Foreign Affairs articles from September 2008

Foreign Affairs archives from September 2008

The next president: mastering a daunting agenda.(Essays)
September 1, 2008... THE NEXT president will inherit leadership of a nation that is still the most powerful in the world--a nation rich with the continued promise of its dynamic and increasingly diverse population, a nation that could, and must, again inspire,...

The September 12 paradigm: America, the world, and George W. Bush.(Viewpoint essay)
September 1, 2008... THE WORLD does not look today the way most anticipated it would after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. Great-power competition was supposed to give way to an era of geoeconomics. Ideological competition between democracy and autocracy was...

How to leave a stable Iraq: building on progress.(Essay)
September 1, 2008... THE IRAQ war has become one of the most polarizing issues in American politics. Most Democrats, including Senator Barack Obama (D-Ill.), want large, early troop cuts; most Republicans, including Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.), want U.S. troops...

Trinidad & Tobago: igniting ambition.(Sponsored Section)
September 1, 2008... Trinidad & Tobago, the Caribbean's energy success story, is building on a decade of growth by focusing on its non-energy qualities. Greatly enhancing its diversification tape, city, the government under the leadership of Prime Minister Patrick...

e Teck: creating a new economy.(Sponsored Section)(Evolving TecKnologies and Enterprise Development Company )
September 1, 2008... "We are Trinidad and Tobago. We are Next." So declares the Caribbean republic's new international brand campaign promoting its pioneering efforts to diversify an already booming economy. After more than thirty years of success in the...

Building a world-class international financial center.
September 1, 2008... During the last five years, economic reform in Trinidad & Tobago has been buoyed by unprecedented inflows to the energy sector due to record oil prices. The nation's government is now investing part of that windfall in order to build a...

Banking on citizens first.(Sponsored Section)
September 1, 2008... In 1993, at a time when Trinidad & Tobago was developing its financial sector, a historic merger took place that would significantly influence the country's financial course. Three homegrown banks, the 1914-founded Trinidad Co-operative Bank,...

Connectivity spurs an information society.(Sponsored Section)
September 1, 2008... For a nation of 1.3 million inhabitants, Trinidad & Tobago's telecommunication infrastructure is as impressive as its economic cachet. 33 radio stations, 13 television channels, two mobile operators, and several broadband Internet providers...

Infrastructure for growth and development.(Sponsored Section)
September 1, 2008... "There are two aspects involved in becoming a developed country," observes Senator Danny Montano, President of Trinidad & Tobago's Senate. "One is to have the infrastructure of a developed society and the other is to have an educated...

Tourism: diversity and dynamism.(Sponsored Section)
September 1, 2008... Trinidad & Tobago is the newest 'hot spot' or tourism investment opportunities as the country stands ready to take its place in the global tourism industry. This was Tourism Minister Joseph Ross' message to the delegates of the 12th Annual...

Planning ahead.
September 1, 2008... Progressive, enterprising, and bequeathed with a gross domestic product of close to $90 billion, Trinidad & Tobago is one of the most prosperous nations in the Caribbean. These largely energy-generated riches are now being put to good use in...

A strategic economic engagement: strengthening U.S.-Chinese ties.(Essay)
September 1, 2008... ONE OF the first challenges the next U.S. president will face will be how to respond to Chinas emergence as a global power. Some people suggest that China is a threat that must be countered or contained. Others argue that its growth is an...

Containing climate change: an opportunity for U.S. leadership.(Essays)(Essay)
September 1, 2008... HUMAN ACTIVITY is causing irreversible harm to the environment. The level of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere exceeds preindustrial levels by nearly 40 percent and is rising rapidly. This blanket of heat-trapping...

Millions uprooted: saving refugees and the displaced.(Essay)
September 1, 2008... THE TWENTY-FIRST century will be characterized by the mass movement of people being pushed and pulled within and beyond their borders by conflict, calamity, or opportunity. War and human rights violations are already scattering millions across...

