Back to fowednesdayHydro power Dam, Lamjung, Nepal© KshR/ shutterstock.comNepal’s Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal “Prachanda” Dahal is set to embark on a crucial visit to China at the end of September. He will meet China’s President Xi Jinping during the four-day trip. This is a strategic move in a world where connectivity and cooperation are increasingly indispensable. Nepal’s diplomatic endeavors offer a glimpse into the nation’s evolving role.Nepal is a landlocked nation. It depends on oil imports, the vast bulk of which comes from India. At the same time, its high mountains and swift rivers...…Back to fowednesdayHydro power Dam, Lamjung, Nepal© KshR/ shutterstock.comNepal’s Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal “Prachanda” Dahal is set to embark on a crucial visit to China at the end of September. He will meet China’s President Xi Jinping during the four-day trip. This is a strategic move in a world where connectivity and cooperation are increasingly indispensable. Nepal’s diplomatic endeavors offer a glimpse into the nation’s evolving role.Nepal is a landlocked nation. It depends on oil imports, the vast bulk of which comes from India. At the same time, its high mountains and swift rivers...WW…

Back to fowednesdayUNIVERSAL CITY, CA – JUNE 06: Russell Brand arrives on the Red Carpet at the 2010 MTV Movie Awards at Gibson Amphitheatre on June 6, 2010 in Universal City, California. (Photo by Jonathan Nowak)© Dooley Productions/ shutterstock.comThe Atlantic’s Megan Garber wrote brilliantly of the word we use to indicate something quite the opposite of what’s being specified:‘No’ is, in theory, available to anyone, at any time; in practice, however, it is a word of last resort—a word of legality. A word of transaction. A word in which progress collides with reticence: Everyone should...…Back to fowednesdayUNIVERSAL CITY, CA – JUNE 06: Russell Brand arrives on the Red Carpet at the 2010 MTV Movie Awards at Gibson Amphitheatre on June 6, 2010 in Universal City, California. (Photo by Jonathan Nowak)© Dooley Productions/ shutterstock.comThe Atlantic’s Megan Garber wrote brilliantly of the word we use to indicate something quite the opposite of what’s being specified:‘No’ is, in theory, available to anyone, at any time; in practice, however, it is a word of last resort—a word of legality. A word of transaction. A word in which progress collides with reticence: Everyone should...WW…

Back to fowednesdayPart of the abandoned coal and steel production plant in Landschaftspark Duisburg-Nord. The landscape park Duisburg-Nord is a public park around a disused iron and steel works in Duisburg, Germany.© Daniela Baumann/ shutterstock.comSeptember has been a month of grim news about the German economy. Inflation, which brings back the specter of the 1920s, remains stubbornly high. The Federal Statistical Office tells us that the inflation rate, “measured as the year-on-year change in the consumer price index (CPI), stood at +6.1% in August 2023.”It is not just the...…Back to fowednesdayPart of the abandoned coal and steel production plant in Landschaftspark Duisburg-Nord. The landscape park Duisburg-Nord is a public park around a disused iron and steel works in Duisburg, Germany.© Daniela Baumann/ shutterstock.comSeptember has been a month of grim news about the German economy. Inflation, which brings back the specter of the 1920s, remains stubbornly high. The Federal Statistical Office tells us that the inflation rate, “measured as the year-on-year change in the consumer price index (CPI), stood at +6.1% in August 2023.”It is not just the...WW…

Back to fowednesdayTroy, Montana – July 17 2021: Extreme fire danger sign in Kootenal National Forest with fire on mountain horizontal© DanVanPelt/ shutterstock.comThe wording in Article IX, Section 1, of Montana’s constitution couldn’t be clearer: “The state and each person shall maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment in Montana for present and future generations.” Accordingly, in April, a district court judge in Yellowstone County voided a permit for a natural-gas-fired power plant under construction there. Over its lifetime, it would have released an estimated 23 million...…Back to fowednesdayTroy, Montana – July 17 2021: Extreme fire danger sign in Kootenal National Forest with fire on mountain horizontal© DanVanPelt/ shutterstock.comThe wording in Article IX, Section 1, of Montana’s constitution couldn’t be clearer: “The state and each person shall maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment in Montana for present and future generations.” Accordingly, in April, a district court judge in Yellowstone County voided a permit for a natural-gas-fired power plant under construction there. Over its lifetime, it would have released an estimated 23 million...WW…

Back to fowednesdayThe blind leading the blind. Blindfolded businessmen following each other to the cliff© Aleutie/ shutterstock.comSince World War II, the US has a history of launching wars that never result in victory and almost always produce collateral damage on a scale no other wars from the past can rival. Every nation that has endured on its territory US military activity has found itself permanently disfigured in its national identity. After 50 years of wars in Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria and now Ukraine — to mention the obvious ones — Vietnam alone has emerged...…Back to fowednesdayThe blind leading the blind. Blindfolded businessmen following each other to the cliff© Aleutie/ shutterstock.comSince World War II, the US has a history of launching wars that never result in victory and almost always produce collateral damage on a scale no other wars from the past can rival. Every nation that has endured on its territory US military activity has found itself permanently disfigured in its national identity. After 50 years of wars in Korea, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria and now Ukraine — to mention the obvious ones — Vietnam alone has emerged...WW…

