“Does Trump’s Rise Mean Liberalism’s End?”
The “Liberal Story” says that if we liberalize and globalize our political and economic systems, we will produce paradise on earth, or at least peace and prosperity for all. This is the paradigm that has dominated the world for the past few decades, but it is now collapsing, and so far no new story has emerged to fill the vacuum. Instead, we get Donald Trump.
By Yuval Noah Harari, the New Yorker. Harari, an Israeli historian, is a history professor at the the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the author of Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind.
http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/does-trumps-rise-mean-liberalisms-end
“How Geography Explains Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton”
Because of its location, America can choose whether it wants to be a gatekeeper or a global policeman. The author summarizes a new book by Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the former NATO secretary-general and Danish prime minister, who writes, “When it comes to the global village, the United States is a big, rich house with a wall and a moat around it….that privileged position has allowed America to swing between two opposing roles.”
By Uri Freidman, the Atlantic. Friedman is a staff writer at the Atlantic who covers global affairs.
http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2016/10/anders-fogh-rasmussen-trump/503468/?utm_source=nl-atlantic-daily-101316
“Course Correction”
U.S. foreign policy needs a serious analysis and thorough reappraisal. The authors argue that U.S. actions have exacerbated some of today’s most ominous threats: terrorist attacks, China’s power grab in East Asia, and Russia’s annexing Crimea.
By Dimitri K. Simes, Pratik Chougule, and Paul J. Saunders, the National Interest. Simes is president of the Center for the National Interest and publisher & CEO of the National Interest journal. Chougule is the managing editor of the National Interest. He previously served as policy coordinator on the presidential campaigns of Donald Trump and Mike Huckabee. Saunders is executive director of the Center for the National Interest and associate publisher of the National Interest.
http://nationalinterest.org/feature/course-correction-18062
“The Real Power of Putin”
This is a round-up review of eight recent books that take up the question of why Russia is not transitioning to democracy but appears in a state of regression with what some have called a “new tsar,” a “new Russian empire,” and a “new cold war.” The article also considers such issues as how Putin responds to what he sees as “a paralysis of power” and what Putin, then the KGB station chief in Dresden, did when the Berlin Wall fell.
By Benjamin Nathans, the New York Review of Books. Nathans is a professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania and the author of Beyond the Pale: The Jewish Encounter with Late Imperial Russia. He is completing To the Success of Our Hopeless Cause, a history of the Soviet dissident movement.
http://www.nybooks.com/articles/2016/09/29/real-power-vladimir-putin/
“Entire U.S. Political System ‘Under Attack’ by Russian Hacking, Experts Warn”
Some American commentators on cybersecurity have suggested these attacks are not a surprise but appear to be a new spin on an old Russian strategy.
By Geof Wheelwright, the Guardian. Wheelwright, a former senior editor at Microsoft MSN, is a business and technology journalist based in the Pacific Northwest.
https://www.theguardian.com/profile/geof-wheelwright
“A Syrian Deadlock for Years To Come”
“The idea that we can simultaneously defeat the Islamic State terrorist group and apply enough military pressure on President Bashar Assad to persuade him to step down in favor of a power-sharing, multi-sectarian government is entirely unrealistic,” writes the author. U.S. policy in Syria is failing not only because of President Obama’s unwillingness to deploy sufficient military means to the fight, but also because of the basic logic of our political strategy.
By Michael E. O’Hanlan, Brookings Blog/USA Today. l O’Hanlon is a senior fellow in foreign policy at the Brookings Institution, where he specializes in U.S. defense strategy, the use of military force, and American national security policy.
https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2016/10/17/a-syrian-deadlock-for-years-to-come/
Obama’s Syria Policy: The Illusion of U.S. Power in the Middle East
The author lays out the costs of letting U.S. policy in Syria be determined by the ambitions of its weaker allies – Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Qatar.
By Gareth Porter, the Globalist. Porter is an independent investigative journalist and historian who specializes in U.S. national security policy. He is the author of Manufactured Crisis: The Untold Story of the Iran Nuclear Scare.
http://www.theglobalist.com/obama-syria-policy-and-the-united-states-turkey/
Trump’s Praise of Russia, Iran, and Assad Regime Riles GOP Experts
Foreign-policy leaders challenge the assertion that all three regimes are playing a positive role in Syria.
By Michael Crowley, Politico. Crowley is Politico’s senior foreign affairs correspondent, covering foreign policy and national security.
http://www.politico.com/story/2016/10/trump-praise-russia-iran-assad-criticism-229546
“The White Helmets of Syria”
As the war worsens, rescue workers risk their lives on the front lines. This article contains photos of the devastation in Syria.
By Jared Malsin, Time magazine. Malsin is Middle East bureau chief for Time.
http://time.com/syria-white-helmets/
“Voters Said ‘No’ to Peace in Colombia. What’s Next?”
The author analyzes why deal the deal to end Colombia’s longstanding civil war failed in a voter referendum by 50.2 percent to 49.8 percent. “Still,” Felbab-Brown writes, “the crash of this promising opportunity is no time to give up on peacemaking in Colombia. While it won’t be easy, and perhaps even more difficult to negotiate than the accord Colombians rejected, a viable deal can yet be resurrected.”
By Vanda Felbab-Brown, Brookings Blog. Felbab-Brown is a senior fellow in the Center for 21st Century Security and Intelligence at Brookings. She is also the director of the Brookings project “Improving Global Drug Policy: Comparative Perspectives and UNGASS 2016” and co-director of another Brookings project, “Reconstituting Local Orders.”
https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2016/10/03/voters-said-no-to-peace-in-colombia-whats-next/?utm_campaign=Brookings+Brief&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=35269802
“Does Erdogan Want To Be Putin or Sultan?”
It has been clear for a decade that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is no democrat. He has undermined his opponents, spread his control throughout the bureaucracy, enriched himself and his family, and achieved autocratic control. And his recent actions suggest he is serious about remaking Turkey as an Islamic Republic.
By Michael Rubin, AEIdeas. Rubin is a former Pentagon official whose major research areas are the Middle East, Turkey, Iran, and diplomacy. His newest book is Dancing with the Devil: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes.
http://www.aei.org/publication/does-erdogan-want-to-be-putin-or-sultan/
“Accelerating Innovation with Leadership”
Bill Gates explains what he believes the four top priorities should be for the next American president.
By Bill Gates, LinkedIn.com. Microsoft founder Gates now heads the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/accelerating-innovation-leadership-bill-gates?trk=eml-b2_content_ecosystem_digest-hero-22-null&midToken=AQG79wH67-G8Xg&fromEmail=fromEmail&ut=1suQ01AALPpDs1