supporting the uprising and members of President Bashar al-Assad’s Alawite sect joining pro-government militias. Now, after more than a year of siege, bombardment and clashes, which have intensified recently as the government has renewed its assault on rebel strongholds, Homs may well be the site of the most concentrated destruction in the country.

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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials

Obama’s Confused Syria Policy -- Bloomberg editorial

What is the U.S. policy in Syria? -- Daily Star editorial

Jordan reflects a wider Arab dilemma -- Rami G. Khouri, The Daily Star

The Arabs Will Have Their Gettysburgs -- Leon Hadar, National Interest

Have We Forgotten About Iraq? -- John Amble, War On The Rocks

A New Drone Deal For Pakistan: How to Bargain With a Newly Drone-Skeptical Islamabad -- Daniel Markey, Foreign Affairs

Tibetans lose patience after 50 years of peaceful protest -- Kapil Komireddi, The National

North Korea missiles: Are North Korea and Cuba boosting ties? -- Steven Borowiec, Christian Science Monitor

U.S. Must Follow FDR's Lead on Asia -- Michael Fullilove, Real Clear World/The Australian

France's foreign minister says US no longer dictates world events -- Tim Johnson, McClatchy News

Will Europe Hit a Demographic Tipping Point? -- Aaron M. Renn, New Geography

Snowden, Russia's Unwelcome Guest -- Georgy Bovt, The Moscow Times

Don’t Boycott Olympics Over Snowden -- Seth Mandel, Commentary

Tsarnaev on Rolling Stone cover: Rock-star treatment or good journalism? -- Gloria Goodale, Christian Science Monitor

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- May 27, 2013

Carlos Varon pays respect to war fallen soldiers while he places flags at graves at Cypress Hills National Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York, May 25, 2013. The annual "Flags-In" ceremony is held ahead of Memorial Day to honor the nation's fallen members of the military. Flags will be placed at more than 220,000 graves. (Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)

Fallen Heroes, Never Forgotten -- Ralph Kinney Bennett, The American

Toward a deeper gratitude for our freedom, with a clean pride in a country that has spilled so much of its blood for others.
When I was a kid we called it Decoration Day and, in a practice observed since 1868, it always came on May 30.

Early on that morning or a day or two before it, in the soft twilight of a spring evening, folks would walk through the local cemeteries with baskets of flowers or small American flags to decorate the graves of soldiers, sailors, and airmen.

In my little crossroads village of Rector, Pennsylvania, a simple rectangular war memorial stood flanked by juniper bushes on a little triangle of grass beside the macadam road. It had been built from water-smoothed stones hauled out of nearby Linn Run Creek. The stone framed a glass-covered board on which appeared the names of all the men from the surrounding hills and farms who had served in the two world wars.

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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials

The War for the Arab World -- Marc Lynch, Foreign Policy

Hizbollah's fight in Syria could destroy both -- The National editorial

Danger of civil war looms for Lebanon -- Gulf News

Saudi Arabia - Iran's big rival in the Persian Gulf -- Deutsche Welle

Rich Nation, Poor People: Saudi Arabia -- Lynsey Addario, Time

Federalism would mean death of Iraqi nationalism — but so what? -- Fanar Haddad, Special to Gulf News

The Region: Iran’s election -- Barry Rubin, Jerusalem Post

College Grads Are Jobless In China's "High-Growth" Economy -- Gordon G. Chang, Forbes

China Has Drones. Now What? When Beijing Will—and Won't—Use Its UAVs -- Andrew Erickson and Austin Strange, Foreign Affairs

On the Edge in Kashmir -- Vanessa Dougnac, Real Clear World/World Cruch

Why Are People in Malawi So Hungry? -- Karen Swallow Prior, The Atlantic

Cold War? Russia seeks to replace U.S. -- Aaron Klein, WND

In Sweden, Riots Put an Identity in Question -- Andrew Higgins, New York Times

Until our leaders admit the true nature of Islamic extremism, we will never defeat it -- Melanie Phillips, Daily Mail

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- Febraury 22, 2013

A poster of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini is seen next to bank of centrifuges in what is described by Iranian state television as a facility in Natanz, in this still image taken from video released Feb. 15, 2012. IRIB Iranian TV via Reuters TV/Reuters

Iran Maneuvers For Upper Hand Ahead Of Nuclear Talks -- Scott Peterson, Christian Science Monitor

Expectations for a breakthrough at the talks are low. The P5+1 appears to be offering little new and an IAEA report shows Iran has made steady nuclear progress since talks stalled last spring.

Iran is continuing to advance its nuclear program, according to a new report by United Nations inspectors, gaining bargaining chips on the eve of a new round of talks with six world powers in Kazakhstan.

