It is a great honor to be invited to speak at this important event. I have lived much of my life in sight of the magnificent spire that is the centerpiece of the college. My father told me he had...
Japan is set up for a stint in the international spotlight, hosting the G20 summit at the end of June and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. It will be a busy few years for Japan, which hosts the G20 summit on June 28-29 followed by the Tokyo Olympics in 2020. The international attention sparks questions concerning how durable its economic success will be. Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, in office since 2012,...
In today's Spain, there is a palpable sense of balance that opens the immediate moment to hopeful possibilities. While there, Larry Beck learned a lot about America. Imagine a place where people seem to enjoy meeting in cafes, bars and restaurants to talk with each other, connecting with other human beings to enjoy the moment. Imagine casual eye contact like it used to be. Imagine Spain. I recently got back from a month-long...
Earlier this year, the Trump administration cut funding to the Organization for American States for protecting reproductive rights. While America’s attention has turned to the restrictive abortion bans across numerous states, the Trump administration has continued its relentless attacks on women’s bodies and the very foundations of women’s rights abroad. Under the guise of foreign policy, the White House is exporting censorship — ultimately threatening US allied relations, the human...
As long as Cuba and Russia are ready and willing to prop up Maduro, there may be no clean way out of the mess in Venezuela. On April 30, Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó called for the people and military of Venezuela to rise up and oust embattled President Nicolás Maduro. This action came after months of pressure from international leaders — especially US President Donald Trump — for Maduro...
The results of the European elections have revealed some breakthroughs for populists. There is concern about the impact of populism on rational decision-making in many Western democracies. But there is no agreement on what "populism" means. All politics appeal — to some extent — to people’s self-interest and to their preference for advantages being given to themselves, the area in which they live or a group to which they belong....
The re-election of India’s Hindu right-wing government could put minorities at risk. India’s general elections were the most wide-ranging and possibly most expensive election campaign in the nation’s history. In emphatic style, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) blew away the opposition to seal his re-election with a majority of 303 seats. Yet Modi’s return to power has brought distress for some minorities, including India’s...
When it comes to agricultural technology, business opportunity is filling the void left by political inertia. Last month, Extinction Rebellion activists around the world triggered days of protests to end what they call criminal inaction by the world’s governments on climate and ecological emergencies. Disruptive civil disobedience and mass arrests successfully pushed the Scottish and Welsh governments, along with the UK Parliament, to declare national climate emergencies and “tell the...
