Asia Pacific

The High Price of Diplomacy With China

Apr 24, 2008
Two investigative reports uncover the Bush administration's efforts to suppress legal proceedings against high-ranking Chinese officials -- former Trade Minister Bo Xilai and Beijing's Olympic Organizing Committee President Liu Qi -- accused of torturing religious group members.
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Israel’s Barrier to Peace

Jul 26, 2006
Chris Hedges, the former Middle East bureau chief for The New York Times, argues that there can be no hope for peace in the Middle East as long as America continues to aid Israel in its dehumanizing practices.The former Middle East bureau chief for The New York Times and author of the bestseller "War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning" examines the way Israel's security wall has ripped a mortal gash in the lives of Palestinians residing in its shadow, and argues that there can be no hope for peace in the Middle East as long as America continues to aid Israel in its dehumanizing practices.

In Response to…

Dec 3, 2005
I would agree that things in China have gone far better than anyone predicted during the dark post-1989 days But, what explains that success? Good visionary planning? Strong leadership? A national psyche exhausted by any kind of turmoil? Good luck? The danger is that even the best economy tends to be cyclical, and it is far from clear that China has the political legitimacy, deeply enough rooted political institutions, or shared set of values to help it survive a downturn As to Wintermute and whether Taiwan is worth fighting for I personally do not believe that any functioning democracy is worth throwing over the side to keep some other sort of the peace - commercial or otherwise We Americans forget.

China: Boom or Boomerang

Dec 3, 2005
At the same time that China is recording huge increases in trade surpluses and currency reserves, deadly riots are breaking out on the outskirts of some of the country's largest cities. In this Dig, scholar Orville Schell challenges the current wisdom about China being an inevitable superpower and unstoppable economic force.Schell challenges the current wisdom that China is an inevitable superpower and unstoppable economic force.