Showing posts with label foreign policy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label foreign policy. Show all posts

The Next American Century: How the U.S. Can Thrive as Other Powers Rise Review

The Next American Century: How the U.S. Can Thrive as Other Powers Rise
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The Next American Century: How the U.S. Can Thrive as Other Powers Rise ReviewIn 'The Next American Century,' Nina Hachigian and Mona Sutphen build a compelling case for embracing, rather than fearing, the rise of what they term 'Pivotal' powers: China, Russia, the EU, Japan and India. As they point out, the major threats to US lives - terrorism, pandemics, loose nukes, global warming - cannot be contained without the coordination, rather than subordination, of these major powers.
Though broadly, and at the moment, unusually, optimistic about these states and our potential in future dealings with them, the Next American Century devotes early chapters to the distinct trajectories, roles and weaknesses of each pivotal power, including the US - a thorough, compelling survey for anyone trying to handicap the prospects of major world players today. Hachigian and Sutphen conclude with recommendations for US politicians and citizens - for the former, much more global engagement and a diplomacy that capitalizes more on the distinct and diverse characteristics, as well as the rapid ascent, of these ancient and Leviathan cultures; for the rest of us, travel more and don't let another generation of American school children enter the world speaking only English.The Next American Century: How the U.S. Can Thrive as Other Powers Rise Overview

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Power & Responsibility: Building International Order in an Era of Transnational Threats Review

Power and Responsibility: Building International Order in an Era of Transnational Threats
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Power & Responsibility: Building International Order in an Era of Transnational Threats ReviewAt the start of any new administration in the United States, there is a rush to offer advice from many quarters. Ideas are deliberated at think tanks and university departments to make an imprint on the fresh stock of decision-makers that are moving into the halls of power in Washington. Often such grand visions end up being no more than mere grandstanding. Happily, that is not the case with "Power and Responsibility," which provides a clear and crisp set of guidelines for the new administration as well as for international institutions.
Crafted after a detailed consultation process involving a range of global leaders, the three authors have provided a definitive case for the doctrine of "responsible sovereignty." The Sudanese-scholar and diplomat Francis Deng coined this phrase that was adopted by former U.N. secretary general Kofi Annan as an antidote to the divisive rhetoric of Westphalian sovereignty that often trumps any credible critique of member states. Two of the authors Bruce Jones and Stephen John Stedman worked at the United Nations while Carlos Pascual is a former U.S. ambassador and Vice President of the Brookings Institution. Having witnessed the decision-making process closely at various levels, the authors have a refreshingly pragmatic tone while also providing some bold new ideas and themes.
Some of the significant recommendations in the book include:
a)Reforming the UN Security Council to include long-term non-veto members that would over time become permanent members. The authors recognize that ideally there should be a more equitable system of governance but they make this suggestion for the sake of "marrying what is right with what is doable."
b)Making a distinction between preemptive and preventive use of force, arguing that the former suggests an imminent danger of a provable threat and would be covered under Article 41 of the UN Charter. On this point, perhaps the authors are not as clear regarding what process would differentiate between what is imminent and provable and what is not.
c)Providing a clear agenda for action on climate change and biotechnology as well as bioterrorism that embraces a multilateral approach that is based on science and technology rather than political opportunism.
d)Stressing the importance of nuclear nonproliferation by following the channels of international agreements and providing a coherent analysis of the "hard cases" of North Korea and Iran.
e)Admirably daring to ask the question "Does military occupation cause terrorism?" and answering in the affirmative rather than equivocating about moral equivalence as most Washington pundits tend to do.
Overall this is a fine work of policy analysis that should be seriously considered by US policy makers and the electorate at large. Perhaps one aspect of the book which is somewhat troubling is its continuing insistence that "U.S. consent is a necessary condition for success." While this may be true at a proximate level, there needs to be an effort to move away from this imperative that tends to sound a bit sanctimonious. The rise of Europe and Asia should not be neglected and it may be instructive to prepare the US for a time when the consent of no single country is dominant but rather a more inclusive international governance system emerges.
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The Progressives' Handbook: Get the Facts and Make a Difference Now, Vol. 2: Elections & Voting, Environment and Foreign Policy (Volume 2) Review

The Progressives' Handbook: Get the Facts and Make a Difference Now, Vol. 2: Elections and Voting, Environment and Foreign Policy (Volume 2)
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The Progressives' Handbook: Get the Facts and Make a Difference Now, Vol. 2: Elections & Voting, Environment and Foreign Policy (Volume 2) ReviewWokusch convincingly lays out the Bush administration's misdeeds and then explains what WE CAN DO to fight back.
The first chapter details corruption in the US election system. It's all there - Florida in 2000, Ohio in 2004 and challenges to a fair vote in future elections. The writing is fun and witty (subheadings like "Hari-Kerry" and "The joys of gerrymandering") but the information provided is devastating and important.
In the Environment chapter, Wokusch shows how Bush and his cronies have sold out America's natural resources to their corporate benefactors. She covers the administration's Clear Skies program ("Pass the Inhaler"), threats to endangered species ("Bulldozing Bambi"), assaults on water, forests and even regulatory rollbacks designed to keep the public in the dark.
The chapter on Foreign Policy is great too. Wokusch moves seamlessly from the neo-cons' influence on the Bush White House, to the preemptive attack doctrine and other steps along the way to the 2003 invasion of Iraq. It's gloves-off. She goes into war crimes charges against administration members and "loyal henchmen" put in place to carry out the administration's misdeeds (including "Bonkers Bolton" and "Condi, At His Majesty's Service").
The great thing about these books is that Wokusch always brings it back to how these changes affect each of us personally, like decreased national security and increased environmental health risks. And after breaking the bad news about what's really going on, she offers pages and pages of "Easy Ways to Make a Difference Now." It makes the book motivating and fun.
I read Volume 1 of The Progressives' Handbook first and now this one. They both are highly recommended.The Progressives' Handbook: Get the Facts and Make a Difference Now, Vol. 2: Elections & Voting, Environment and Foreign Policy (Volume 2) Overview

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