Making intervention work: improving the UN's ability to act.(United Nations)(Essay)
September 1, 2008... IN MAY, Cyclone Nargis struck southern Myanmar (also known as Burma), killing over 80,000 people and leaving millions homeless and in dire conditions. For weeks after the storm, Myanmar's military junta blocked and delayed international relief...

Cultural capital meets industrial prominence: the emirate of Sharjah, the most central of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has managed to merge its cultural objectives with a dynamic economic development, creating an authentic Arab hub for industry, education, culture, and tourism.(The Emirate of SHARJAH Charging Ahead)(City overview)
September 1, 2008... As it quickly rose in international distinction, the emirate of Sharjah sought to develop a new identity brand. Commissioned by the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA), the branding had to accentuate the sum of Sharjah's...

Shaping a modern Arab knowledge society.(The Emirate of SHARJAH Charging Ahead)
September 1, 2008... Economic development must be led by the people and should never undermine the roots of civilization. This avid belief is carried not only by the ruler of Sharjah, but resounds throughout the emirate. Efforts in developing the local human...

Funding fathers: industry and trade is at the Root of the banking sector's success.(The Emirate of SHARJAH Charging Ahead)
September 1, 2008... In the early 1970s, when the federation of emirates was constituted, Sharjah's oil reserves were just enough to start building a diversified economy. "Oil income was used in a very wise way to create a global and complementary economy with...

Rigged and ready to roll.(The Emirate of SHARJAH Charging Ahead)(Lamprell Energy Ltd.)
September 1, 2008... Amid concerns about future fossil fuel depletion and oil's current price of around $150 per barrel, 50 percent of the world"s oil still remains in the Arabian Gulf region. This is reason enough for Lamprell, leader in the refurbishment and...

Keeping up with Asia: America and the new balance of power.
September 1, 2008... WHEN IT comes to U.S. foreign policy, many Asians favor Republicans over Democrats. This preference is not without grounds. Some Asian countries, Japan not least among them, cannot help but feel uneasy, threatened even, by the largely...

Why the United States needs Bermuda.(Sponsored Section)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The global outlook for Bermuda, a financial and insurance behemoth, appears challenging. Troubled financial markets, rising insurance centers across the globe, and the upcoming presidential elections in the United...

Morning in Latin America: the chance for a new beginning.(Views From Abroad)
September 1, 2008... FIXING THE mess inherited from the Bush administration will be no simple task for the next U.S. administration. In Latin America, it will be particularly arduous. The reason is simple but paradoxical. George W. Bush raised expectations greatly...

The land of hope again? An old dream for a new America.(Viewpoint essay)
September 1, 2008... I CALL YOU friends, but you are much more. You made my life possible when you freed my father from a German concentration camp on May 8, 1945. You gave me dreams when, as a lonely European child, I watched American movies, especially Westerns....

A war to start all wars: will Israel ever seal the victory of 1948?(1948: A History of the First Arab-Israeli War)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... 1948: A History of the First Arab-Israeli War. BY BENNY MORRIS. Yale University Press, 2008, 544 pp. $32.50. For 60 years, both the Israelis and the Palestinians have used the past to illuminate the present and confer legitimacy on their...

Just causes: the case for humanitarian intervention.(Freedom's Battle: The Origins of Humanitarian Intervention)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Freedom's Battle: The Origins of Humanitarian Intervention. BY GARY J. BASS. Knopf, 2008, 528 pp. $35.00. Debates and discussions about humanitarian intervention tend (for good reasons) to be about American intervention. They also tend to...

Terror and Consent: The Wars for the Twenty-first Century.(Political and Legal)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Terror and Consent: The Wars for the Twenty-first Century. BY PHILIP BOBBITT. Knopf, 2008, 688 pp. $35.00. This sprawling and probing account of violence in the modern world begins with the bold claim that almost everything currently...