Back to NewslettersMadrid, Spain – FEB 16, 2022: Palacio de las Cortes is a building in Madrid where the Spanish Congress of Deputies meets. Built by Narciso Pascual Colomer from 1843 to 1850.© ColorMaker / shutterstock.comSpaniards wanted to be “a normal country,” and they have almost achieved it—but at the worst possible time.Like many other European countries, Spain’s party system is fragmented and polarized, which renders the country ungovernable. And as in other countries, when it is able to form governments, they will be governments of the Frankenstein type, formed by stitching...…Back to NewslettersMadrid, Spain – FEB 16, 2022: Palacio de las Cortes is a building in Madrid where the Spanish Congress of Deputies meets. Built by Narciso Pascual Colomer from 1843 to 1850.© ColorMaker / shutterstock.comSpaniards wanted to be “a normal country,” and they have almost achieved it—but at the worst possible time.Like many other European countries, Spain’s party system is fragmented and polarized, which renders the country ungovernable. And as in other countries, when it is able to form governments, they will be governments of the Frankenstein type, formed by stitching...WW…

Back to NewslettersKARACHI, PAKISTAN – JUN10: View of devastated cargo terminal burnt in suicidal blast during attack by Taliban terrorists at Karachi Airport, on June 10, 2014 in Karachi.© Asianet-Pakistan / shutterstock.comA raft of economic and political issues have put Pakistan in deadlock. Former Prime Minister Imran Khan has caused conflicts and worries in the country and for other nations. Pakistan’s instability poses risks for regional stability.The existing deadlock arises from a combination of several factors, including economic collapse, internal security concerns and the rise of...…Back to NewslettersKARACHI, PAKISTAN – JUN10: View of devastated cargo terminal burnt in suicidal blast during attack by Taliban terrorists at Karachi Airport, on June 10, 2014 in Karachi.© Asianet-Pakistan / shutterstock.comA raft of economic and political issues have put Pakistan in deadlock. Former Prime Minister Imran Khan has caused conflicts and worries in the country and for other nations. Pakistan’s instability poses risks for regional stability.The existing deadlock arises from a combination of several factors, including economic collapse, internal security concerns and the rise of...WW…

Back to NewslettersOil pump rig. Oil and gas production. Oilfield site. Pump Jack are running. Drilling derricks for fossil fuels output and crude oil production. War on oil prices. Global coronavirus COVID 19 crisis.© ded pixto / shutterstock.comOPEC energy and oil ministers attending the 8th OPEC International Seminar in Vienna earlier this month were, on the face of things, surprisingly upbeat. The organization’s Secretary-General, Haitham al-Ghais, expressed confidence that new members would be joining in the foreseeable future; he declined to name any of the candidates, although it is...…Back to NewslettersOil pump rig. Oil and gas production. Oilfield site. Pump Jack are running. Drilling derricks for fossil fuels output and crude oil production. War on oil prices. Global coronavirus COVID 19 crisis.© ded pixto / shutterstock.comOPEC energy and oil ministers attending the 8th OPEC International Seminar in Vienna earlier this month were, on the face of things, surprisingly upbeat. The organization’s Secretary-General, Haitham al-Ghais, expressed confidence that new members would be joining in the foreseeable future; he declined to name any of the candidates, although it is...WW…

Back to NewslettersSarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, capital city of Bosnia-Herzegovina pinned on political map.© Below the Sky/ shutterstock.comToday, the war in Ukraine, the attempted coup in Russia and the unrest in France are making the headlines. Still, there is another crisis in Europe happening in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Known for its chronic political instability and dysfunctional institutions, the country is showing more signs of disintegration, encouraged by the West.Similarly to the situation that emerged when former High Representative Valentin Inzko imposed amendments to the...…Back to NewslettersSarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, capital city of Bosnia-Herzegovina pinned on political map.© Below the Sky/ shutterstock.comToday, the war in Ukraine, the attempted coup in Russia and the unrest in France are making the headlines. Still, there is another crisis in Europe happening in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Known for its chronic political instability and dysfunctional institutions, the country is showing more signs of disintegration, encouraged by the West.Similarly to the situation that emerged when former High Representative Valentin Inzko imposed amendments to the...WW…

Back to fowednesdayPakistan and Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan flags painted on texture wall. Afghanistan new flag. Flag of Taliban© OnePixelStudio / shutterstock.comOn September 4, 2021, the director general of Pakistan’s Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI), Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed, landed in newly Taliban-occupied Kabul. With a beaming smile, he faced the camera of a weary journalist who had asked what was next and stated, “Don’t worry, everything will be okay.” Hameed’s jubilance and optimism were understandable; the group the ISI had fostered, trained, funded and stood behind...…Back to fowednesdayPakistan and Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan flags painted on texture wall. Afghanistan new flag. Flag of Taliban© OnePixelStudio / shutterstock.comOn September 4, 2021, the director general of Pakistan’s Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI), Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed, landed in newly Taliban-occupied Kabul. With a beaming smile, he faced the camera of a weary journalist who had asked what was next and stated, “Don’t worry, everything will be okay.” Hameed’s jubilance and optimism were understandable; the group the ISI had fostered, trained, funded and stood behind...WW…