tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-148384592024-03-13T17:26:04.745-04:00House of WonksThis blog will be a place for writings about the world we live in, and the events making an impact. At least when I can keep at it.Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.comBlogger226125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-11144871734431162282007-11-28T09:17:00.000-05:002007-11-28T09:24:42.805-05:00American Values--what are yours?What are American Values? We hear a great deal about family values, traditional values, Judeo-Christian values, even liberal values. But we hear hear these from the megaphones of pundits and the ubiquity of mass mailings.I don't think any of those definitions are (at the very least by themselves) American Values. We're about to enter a primary season where 'values' of one stripe or another Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-43705822405883887952007-10-31T15:26:00.000-04:002007-10-31T15:28:30.660-04:00Not a four-letter-word any moreIn polite society there are four letter words. We all know them, even if we manage not to use them. Politics, however, has simplified this a bit. Whether in Washington or anywhere else in America, we are now down to a three letter word. Tax. It may be heresy to say this, but both parties have found something to agree on: taxes are bad. The disagreement is one of degree, not of position. Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-15431210973965755262007-10-17T15:36:00.000-04:002007-10-17T15:39:24.427-04:00An outsider's inside view of North KoreaJon Wolfsthal, Senior Fellow at CSIS, just published a short piece that does an excellent job painting the picture of the challenges faced by the American inspection teams about to head to North Korea to verify the dismantling of North Korea's nuclear facilities. And Wolfsthal would know better than most, since he spent a fair length of time in North Korea doing dismantlement verification in theJohnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-35131657838496576162007-10-12T14:40:00.000-04:002007-10-12T14:42:23.284-04:00Globalization: Not as easy as it used to beGlobalization is getting more complicated. Now we have labor in the U.S. fighting it, and big business in India and China pushing it. The two sides are presented clearly in this piece from Wednesday’s Times (via Reuters). India is having a huge public debate (usually in the form of protests) over whether to allow ‘big box’ retailers to set up shop. Not Walmarts, Targets, and Best Buys—foreign Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-27224330546090175672007-10-05T13:06:00.000-04:002007-10-05T13:11:17.658-04:00What power? Fred Hiatt at the Washington Post has sparked quite an exchange today in Post Global, with his piece arguing that the U.S. should let China know it has a choice: a friendly regime in Burma, or a successful Olympics next year. This precipitated a detailed response in opposition from James Fallows, The Atlantic’s correspondent in China. Both men provide compelling arguments, but this Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-2857858572459649522007-09-28T15:18:00.000-04:002007-09-28T15:37:30.852-04:00Burma update, before the weekendFollowing up on the post earlier this week about Myanmar/Burma’s unfolding saga, I should offer a quick update. Especially since for North America, Friday afternoon is on us, and the weekend’s distractions may soon begin. President Bush and the U.S. administration did, indeed, back words with actions this week by ratcheting up sanctions against the military regime. There are some doubts Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-9085684012245698242007-09-27T18:04:00.000-04:002007-09-28T14:53:17.362-04:00The coming age of thirstIf there was ever a need for the reminder of just how interconnected the world is, there is a piece in today’s New York Times (yes, I’m very happy Times Select is defunct) that helps bring it home. China is consuming its freshwater at runaway speeds. In the words of Fred Pearce, “If northern China were a separate country, it would be one of the most water-stressed in the world.” China’s Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-77969759436542086242007-09-24T10:30:00.000-04:002007-09-24T10:47:42.748-04:00New planThe blog has been on life-support for almost a year now. Rather than mothballing it, I thought I'd make a couple of changes and take another run at it. The biggest change is that I'm moving out from behind the curtain. It's just me posting, so no real purpose in veiling my identity. It'll still be the same topics and format though. If anyone is still reading, I'm always interested in Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-31819027562743900092007-09-24T08:43:00.000-04:002007-09-24T08:46:21.734-04:00The stirrings of a democracyPresident Bush has promoted his “Democracy Agenda” as a cornerstone of our foreign policy. Inevitably, Iraq has taken center-stage on that in the past several years. As Saturday’s Washington Post points out, there is an opportunity for the U.S. to bring greater attention to a movement that is actively pursuing real democratic reform in a country that is long overdue for it: Myanmar. FormerlyJohnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-31172664955413641222007-09-19T18:45:00.000-04:002007-09-19T18:48:45.099-04:00Victory!I am declaring victory in my one-man battle against Time Select. I discovered today (though it must have happened a few days ago) that the New York Times has discontinued it's strange and incomprehensible policy of trying to force online readers to pay extravagant amounts of money for today's news: Times Select is defunct. Let's hope it stays that way. And, just in case you want to find out Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-25559009961246352782006-12-19T09:32:00.000-05:002006-12-19T09:41:35.605-05:00Overheard in WashingtonOK, so it wasn't overheard so much as received in an email, but it's both true and funny. I've played ultimate frisbee the past year-plus on a team. One of the players was quoted in a story in the Washington Post today on a fairly complicated, though significant, issue. My girlfriend, who also plays on the team, writes:"What a classic Washingtonian moment. Reading the Post, and the expert Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-48321117952386444002006-12-11T10:44:00.000-05:002006-12-11T10:47:46.451-05:00What I've LearnedAt the risk of angering the publishers at the Washington Post, I'm reprinting, in its entirety (with a link to the site) Kofi Annan's Op-Ed that was published in today's post. The timing, with a new Congress preparing to start, couldn't be more appropriate. Hopefully someone will listen.What I've LearnedBy Kofi A. AnnanMonday, December 11, 2006; A19Nearly 50 years ago, when I arrived in Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-68017817477394327782006-12-07T12:40:00.000-05:002006-12-07T12:41:24.364-05:00Incomes, Inequality, and the World BankThe Post has a story about a World Bank report that came out recently, describing the broad-spectrum failings of poverty alleviation programs. In short, according to the report, 60% of countries receiving poverty-alleviation loans from the Bank have remained stagnant, or actually lost ground in the "war on poverty". My favorite, exerpted quote, though is this: "For a Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1164383849598485812006-11-24T10:43:00.000-05:002006-11-24T10:57:29.643-05:00The Anxiety KingdomThere is a story in today's Post that, in microcosm, describes China's growing economic problem: Unemployable college graduates. Not because they lack the skills to get decent jobs (the jobs their parents assume college will open the doors for them to get), but because China's economic and regulatory environment make it too hard for the business to start to provide an opportunity to the young Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1162444564606735522006-11-02T00:10:00.000-05:002006-11-02T00:16:04.620-05:00Global warming and economicsGlobal Warming To Cost Up To 20% of Global GDPIn college and in grad school, I had ongoing debates with my roommates and friends about the need to quantify, in dollar terms, the costs of global warming, if we wanted the businesses and governments around the world to start taking it seriously. If there isn't a dollar value attached to it, it doesn't affect their bottom line, and they don't have Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1161623124798085062006-10-23T13:04:00.000-04:002006-10-23T13:05:24.816-04:00Bitter PartisanshipIf you thought bitter partisanship was constrained to the Western Hemisphere (where outside the U.S., Mexico is also bitterly--and evenly--divided) there is news from Eastern Europe showing how we are not alone in our "I'm right and you're wrong" attitude. At least we haven't resorted to tear gas, rubber bullets, or fire hoses yet, as is happening in Budapest now. Today is the 50th Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1161002820111648682006-10-16T08:47:00.000-04:002006-10-16T08:51:21.853-04:00North Korean SituationNews From the FrontierThis is a good story from the Monterey Herald about the situation in one spot along the Chinese-North Korean border. It does a good job of giving a glimmer of what is and what could happen, depending on how the situation unfolds. Take a look, here.From the Security CouncilThe AP also has a good recap of the Security Council resolution, including additional restrictionsJohnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1160451335804166712006-10-09T23:10:00.000-04:002006-10-09T23:40:48.620-04:00Shot heard 'round the worldThanks to everyone who has called, written, or text messaged to let me know that, about 24 hours ago, North Korea detonated a nuclear weapon. For those who don't know me, I've spent the last year and a half procrastinating finishing a master's paper on North Korea. I'm just about finished (presented oral arguments a couple of weeks ago) and have been held up from making final corrections as life Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1160334611789360342006-10-08T14:42:00.001-04:002006-10-08T15:10:11.813-04:00A uniquely American crisisThe U.S. is facing a crisis. It has to do with Iraq, but our involvement in Iraq is only a symptom of the broader problem. This thought is still forming, and remains a bit rough around the edges, but I want to through it out because it's been so long since my last post.The U.S. military has become so effective, so powerful, so efficient at it's job: defeating identified enemies, that it has far Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1154422498020549242006-08-01T04:54:00.000-04:002006-08-01T04:54:58.123-04:00Peacekeeping? Not a recipe for success The concept of peacekeeping troops seems to have gained great ascendancy, and suffered appropriate ignominy in the short span of my life. It came about as a response to the collapse of Somalia into what, euphemistically, was called a civil war but in reality was a number of uber-thugs and warlords fighting for control of territory in a country where the government had been stripped ofJohnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1153003515749691682006-07-15T18:44:00.000-04:002006-07-15T18:45:15.763-04:00Hiattus or the Hiccups?It's been a while since my last post, and a while longer since I'd posted before that. I wanted to write something to address why, as I've been getting a few questions about "what happened?"I've been easing into a new job over the past months. It's a job that has much more substance, and takes a fair amount more time, than what I've been doing previously. It's also a job that allows me to Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1150212622136621042006-06-13T11:30:00.000-04:002006-06-13T12:09:18.816-04:00Education and Defense in the U.S. OK thinkers, I've got a thought mulling, and I need some help with it, when you're brain has free time. This gets a bit long. Defense Department vs. National Education levels. Posit: The government is in the business of providing public goods. Why? Because public goods are those that the market wont supply, or wont supply at an efficient level because of disincentives. Ergo, Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1149183751916550822006-06-01T13:42:00.000-04:002006-06-01T13:42:32.130-04:00Those sneaky Capitalists...in North KoreaA quick little piece to prove that I'm still around. Life's been busy, and I haven't seen a lot I've felt like commenting on lately, sorry. But here's a tidbit for you all: Unbeknownst to the world (and likely, even themselves) the DPRK (N. Korea) has become capitalist. I don't really have much to go on in asserting this. Only one teeny-weeny little web page.Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1148408283946118162006-05-23T14:18:00.000-04:002006-05-23T14:18:04.046-04:00Wonk Paradise I have found it, and it is amazing. What is most surprising (or maybe not) is that it is run by the Federal Reserve. If you’re looking for some amazing numbers, give this a look. Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14838459.post-1148397079583971372006-05-23T11:11:00.000-04:002006-05-23T11:11:19.710-04:00A Glimmer of Sunlight This CBS story suggests a glimmer of sunlight in North Korea-Western relations. The Associated Press’s TV wing opened a North Korea bureau on Monday. This is pretty big news. Actually, it’s huge news. North Korea—long viewed as the most secretive country in the world, has just allowed a major media outlet to set up a permanent presence in its capital.&Johnhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17533797164058938842noreply@blogger.com0