America between the Wars: From 11/9 to 9/11.(Political and Legal)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... America Between the Wars: From 11/9 to 9/11. BY DEREK CHOLLET AND JAMES GOLDGEIER. PublicAffairs, 2008, 432 pp. $27.95. U.S. foreign policy in the 1990s is still a contested topic. For some, the eider Bush and Clinton administrations...

Rising Powers, Shrinking Planet: The New Geopolitics of Energy.(Political and Legal)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Rising Powers, Shrinking Planet: The New Geopolitics of Energy. BY MICHAEL T. KLARE. Metropolitan Books, 2008, 352 pp. $26.00. What happens to world politics in an era marked by rising oil prices and resource scarcity? In this provocative...

Fixing Failed States: A Framework for Rebuilding a Fractured World.(Political and Legal)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Fixing Failed States: A Framework for Rebuilding a Fractured World. By ASHRAF GHANI AND CLARE LOCKHART. Oxford University Press, 2008, 272 pp. $24.95. The international community has struggled without much success to remedy the problem of...

Social Movements for Global Democracy.(Political and Legal)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Social Movements for Global Democracy. BY JACKIE SMITH. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2007, 304 pp. $55.00 (paper, $25.00). Transnational citizen groups seeking to shape the economic and political world order are one of the least studied...

A Question of Balance: Weighing the Options on Global Warming Policies.(Economic, Social, and Environmental)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... A Question of Balance: Weighing the Options on Global Warming Policies. BY WILLIAM D. NORDHAUS. Yale University Press, 2008, 256 pp. $28.00. Nordhaus has done pioneering work over the years on the economics of climate change and the...

Greening Aid? Understanding the Environmental Impact of Development Assistance.(Economic, Social, and Environmental)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Greening Aid? Understanding the Environmental Impact of Development Assistance. BY ROBERT L. HICKS, BRADLEY C. PARKS, J. TIMMONS ROBERTS, AND MICHAEL J. TIERNEY. Oxford University Press, 2008, 368 pp. $35.00. The authors address whether...

The Holy Grail of Macro Economics: Lessons From Japan's Great Recession.(Economic, Social, and Environmental)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Holy Grail of Macro Economics: Lessons From Japan's Great Recession. BY RICHARD C. KOO. Wiley, 2008, 300 pp. $34.95. Koo believes that Japan's "great recession" of 1991-2005 contains useful lessons for interpreting and dealing with the...

The Economists' Voice: Top Economists Take on Today's Problems.(Economic, Social, and Environmental)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Economists' Voice: Top Economists Take On Today's Problems. EDITED BY JOSEPH E. STIGLITZ, AARON S. EDLIN, AND J. BRADFORD DELONG. Columbia University Press, 2008, 328 pp. $24.95. Three dozen eminent economists, most of them American,...

Bits, Bytes, and Balance Sheets: The New Economic Rules of Engagement in a Wireless World.(Economic, Social, and Environmental)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Bits, Bytes, and Balance Sheets: The New Economic Rules of Engagement in a Wireless World. BY WALTER B. WRISTON. Hoover Institution Press, 2007, 160 pp. $25.00. The late Wriston presided over Citibank for 17 years, until 1984, and was...

Eve of Destruction: The Coming Age of Preventive War.(Military, Scientific, and Technological)(Striking First: Preemption and Prevention in International Conflict)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Eve of Destruction: The Coming Age of Preventive War. BY THOMAS M. NICHOLS. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2008, 192 pp. $39.95. Striking First: Preemption and Prevention in International Conflict. BY MICHAEL W. DOYLE. EDITED BY STEPHEN...

Killing Civilians: Method, Madness, and Morality in War.(Military, Scientific, and Technological)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Killing Civilians: Method, Madness, and Morality in War. BY HUGO SLIM. Columbia University Press, 2008, 300 pp. $29.95. Slim explores the problem of restraint in war by considering how civilians can be spared its ravages. With painful and...

Organizations at War in Afghanistan and Beyond.(Military, Scientific, and Technological)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Organizations at War in Afghanistan and Beyond. BY ABDULKADER H. SINNO. Cornell University Press, 2007, 352 pp. $39.95. Sinno's core thesis is that students of strategy should pay more attention to organization theory, and in this the...

