By Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden | 11 June 2024 (IDN) — Is democracy in decline? If you talk about the quality of democracy the answer is clearly yes. The US, the world’s first and most important democracy—although at the beginning a limited democracy for white men only—is in trouble. Ex-President Donald Trump has brought old […]
The Absence — and Presence— of Daniel Ellsberg: A Year After His Death, He’s Still with Us
By Norman Solomon* SAN FRANCISCO | 11 June 2024 (IDN) — On a warm evening almost a decade ago, I sat under the stars with Daniel Ellsberg while he talked about nuclear war with alarming intensity. He was most of the way through writing his last and most important book, The Doomsday Machine: Confessions of […]
How Can Putin Avoid Nuclear War? By Being a Little Crazier?
By Mike Whitney* This article was originally published on The Unz Review. WASHINGTION STATE | 9 June 2024 (IDN) — President Putin’s press conference on 28 May in Uzbekistan might have been the most unusual and extraordinary event in his 24-year political career. After addressing the Constitutional issues surrounding Ukrainian President Zelensky’s decision to remain […]
Prince Henry of Portugal—The Forerunner of Globalization
By Jan Servaes LAGOS, Portugal | 8 June 2024 (IDN) — We all know that when Christopher Columbus landed in ‘America’ in 1492, he thought it was India. Much less is known about the Portuguese navigator Vasco Da Gama who was the first to reach the real India in 1498. This ‘discovery’ was due to […]
Why Minimum Wage Is a Bad Idea
By Azu Ishiekwene The writer is Editor-In-Chief of LEADERSHIP and author of the new book Writing for Media and Monetising It. ABUJA | 7 June 2024 (IDN) — I’m opposed to minimum wage. And I know I’m saying this at the risk of losing readers. The minimum wage hurts the poor and vulnerable in whose […]
Indians Reject Majoritarian Hindu Politics Though Modi Returns to Power
By Bharat Bhushan* NEW DELHI | 6 June 2024 (IDN) — Despite his reluctance to concede defeat, the results of the Indian general election are a major setback for outgoing Prime Minister Narendra Modi. His party, the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), has failed to secure a majority on its own. The BJP has heavily lost […]
The Specter of Nuclear Conflict Continues to Haunt
By Daryl G. Kimball The writer is the Executive Director of the Arms Control Association (ACA). The following article appears as the Focus of the June 2024 issue of Arms Control Today. WASHINGTON, D.C. | 6 Jun 2024 (IDN) — Since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his full-scale, illegal, and brutal assault on Ukraine in […]
Mexico Elects First Woman President with A Thumping Majority
By Yesko Quiroga* MEXICO CITY | 5 June 2024 (IDN) — It came as no surprise that Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo was elected Mexico’s new president on Sunday (June 2). For a year now, the candidate of the ruling coalition has had a lead of between 50 and 60 per cent in most polls. The surprise […]
Jayantha Dhanapala: An Outstanding Practitioner of Multilateralism at its Best—Part 2
By HMGS Palihakkara* Read Part 1: https://indepthnews.colo.ba.be/jayantha-dhanapala-an-outstanding-practitioner-of-multilateralism-at-its-best-part-1/ COLOMBO | 5 June 2024 (IDN) — On the challenge of Artificial Intelligence (AI), there is an animated ongoing discourse about the vistas of material advances AI promises as well as the dangers it can morph into. The human penchant to weaponise almost every technology they invent is […]
Jayantha Dhanapala: An Outstanding Practitioner of Multilateralism at its Best—Part 1
By HMGS Palihakkara* COLOMBO | 4 June 2024 (IDN) — May 27 marked the first year since we lost that voice of reason and warmth—our dear friend and respected senior colleague, Ambassador Jayantha Dhanapala. The person as well as the persona of JD, as we used to call him fondly, meant many things to most […]