Skip to content
In the Human Interest – Mel Gurtov

In the Human Interest – Mel Gurtov

Critical appraisals of foreign affairs and politics from a global-citizen perspective

Search
  • A philanthropist makes a grand pledge for conservation
  • Making China a U.S. enemy is counterproductive
  • BLOG ARCHIVE
  • Canada’s PM Sets an Independent Course
  • ABOUT
  • BLOG ARCHIVE
  • FEATURED BLOGS
  • Recent Publications

FEATURED

20Jul 2026
Add a comment

Post #517: Armed Conflict is Surging, Peacemaking is Flagging

A Record-Setting Pace Wars in Iran, Ukraine, and Israel have drawn attention away from a stark fact: armed conflict is…

Share this with friends and colleagues:

  • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
Like Loading...
16Jul 202616 Jul 2026
Add a comment

Post #516: The Retreat from Global Warming and Environmental Protection

Walking It Back We once took for granted that everyone concerned with global warming outside the Trump administration’s orbit accepted…

Share this with friends and colleagues:

  • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
Like Loading...
12Jul 202616 Jul 2026
4 Comments

Post #515: Putin’s Predicament

Three Policy Directions President Vladimir Putin’s increasingly problematic position in the war with Ukraine would seem to lead Russia in…

Share this with friends and colleagues:

  • Email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
Like Loading...
APB

APB: Embarrassing Moments from Trump’s Visit to India

25 Feb 2020
Donald Trump abroad never ceases to entertain with his ignorance and misstatements. As India’s leaders learned from Trump’s previous visits to Saudi Arabia and China, all it takes is pomp…
APB

APB: Poor Bill Barr

14 Feb 202017 Feb 2020
Attorney General William Barr’s interview the other day in which he said Trump’s constant tweeting had made his job “impossible” has gotten mixed responses in the media. Some think the…
BLOG

Post #255: Donald Trump’s Fantasy World

5 Feb 2020
House speaker Nancy Pelosi tore up Donald Trump’s speech, saying he was “shredding the truth.” It was quite a moment, and though she took some heat for such an impertinent…
BLOG

Post #254: India’s Failed Democracy

22 Jan 202021 Jan 2020
Citizenship Denied India is often billed as the world’s biggest democracy. But that title has worn thin: Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is becoming a nationalist state home to…
APB

APB: Thanks to Trump, Iran Has the Upper Hand

8 Jan 20208 Jan 2020
The assassination of General Soleimani is proving to be a resounding success for Iran. It accomplished what the ayatollah could not: common ground between Iran and Iraq, Iraq’s invitation to…
BLOG

Post #253: Normal Nation?

6 Jan 20205 Jan 2020
With the assassination of Gen. Qasem Soleimani, Donald Trump has arguably done more to undermine US interests in the Middle East and sow the seeds of a region-wide war than…
BLOG

Post #252: No Room for Dialogue

3 Jan 20203 Jan 2020
“Our president will start a war with Iran because he has absolutely no ability to negotiate. He’s weak, and he’s ineffective. So the only way he figures that he’s going…
APB

APB: The Democrats’ Scarlet Letter Strategy

20 Dec 2019
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has evidently decided not to turn over the articles of impeachment to the Senate until Congress resumes its work January 7. Some observers think that’s a…
BLOG

Post #251: When It Comes to Corporate Taxes, It’s Always Christmas

19 Dec 201918 Dec 2019
As we all know, the largest US corporations and their chief executives were the main beneficiaries of Trump’s so-called tax reform in 2017. A new report from the Institute of…
BLOG

Post #250: The Afghanistan Pentagon Papers

10 Dec 20199 Dec 2019
The war in Afghanistan, America’s longest, has cost about 2,300 US lives, over 20,000 wounded, and about $1 trillion. Now, thanks to the persistence of the Washington Post, we have…
BLOG

Post #249: Hong Kong, Xinjiang, and the Insecurity of China’s Leadership

5 Dec 20195 Dec 2019
Hong Kong is in chaos, with no sign that the protesters will yield on their demands. Mass incarceration and indoctrination of Uyghurs and other Chinese Muslims has become so widely…
BLOG