Power and Military Effectiveness: The Fallacy of Democratic Triumphalism.(Military, Scientific, and Technological)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Power and Military Effectiveness: The Fallacy of Democratic Triumphalism. BY MICHAEL C. DESCH. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008, 248 pp. $45.00. One explanation for the wrong turns taken in the academic study of international relations...

The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation.(Military, Scientific, and Technological)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation. BY PHILLIP SHENON. Twelve, 2008, 464 pp. $27.00. This lively and gossipy inside story of the 9/11 Commission's deliberations gains much of its dramatic force from the...

Throes of Democracy: The American Civil War Era, 1829-1877.(The United States)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Throes of Democracy: The American Civil War Era, 1829-1877. BY WALTER A. McDOUGALL. Harper, 2008, 816 pp. $34.95. This exciting account of a brawling, chaotic era in American life is a significant contribution to American studies. The...

Defying Dixie: The Radical Roots of Civil Rights, 1912-1950.(The United States)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Defying Dixie: The Radical Roots of Civil Rights, 1912-1950. BY GLENDA ELIZABETH GILMORE. Norton, 2008, 640 pp. $39.95. Gilmore is a historian of formidable accomplishment and talent. A combination of patient and thorough research and a...

The Purpose of the Past: Reflections on the Uses of History.(The United States)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Purpose of the Past: Reflections on the Uses of History. BY GORDON S. WOOD. Penguin Press, 2008, 336 pp. $25.95. This collection of review essays by one of the United States' most well-read and most readable historians is at once a...

The Way of the Ship: America's Maritime History Reenvisioned, 1600-2000.(The United States)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Way of the Ship: America's Maritime History Reenvisioned, 1600-2000. BY ALEX ROLAND, W. JEFFREY BOLSTER, AND ALEXANDER KEYSSAR. Wiley, 2007, 544 PP. $35.00. This useful book offers a comprehensive introduction in one volume to a vital...

Counselor: A Life at the Edge of History.(The United States)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Counselor: A Life at the Edge of History. BY TED SORENSEN. Harper, 2008, 576 pp. $27.95. In his long-awaited memoirs, the John F. Kennedy adviser, collaborator, and speechwriter Sorensen balances two apparently conflicting demands: he...

Dawn, Dusk or Night: A Year With Nicolas Sarkozy.(Western Europe)(Mes Vacances Ratees Avec Nicolas Sarkozy)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Dawn, Dusk, or Night: A Year With Nicolas Sarkozy. BY YASMINA REZA. Knopf, 2008, 208 pp. $23.00. Mes vacances ratees avec Nicolas Sarkozy. BY GUILLEMETTE FAURE. Ramsay, 2007, 120 pp. 12.00 [euro]. Highly popular in France following his...

Luck and the Irish: A Brief History of Change from 1970.(Western Europe)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Luck and the Irish: A Brief History of Change From 1970. BY R. F. FOSTER. Oxford University Press, 2008, 240 pp. $29.95. The operative word in this engaging volume is "change." Foster, the author of an acclaimed history of Ireland from 1600...

What's Wrong With the European Union and How to Fix It.(Western Europe)(Europe: The State of the Union)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... What's Wrong With the European Union and How to Fix It. BY SIMON HIX. Polity, 2008, 228 pp. $64.95 (paper, $22.95). Europe: The State of the Union. BY ANAND MENON. Atlantic Books, 2007, 290 pp. 16.99 [pounds sterling]. These are two...

Can Europe and China Shape a New World Order?(Western Europe)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Can Europe and China Shape a New World Order? BY CHARLES GRANT. Center for European Reform, 2008, 59 pp. 10.00 [pounds sterling]. Grant, the director of London's Center for European Reform, argues for a "strategic partnership" between the...

