BLOG… Post #51 – Back to Basics on an Israeli-Palestinian Peace 1 Nov 201427 Feb 2017 The September 2014 issue of Harper’s carried a fascinating dialogue among eight prominent Israeli and Palestinian citizens on the future of their relationship. It took place against the background of…
BLOG… Post #48 – Hong Kong on the Brink 5 Oct 201427 Feb 2017 The tense situation in Hong Kong is at a critical juncture. The protesters have made plain that they are there to stay, though their numbers are dwindling. They are demanding…
BLOG… Post #47 – Mission Impossible 29 Sep 201427 Feb 2017 The New York Times editorial board has finally awakened to Obama’s “strategy” in the “war” (as it is officially called now) against ISIS. It is essentially the same strategy that…
BLOG… Post #46 – Scotland’s Vote, Our (Possible) Future 22 Sep 201427 Feb 2017 Scotland’s vote for independence fell well short of victory. But pro-independence Scots will surely try again, just like les Québecois. From a practical point…
BLOG… Post #45 – America on Crusade: Now It’s Obama’s Turn 14 Sep 201427 Feb 2017 George F. Kennan, one of America’s greatest statesmen, warned in his classic American Diplomacy (1951) and many times thereafter of the country’s tendency to universalize its self-conceptions and its aims,…
BLOG… Post #43 – Peacemaking or Provocations in Ukraine’s Crisis? 1 Sep 201427 Feb 2017 Call it aggression, invasion, incursion, or an illegal border crossing—whatever you call it, the fact remains that Russia has now become a direct participant in Ukraine’s civil war. To his…
BLOG… Post #42 – The Lone Ranger Rides Again: America’s Return to Iraq 26 Aug 201427 Feb 2017 In an interview with Thomas Friedman of the New York Times on August 8 (www.nytimes.com/2014/08/09/opinion/president-obama-thomas-l-friedman-iraq-and-world-affairs.html?), President Obama stressed that the US was only fighting the Islamic State (IS, or…
BLOG… Post #41 – The US-China Tangle Over the South China Sea 21 Aug 201427 Feb 2017 The best way to describe the latest round of U.S.-China dispute over the South China Sea (SCS) is “déjà vu all over again.” (See post #23 for background.) The setting…
BLOG… Post #40 -The Coup in Baghdad 13 Aug 201427 Feb 2017 “What coup?” you ask. “How could I have missed it?” No, you didn’t exactly miss it; it’s just that the media didn’t call it a coup, describing Prime Minister Nouri…
BLOG… Post #39 – What Works? Microfinance: Financing Dignity 11 Aug 201427 Feb 2017 Back in the 1970s, Muhammad Yunus in Bangladesh had a brilliant idea. He would found a bank to provide seed money to poor people who otherwise would have no way…
BLOG… Post #38 – Smoke and Mirrors in Gaza 4 Aug 201427 Feb 2017 One of the cardinal lessons of international conflict resolution is that two warring parties will not be interested in a peaceful settlement if they believe continuing to fight is worth…
BLOG… Post #37 – War’s Other Casualties: The Situation in Gaza and the Global Refugee Crisis 28 Jul 201427 Feb 2017 I ended a recent post by asking when someone would step forward to bring about a cease-fire. Well, John Kerry eventually answered the call. But by the time he left…
In the Human Interest - Mel Gurtov 