After an eight-month hiatus, Iran will sit down on Feb. 26 with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany (known as the P5+1) to find ways to cap Iran’s nuclear progress.

After three failed rounds of talks last spring, P5+1 diplomats now say they will make a “substantial and serious offer” to Iran in an effort to convince it to give up sensitive nuclear work that could lead to a bomb.

Yet expectations are low for a breakthrough in the Kazakh city of Almaty.

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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials

Damascus blasts show us Assad barely controls his own capital -- Stepehn Starr, The Globe and Mail

Welcome to Phase Three of the Arab Spring -- Paul Berman, New Republic

Mali: the worst is yet to come -- Imad Mesdoua, The Guardian

Egypt Wants Its Business Tycoons to Return -- David J. Lynch, Bloomberg Businessweek

Is the Muslim Brotherhood seeking to kill Egypt's NGOs? -- Kristen Chick, Christian Science Monitor

Pyongyang’s reckless threat -- Joong Ang Daily

Why Wasn’t There a Chinese Spring? -- Steve Hess, The Diplomat

What Japan's hawkish Prime Minister Abe wants from Obama -- Peter Ford, Christian Science Monitor

Hyderabad blasts a stark reminder -- Gulf News

The West should support Japan’s recovery -- Washington Post editorial

Three Steps Forward in Afghanistan -- Max Boot, Commmmentary

The Persistance of the 'Cyprus Problem' -- Louise Osborne, The Atlantic

Five myths about picking a pope -- Thomas J. Reese, Washington Post

Sneaking in the Back Door: Did Hugo Chávez quietly slip back into Venezuela to die? -- Peter Wilson, Foreign Policy

Does Hollywood Have a Foreign Policy? -- Joshua Keating, Foreign Policy

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- October 3, 2012

What If We're Wrong On Iran? -- Roger Z. George, L.A. Times

In weighing an attack on Tehran's nuclear sites, it pays to remember the WMDs that weren't.

As the U.S. contemplates whether to attack Iran's nuclear facilities, intelligence community leaders should be asking themselves a question: What if we're wrong?

That question wasn't asked — or at least wasn't answered — in the run-up to the 2003 Iraq war, with devastating consequences. Before giving up on containment or deterrence polices and undertaking a "preventive war" against a nation that has not attacked the United States, we should be as certain as possible of the evidence.

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COMMENTARIES, OPINIONS, AND EDITORIALS

Iran sanctions: Amid signs they're working, EU aiming for more -- Howard LaFranchi, Christian Science Monitor

The true reason US fears Iranian nukes: they can deter US attacks -- Glenn Greenwald, The Guardian

Syria: Guilty of inaction -- Daily Star editorial

Tension Rises, But Israel and Egypt Stick to Economic Pact -- Ben Gittleson, Daily Beast

China Needs Its Own Dream -- Thomas Friedman, New York Times

The New Titan of Tbilisi -- Shaun Walker, Foreign Policy

Why Germany must face up to its €1 trillion headache -- Jeremy Warner, The Telegraph

Russia’s Local Elections: Politics in Spite of Putin -- Vladimir Kara-Murza, World Affairs

Argentina: Oil nationalization and currency controls divide a nation -- Jonathan Gilbert, Christian Science Monitor

Obama Admin Leaks Lead Libya Response -- Max Boot, Commentary

Obama’s Foreign-Policy Follies -- Jonah Goldberg, NRO

Venezuela's Capriles: the youthful challenger -- Jim Wyss, The Miami Herald/McClatchy News

Venezuela's Chavez: the born fighter -- Jim Wyss, The Miami Herald/McClatchy News

Bolívar's legacy? -- Irish Times editorial

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- January 6, 2011

Iranian technicians at the Uranium Conversion Facilities in Isfahan. Press TV

A Secret Nuclear Test Could Be Iran’s Trump Card In Strait Of Hormuz Showdown -- Peter Goodspeed, The National

Iran’s ultimate trump card in its current showdown with the international community isn’t merely to close the Strait of Hormuz and choke off the world’s oil supply – it is to secretly test a nuclear device.

By dramatically ending the guessing game over their nuclear intentions, Iran’s leaders could bolster their political position at home — just in time for parliamentary elections in March — while transforming the regional military balance.

