CANBERRA ― Although the relationship between China and the United States is critical to Asia’s future, this does not mean that the region will become a Sino-American duopoly. The concept of a “G2” is never going to fly in Asia.To begin with, excluding China, Asia’s combined GDP is roughly equivalent to that of the U.S., and it vastly exceeds that of China. Furthermore, Japan remains the world’s third-largest economy, while economies like India, South Korea, Indonesia, and Australia are growing r

ADDIS ABABA ― Sustainable development means achieving economic growth that is widely shared and that protects the earth’s vital resources. Our current global economy, however, is not sustainable, with more than one billion people left behind by economic progress and the earth’s environment suffering terrible damage from human activity. Sustainable development requires mobilizing new technologies that are guided by shared social values.U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has rightly declared susta

ROME ― Making my way from Milan to Rome in recent days, I experienced firsthand the rancorous process under way to deleverage Italy’s sovereign debt and impose more competitive habits on the languorous rhythms of this Mediterranean culture.Angry truckers blocked the main highways, drivers left their taxis standing, and most trains were canceled. Students scrawled “f--k austerity” slogans across peeling, ocher-colored walls. Surly shopkeepers only brightened at the sight of mid-winter gaggles of

Say what you will about the latest Internet video sensation ― in which someone lampoons one group of humans or another based on certain conversational proclivities ― but if nothing else, we can credit it with bringing mainstream awareness to the word “meme.” That’s the term coined by Richard Dawkins for the way evolutionary principles can be used to explain how cultural ideas take hold. It’s now basically turned into a fancy way of talking about things that are popular on the Internet. This incl

President Obama believes government has a vital role in creating good jobs in America. Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich say American business will create good jobs here if their taxes are lowered and regulations eased.The facts are on the president’s side. U.S. corporations are increasingly global, with less and less stake in America. According to the Commerce Department, American-based global corporations added 2.4 million workers abroad in first decade of 21st century while cutting their American

STANFORD ― Successful political candidates try to implement the proposals on which they ran. In the United States, President Barack Obama and the Democrats, controlling the House of Representatives and (a filibuster-proof) Senate, had the power to do virtually anything they wanted in 2009 ― and so they did.Obama and his congressional allies enacted an $800 billion “stimulus” bill that was loaded with programs geared to key Democratic constituencies, such as environmentalists and public employees