A Solitary War: A Diplomat's Chronicle of the Iraq War and Its Lessons.(Western Hemisphere)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... A Solitary War: A Diplomat's Chronicle of the Iraq War and Its Lessons. BY HERALDO MUNOZ. Fulcrum Publishing, 2008, 288 pp. $16.95. This sophisticated insider account by a seasoned Chilean scholar-diplomat of the international intrigue...

Path of Empire: Panama and the California Gold Rush.(Western Hemisphere)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Path of Empire: Panama and the California Gold Rush. BY AIMS McGUINNESS. Cornell University Press, 2007, 264 pp. $35.00. Forty-niners eager to pan for gold in California had several routes to choose from in getting there: the arduous...

Confronting the Coffee Crisis: Fair Trade, Sustainable Livelihoods, and Ecosystems in Mexico and Central America.(Western Hemisphere)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Confronting the Coffee Crisis: Fair Trade, Sustainable Livelihoods, and Ecosystems in Mexico and Central America. EDITED BY CHRISTOPHER M. BACON, V. ERNESTO MENDEZ, STEPHEN R. GLIESSMAN, DAVID GOODMAN, AND JONATHAN A. fox. MIT Press, 2008, 400...

Policymaking in Latin America: How Politics Shapes Policies.(Western Hemisphere)(Civil Society and Social Movements: Building Sustainable Democracies in Latin America)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Policymaking in Latin America: How Politics Shapes Policies. EDITED BY ERNESTO STEIN, MARIANO TOMMASI, CARLOS SCARTASCINI, AND PABLO SPILLER. Harvard University Press, 2008, 500 pp. $29.95. Civil Society and Social Movements: Building...

Petrostate: Putin, Power, and the New Russia.(Eastern Europe and Former Soviet Republics)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Petrostate: Putin, Power, and the New Russia. BY MARSHALL I. GOLDMAN. Oxford University Press, 2008, 265 pp. $27.95. That Russia is back--for both good and ill--has dawned on many, and its surging energy prowess is a key reason why this is...

Yeltsin: A Life.(Eastern Europe and Former Soviet Republics)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Yeltsin: A Life. BY TIMOTHY J. COLTON. Basic Books, 2008, 640 pp. $35.00. Larger than life, flawed, enigmatic, Boris Yeltsin is an irresistible subject, and he is lucky to have as his biographer a scholar as meticulous and judicious as...

National Identity and Globalization: Youth, State, and Society in Post-Soviet Eurasia.(Eastern Europe and Former Soviet Republics)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... National Identity and Globalization: Youth, State, and Society in Post-Soviet Eurasia. BY DOUGLAS W. SLUM. Cambridge University Press, 2008, 240 pp. $85.00. U.S. leaders and public intellectuals rarely fuss much over national...

Television, Power, and the Public in Russia.(Eastern Europe and Former Soviet Republics)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Television, Power, and the Public in Russia. BY ELLEN MICKIEWICZ. Cambridge University Press, 2008, 212 pp. $90.00 (paper, $29.99). No one has studied longer or in a more sophisticated fashion Soviet and now Russian television than...

Communities of the Converted: Ukrainians and Global Evangelism.(Eastern Europe and Former Soviet Republics)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Communities of the Converted: Ukrainians and Global Evangelism. BY CATHERINE WANNER. Cornell University Press, 2007, 305 pp. $70.00 (paper, $24.95). Wanner, a historian and anthropologist, provides a fascinating entree into contemporary...

Flag Wars and Stone Saints: How the Bohemian Lands Became Czech.(Eastern Europe and Former Soviet Republics)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Flag Wars and Stone Saints: How the Bohemian Lands Became Czech. BY NANCY M. WINGFIELD. Harvard University Press, 2007, 374 PP. $49-95. The Czech Republic's modern national form did not come about easily or gently. Between 1880 and 1948,...

The Arab Center: The Promise of Moderation.(Middle East)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Arab Center: The Promise of Moderation. BY MARWAN MUASHER. Yale University Press, 2008, 336 pp. $30.00. This is a diplomat's brief on the Jordanian role in regional politics past and present, concentrating on the period from the 1991...