Post #248: Getting Rid of Treacherous Friends

17 Nov 201916 Nov 2019
Backing the Wrong Horse, Again The United States has a long record of befriending the wrong people—authoritarian leaders who rely on military and police power to enforce social inequality and…

Posts navigation

Older posts
Newer posts

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

Recommended

  • Dali Yang reviews Minxin Pei’s book on endemic corruption in China
  • “1984” in Xinjiang, China
  • Career US Foreign Service officer and China expert offers advice on US-China relations
  • Who profits from nuclear weapons?
  • World Scientists’ Warning to Humanity: Second Notice
  • UN Special Rapporteur’s report on extreme poverty in America
  • A former nuclear regulator now wants to ban N-power
  • 900 Former Prosecutors Say Trump Guilty of Obstruction of Justice
  • Open Letter: China is not the enemy
  • The Dangerous Anti-China Consensus in the US
  • A patriotic ambassador tells the truth about Ukraine
  • US House Trump-Ukraine Impeachment Report
  • A Song for the Times
  • Making China a US Enemy is Counterproductive
  • Putting America back together
  • Goodbye, Donald Trump
  • Democracy scholars’ warning
  • All the King’s (DJT) Lawsuits
  • Rep. Liz Cheney’s Opening Statement at Jan. 6 Committee Hearing
  • Rep. Bennie Thompson’s Opening Statement at Jan. 6 Committee Hearing
  • Is Criticism of Israel Anti-Semitism?
  • Democracy Scholars Warning
  • Timothy Snyder on Tyranny
  • Trump vs. US: Sotomayor’s Dissent
  • 50 Legal Experts Shocked about Trump Lawlessness
  • Ai Weiwei’s “Camouflage” Exhibit in NYC

Recent Comments

Mel Gurtov's avatarMel Gurtov on Post #515: Putin’s Predi…
wwmakers's avatarwwmakers on Post #515: Putin’s Predi…
jrnewcomerprotonmailcom's avatarjrnewcomerprotonmail… on Post #515: Putin’s Predi…
larrykirsch's avatarlarrykirsch on Post #515: Putin’s Predi…
wwmakers's avatarwwmakers on Post #514: Out of Control

Search Posts

Archives

Follow me on Facebook

Follow me on Facebook

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 741 other subscribers

Follow by RSS

RSS Feed RSS - Posts

RSS Feed RSS - Comments

Search Posts

Recent Posts

  • Post #517: Armed Conflict is Surging, Peacemaking is Flagging
  • Post #516: The Retreat from Global Warming and Environmental Protection
  • Post #515: Putin’s Predicament
  • Post #514: Out of Control
  • Post #513: The Missing Art of the Deal with Iran

Recent Comments

Mel Gurtov's avatarMel Gurtov on Post #515: Putin’s Predi…
wwmakers's avatarwwmakers on Post #515: Putin’s Predi…
jrnewcomerprotonmailcom's avatarjrnewcomerprotonmail… on Post #515: Putin’s Predi…
larrykirsch's avatarlarrykirsch on Post #515: Putin’s Predi…
wwmakers's avatarwwmakers on Post #514: Out of Control

Archives

Meta

  • Create account
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Listen to my "Global Citizen" commentaries every Tuesday, 5:25 pm, on KBOO.fm (Portland area) and Wednesdays on KXCR.net (Florence, OR area). The Global Citizen International Digest of the week's news is on KBOO Thursdays at 5:30 pm and is also on SUBSTACK, free, via https://melgurtov.substack.com

  • A philanthropist makes a grand pledge for conservation
  • Making China a U.S. enemy is counterproductive
  • BLOG ARCHIVE
  • Canada’s PM Sets an Independent Course
Website Powered by WordPress.com.
  • Subscribe Subscribed
    • In the Human Interest - Mel Gurtov
      • Join 480 other subscribers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • In the Human Interest - Mel Gurtov
    • Subscribe Subscribed
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
Loading Comments...

You must be logged in to post a comment.

    %d