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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials

Analysis: Iran could shut down the Strait of Hormuz — and set off a firestorm in the process - -Peter Apps, National Post/Reuters

Iran’s warnings in Gulf reflect hardening military doctrine -- Washington Post/AP

Analysts: Iran's Threats in Gulf Unlikely to Lead to War -- Voice of America

Can Iran close down the Strait of Hormuz? -- Con Coughlin, The Telegraph

Iran could be bluffing in the strait of Hormuz – but can US risk calling it? -- Simon Tisdall, The Guardian

The risks of America's Asia strategy -- Andrew Billo, CNN

Claim and Counterclaim: Who Is Bombing Damascus? -- Rania Abouzeid, Time

The land-for-peace hoax -- Caroline Glick, Jerusalem Post

Why Is Obama Selling Arms to a Theocratic Dictatorship? -- David Keyes, New Republic

Fidel comes out against fracking -- Joshua Keating, Foreign Policy

Drug Mayhem Moves South -- Ted Galen Carpenter, National Interest

True Spy Story behind Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy -- Bernie Reeves, American Thinker

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- September 23, 2011

Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, greets Pakistani Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, after arriving aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in 2008. COURTESY OF THE DEFENSE DEPARTMENT

The War Between The ISI And America -- Matt Holzmann, American Thinker

Berhanuddin Rabbani was assassinated the other day at his home in Kabul. After surviving the war with the Soviets and then as a leader of the Northern Alliance against the Taliban it was at the end a peace envoy who detonated a bomb in his turban that killed Rabbani.

Rabbani was nothing if not situationally aware. Surviving for 30 years in the most chaotic and dangerous theater of war in the world means that someone really is trying to kill you at all times. This time they succeeded and have thrown the peace process, which was tentative at best, into chaos. Once again, it has the hallmarks of the ISI at work.

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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials

Correcting the record about that Syrian nuclear reactor -- Michael V. Hayden, Washington Post

The Palestinians’ Bid -- New York Times editorial

Palestinians tread carefully to statehood -- Tobias Buck, Financial Times

Palestinians eye a can of courtroom worms -- David Davenport, The Washington Times

In Gaza, opposition to the UN statehood bid is almost as fierce as in Israel -- Donald Macintyre, The Independent

Halting cholera’s rampage in Haiti -- Washington Post editorial

In Brazil, Ministers Fall and the Press Smells Blood: Dom Phillips -- Dom Phillips, Bloomberg

Six reasons why Greece should default -- Michael Schuman, Time

George Osborne: Eurozone has six weeks to resolve financial crisis -- Larry Elliott, The Guardian

China's chance to be our economic saviour -- Dean Baker, The Guardian

Economic crisis: new world, old maps -- Guardian editorial

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- July 12, 2011

What Ahmed Wali Karzai's Assassination Could Mean For Afghanistan -- Tom A. Peter, Christian Science Monitor

The assassination of Ahmad Wali Karzai, President Hamid Karzai's half-brother, could threaten NATO security gains in southern Afghanistan.

Ahmad Wali Karzai, the half-brother of Afghanistan's president and a political powerhouse in the south, was killed by a gunman on Tuesday morning, threatening to destabilize the south.

The killer, Sardar Mohammed worked on Mr. Karzai’s private security detail, but was not his personal bodyguard. Witnesses say he arrived at Karzai’s residence and asked to discuss a matter in private. Moments after entering a room alone with Karzai there were several gunshots, and witnesses say they found Karzai shot twice in the head and once in the arm. Karzai’s guards then killed Mr. Mohammed.

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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials

3 Quick Questions: Karzai’s brother assassinated -- Robert Zeliger, Foreign Policy

Who Killed Ahmed Wali Karzai? -- Mathieu Aikins, Foreign Policy

What's next for Afghan stability after Ahmed Wali Karzai's death? -- CNN

Panetta's priorities: New defense sec punts on Iran -- Benny Avni, New York Post

Panetta's Freudian Slip -- Fouad Ajami, The Daily Beast

In South Sudan, can liberators build a nation? -- Michael Gerson, Washington Post

'Balance of terror' sustains tense calm between Hezbollah and Israel -- Nicholas Blanford and Joshua Mitnick, Christian Science Monitor

Recognizing Palestine -- Washington Times

The Long Pursuit of Justice in Lebanon -- New York Times editorial

Morocco: All Hail the (Democratic) King -- Ahmed Charai and Joseph Braude, New York Times

The books aren’t closed on Bush’s torture policy -- Kenneth Roth, Washington Post

Mistrust Remains As U.S. And China Rebuild Military Ties -- Time

Haiti: Why an accurate count of civilian deaths matters -- Robert Muggah and Athena Kolbe, L.A. Times

In Colombia, a move toward restitution -- L.A. Times editorial

Taxes Upon Taxes Upon . . . Obama wants $1 trillion in taxes on top of what he's already signed. -- Wall Street Journal editorial

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- February 8, 2010

Chinese factory workers line up for their morning roll call. Photo from The Daily Mail

The World's Watchmaker (The China Of Today) -- Roger Cohen, New York Times

NEW YORK — I’ve been thinking about Eddie Leung. He had lunch with me the other day at his factory in Dongguan, China, and appeared wearing a black yarmulke. “All my friends are Jewish,” he said.