The Bin Ladens: An Arabian Family in the American Century.(Middle East)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Bin Ladens: An Arabian Family in the American Century. BY STEVE COLL. Penguin Press, 2008, 688 pp. $35.00. An impoverished, early orphaned native of Hadhramaut, Yemen, made his way to Saudi Arabia, where he became a successful building...

The Taliban and the Crisis of Afghanistan.(Middle East)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Taliban and the Crisis of Afghanistan. EDITED BY ROBERT D. CREWS AND AMIN TARZI. Harvard University Press, 2008, 448 pp. $27.95. A long introduction sets out the historical context, and an equally long epilogue offers a severe appraisal...

Ahmadinejad: The Secret History of Iran's Radical Leader.(Middle East)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Ahmadinejad: The Secret History of Iran's Radical Leader. BY KASRA NAJI. University of California Press, 2008, 312 pp. $24.95. Naji, a journalist, begins by thanking the Islamic Republic of Iran for making this book possible by long denying...

The Fall and Rise of the Islamic State.(Middle East)(Islam and the Secular State: Negotiating the Future of Shari'a)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Fall and Rise of the Islamic State. BY NOAH FELDMAN. Princeton University Press, 2008, 200 pp. $22.95. Islam and the Secular State: Negotiating the Future of Shari'a. BY ABDULLAHI AHMED AN-NA'IM. Harvard University Press, 2008, 336 pp....

Asian Islam in the Twenty-first Century.(Asia and Pacific)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Asian Islam in the Twenty-first Century. EDITED BY JOHN L. ESPOSITO, JOHN O. VOLL, AND OSMAN BAKAR. Oxford University Press, 2007, 320 pp. $25.00. The dozen authors of this symposium volume agree that Asian Islam will play a more...

What Does China Think?(Asia and Pacific)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... What Does China Think? BY MARK LEONARD. Public Affairs, 2008, 176 pp. $22.95. Westerners generally have a hard time keeping track of Chinese intellectuals--essayists, academics, philosophers, government officials, journalists, novelists....

China's Water Warriors: Citizen Action and Policy Change.(Asia and Pacific)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... China's Water Warriors: Citizen Action and Policy Change. BY ANDREW C. MERTHA. Cornell University Press, 2008, 192 pp. $29.95. China has a serious problem with water shortages. Many of its rivers and streams are running dry, and its lakes...

Rivals: How the Power Struggle Between China, India, and Japan Will Shape Our Next Decade.(Asia and Pacific)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Rivals: How the Power Struggle Between China, India, and Japan Will Shape Our Next Decade. BY BILL EMMOTT. Harcourt, 2008, 352 pp. $26.00. This is a bold study of how the three major Asian states are engaging in power struggles that will...

Bhutan: Hidden Lands of Happiness; Texts and Photographs.(Asia and Pacific)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Bhutan: Hidden Lands of Happiness; Texts and Photographs. BY JOHN WEHRHEIM. Serindia Publications, 2008, 280 pp. $65.00. Wehrheim, in this engrossing and beautiful photography book, offers an encouraging message of happiness and...

The Political Economy of Economic Growth in Africa, 1960-2000.(Africa)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Political Economy of Economic Growth in Africa, 1960-2000, 2 vols. EDITED BY BENNO J. NDULU, STEPHEN A. O'CONNELL, ROBERT H. BATES, PAUL COLLIER, CHUKWUMA C. SOLUDO, JEAN-PAUL AZAM, AUGUSTIN K. FOSU, JAY WILLEM GUNNING, AND DOMINIQUE...

Why Botswana Prospered.(Africa)(The Botswana Defense Force in the Struggle for an African Environment)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Why Botswana Prospered. BY J. CLARK LEITH. McGill-Queen's University Press, 2006, 168 pp. $22.95. The Botswana Defense Force in the Struggle for an African Environment. By DAN HENK. Palgrave Macmillan, 2007, 240 pp. $69-95. Botswana...

Africa in World Politics: Reforming Political Order.(Africa)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... Africa in World Politics: Reforming Political Order. EDITED BY JOHN W. HARBESON AND DONALD ROTHCHILD. Westview Press, 2008, 408 pp. $42.00. This collection of essays by many of the leading Africanists working in the United States today...

The Failure of Democracy in the Republic of Congo.(Africa)(Brief article)(Book review)
September 1, 2008... The Failure of Democracy in the Republic of Congo. BY JOHN F. CLARK. Lynne Rienner, 2008, 309 pp. $59.95. The smaller of the two Congos typically gets little attention, perhaps because it lacks the scale and drama of its bigger neighbor to...

There will be blood.(Letter to the editor)
September 1, 2008... To the Editor: Michael Ross ("Blood Barrels," May/June 2008) argues that oil triggers conflict in three main ways: fluctuating oil prices lead to economic instability, which is followed by political instability; oil wealth supports...

Mirrors and smoke.(Letter to the editor)
September 1, 2008... To the Editor: Condoleezza Rice ("The New American Realism," July/August 2008) evokes a certain sympathy but also substantial disappointment with her account of the accomplishments of the Bush administration over the last eight years. Her...

American oligarchs.(Letter to the editor)
September 1, 2008... To the Editor: Replying to Padma Desai's letter ("Putin's Russia," May/June 2008), Michael McFaul and Kathryn Stoner-Weiss assert that, like the Yeltsin-era media bosses, the United States' "oligarchs... own" many media outlets, including...

For the record.(Correction notice)
September 1, 2008... Paul Kennedy's review essay "The Distant Horizon" (May/June 2008) claimed that former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was once the representative in the British Parliament for the constituency of Central Finsbury. In fact, she held the...

Foreign Affairs bestsellers: the top-selling hardcover books on American foreign policy and international affairs.(Brief article)(List)
September 1, 2008... 1. The Post-American World. FAREED ZAKARIA. Norton, $25.95. 2. Counselor: A Life at the Edge of History. TED SORENSEN. Harper, $27.95. 3. Your Government Failed You: Breaking the Cycle of National Security Disasters. RICHARD A. CLARKE....

Guatemala: times of change.(Sponsored Section)
September 1, 2008... The rotors of the Guatemalan Air Force helicopter start pinning, slowly at first, then faster as the chopper carrying President Alvaro Colom Caballeros and his security detail lifts off from a closely guarded tarmac at Guatemala City's La...

Guatemala: a dynamic diplomatic front.(Sponsored Section)
September 1, 2008... In 1947, Guatemala's vote in favor of the United Nations resolution to partition Palestine into Arab and Jewish states was a determining factor in the establishment of Israel the following year. Today, Guatemala is an active citizen and...

Transparency: restoring trust in government.(Sponsored Section)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... Fully aware that Guatemala is in need of greater transparency, the new government is taking its cleanup campaign very seriously. Vice President Rafael Espada has been charged with the urgent task of eliminating corruption. The same Espada who...

Sound macroeconomics.(Sponsored Section)(Mesa de Calificacion de Riesgo Pals)(Brief article)
September 1, 2008... When it comes to luring foreign investment, credit ratings are paramount. Keeping this in mind, Guatemala's leading monetary authorities have formed a country risk board to boost its sovereign ratings by the world's three top agencies: Moody's...

Competitiveness at the heart of the national agenda.(Sponsored Section)
September 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] It's no secret that Guatemala--with over thirteen million people and a GDP of $33.6 billion--boasts the largest economy in Central America. Its challenge, however, is to be the most competitive as well. "As a...

Advancing infrastructure and logistics.(Sponsored Section)
September 1, 2008... Brand-new highways, gleaming cruise ship and container terminals, a dramatically expanded international airport--all these and more are taking shape across Guatemala, as the Colom administration pours billions of dollars into updating the...