Leung’s a good salesman, charming guy. He makes watches, about 1.5 million pieces a year. He makes sterling silver watches for the QVC home shopping network and watches with the famous crocodile emblem for Lacoste. He makes Juicy Couture’s hot young line.

Tommy Hilfiger, Jennifer Lopez, Coach, Titan, Trump — name the brand and Leung is manufacturing their watches in China’s southern Guangdong Province, the place that is now the world’s factory.

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COMMENTARIES, OPINIONS, AND EDITORIALS

Why China is stoking war of words with US -- Bill Emmott, Times Online

What guides the Chinese tiger as it grows stronger? -- Patrick Granfield, The National

China Enters Asia’s ‘Great Game’ -- Joshua Kucera, The Diplomat

Will Tehran choose the Tiananmen solution? -- Amir Taheri, Times Online

Dangerous steps in Iran's nuclear dance -- Kaveh L Afrasiabi, Asia Times

Russia Is No Longer Cool -- Alexei Bayer, Moscow Times

President Palin? 'Absurd' not to consider it -- Simon Mann, Sydney Morning Herald

Big Government's Big Shortfall -- Robert Samuelson, Real Clear Politics

Recession chugs on, except in government -- Washington Examiner, editorial

Climate Strategy on a Road to Nowhere -- Bjorn Lomborg, Globe and Mail

Obama's Miranda Madness -- American Spectator

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- November 6, 2009

Obama's Frightening Insensitivity Following Shooting -- Robert George, NBC Chicago

A bad week for Democrats compounded by an awful moment for Barack Obama.

President Obama didn't wait long after Tuesday's devastating elections to give critics another reason to question his leadership, but this time the subject matter was more grim than a pair of governorships.

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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials

Hmm. Can't imagine what Major Malik Nadal Hasan's motivation could have been -- James Delingpole, The Telegraph

Ft. Hood: Crime in the Military. What Motive? -- Thomas Kenniff, Washington Post

The Evil That Men Do -- Megan McArdle, The Atlantic

Anguish of Fort Hood Attack Will Echo -- Bob Owens, Pajamas Media

Massacre at Fort Hood -- Dallas Morning News editorial

The Security Vacuum in Afghanistan -- Max Boot, Commentary Magazine

No Insurgency Here (Afghanistan) -- Nader Mousavizadeh, Foreign Policy

'Dithering' May Be Good Policy -- Couloumbis, Ahlstrom & Weaver, RCW

U.S. Puts Faith in Pakistan's Military -- Syed Saleem Shahzad, Asia Times

The coming crises -- Ralph Peters, New York Post

The War Against the War on Terror -- Wall Street Journal

How the West Failed Eastern Europe -- Melik Keylan, Forbes

Very little to celebrate (in Russia) -- Vladimir Ryzhkov, Moscow Times

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- August 13, 2009

The Most Interesting Man In The World -- Macleans Magazine

Women, riches, power—Italy’s Silvio Berlusconi has it all. But is his act finally wearing thin?

Some years ago, one of Italy’s best-known journalists was summoned to a meeting with Silvio Berlusconi at the billionaire media magnate’s villa on the Riviera. Walking around the grounds, he stumbled across Veronica Lario, his boss’s (now soon-to-be ex-) wife, sunbathing nude while reading a philosophy book. Encountering Italy’s first lady in the altogether surely counts among life’s more awkward moments, but the late Indro Montanelli had made a career out of speaking truth to power. “Don’t worry,” was his infamous response. “You’re not showing me any poses I haven’t seen in the photographs your husband showed me.”

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COMMENTARIES, OPINIONS, AND EDITORIALS

Berlusconi's Escapades No Laughing Matter -- Arnold Cassola, RCW

Burmese Justice -- Wall Street Journal opinion

The Notorious Mr. Bout -- Washington Post editorial.

Why Are Afghans Smiling? -- Carol Graham and Jeremy Shapiro, Washington Post opinion.

Will the U.S. Need More Troops in Afghanistan? -- Mark Thompson, Time

Afghan Mission Is Not Accomplished -- G. Parthasarathy, Times of India

How Afghans Can Build a Better Future -- Ashraf Ghani, Financial Times

Mexico's Drug War -- Washington Post editorial.

What Kind of Grand Deal with North Korea? -- Lee Byong-Chul, RCW

Killing with Impunity in Chechnya -- Tanya Lokshina, The Guardian

The Illusory U.S.-Chinese Axis -- Yevgeny Bazhanov, Moscow Times

Tweeting While Tehran Burns -- Jonathan Last, Weekly Standard

America Should Play the Long Game in Iran -- Henri Barkey, The National

Drowning in debt: Obama's spending and borrowing leaves U.S. gasping for air -- Mort Zuckerman, New York Daily News