[Leonid Bershidsky] Europe’s window to shore up Macedonia closing

The heightened perception of a Russian threat to the West could have at least one positive consequence: The admission of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (Fyrom) to the European Union. But the massive rallies in Athens on Sunday, with at least 140,000 protesting the Greek government’s apparent willingness to compromise on Macedonia’s name, show that the 26-year-old issue isn’t about to fade away.　Ever since Yugoslavia broke up in 1991, Macedonia has lacked a permanent official name beca

Feb. 7, 2018

[Adam Minter] China could steer self-driving cars

In China, the cars are becoming smarter. Last week, Alibaba Group Holding and Foxconn Technology led a $348 million fundraising round for Guangzhou Xiaopeng Motors Technology, a 3-year-old startup developing internet-connected, electric cars. The investment might seem an odd one for online retailer Alibaba. But it’s part of a larger vision for transportation that includes tools to design and run entire cities. Indeed, with backing from the Chinese government, Alibaba could soon seize the lead ov

Feb. 6, 2018

[Los Angeles Times] Nunes’ memo promises much, delivers nothing remotely credible

After what we can be sure was not careful consideration, President Donald Trump on Friday approved the release of a memo prepared by Republicans on the House Intelligence Committee. And, of course, he explained himself in a tweet: “The top Leadership and Investigators of the FBI and the Justice Department have politicized the sacred investigative process in favor of Democrats and against Republicans -- something which would have been unthinkable just a short time ago.”　That indeed is the conclus

Feb. 6, 2018

[Albert R. Hunt] Voters feel good about the economy, not about Trump

There is an acute struggle dividing US voters that isn’t about Democrats versus Republicans or differences on issues.It’s about the public’s optimistic view of the economy during the first year of Donald Trump’s presidency and the simultaneously pessimistic view of Trump himself. The contrast is striking.　Polls show overwhelming satisfaction with the state of the economy, the most since the final three years of President Bill Clinton’s administration and the early months of the George W. Bush pr

Feb. 6, 2018

[Leonid Bershidsky] Undead rock stars shouldn’t play stadiums

As a middle-aged rock fan, I have a problem many of my peers would relate to: Every year, more of my favorite musicians die, and every year, the list seems to get longer. It took me a few days to get over the recent loss of The Fall’s Mark E. Smith; my wife was stricken when the Cranberries’ Dolores O’Riordan -- who was my age -- suddenly died last month.　I’m not sure, though, that I’m down with the way some innovative companies are trying to fill the void.　I understand the economics behind last

Feb. 5, 2018

[Christian Schneider] Liberal candidates pushing the court further into politics

In a 2007 speech to a group of lawyers in Peru, the late US Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia laid out his rules for being a good judge.　“First, a judge must be, above all else, a servant of the law -- and not an enforcer of his personal predilections,” Scalia told the group. “The good judge must suppress his personal views and must decide each case as the law dictates, not as he would have resolved the matter if he had drafted the law or the constitutional provision at issue.”　Madison Attorn

Feb. 5, 2018

[Shannon O’Neil] Mexico’s voters have bigger problems than Trump

To hear some US politicians tell it, President Donald Trump’s threats to withdraw from NAFTA, build a wall and kick out the Dreamers may cast a decisive shadow over Mexico’s upcoming presidential election. Yet if Mexicans do vote for change, it will more likely be because they are fed up by homegrown woes, beginning with the blatant impunity that has fueled criminal violence and rampant corruption.　While Mexico’s surging homicide rate understandably draws top media billing, widespread corporate

Feb. 5, 2018

[David Ignatius] Trump could learn from Israel’s experience with ‘bloody-nose’ strikes

If the Trump administration is really thinking about trying to give North Korea a “bloody nose” with a limited military attack, it should look carefully at Israel’s experience -- which shows the possible benefits of a quick strike, but also the difficulty of keeping a lid on a conflict once it starts.　Discussions with Israelis at a conference here reinforced the value of deterrence, but also offered some basic lessons: If you’re going to try a quick hit, don’t talk about it; don’t strike unless

Feb. 4, 2018

[Christopher Walker] The point of sharp power

In recent years, Russia and China have poured considerable resources into arenas typically associated with “soft power,” a term coined by the American political scientist Joseph S. Nye and understood as the “ability to affect others by attraction and persuasion.” Either directly or through compliant surrogates, these two countries have devoted billions of dollars to increasing their global influence through media, culture, think tanks, academia and other spheres.Despite these immense investments

Feb. 4, 2018

[Ernest Moniz, Sam Nunn] Three steps to avert an accidental nuclear war

The world has crossed over to a new nuclear era, where a fateful error -- rather than intentional aggression -- is the most likely catalyst to nuclear catastrophe.　American leaders have been warned more than once of incoming Russian missiles -- in each case, it was a false alarm resulting from technical or human error. Former Russian President Boris Yeltsin was mistakenly alerted to a possible US missile strike after the launch of a Norwegian scientific rocket.After every incident, we deceive ou

Feb. 4, 2018

[Sławomir Sierakowski] How Eastern European populism is different

In 2016, the United Kingdom’s Brexit referendum and Donald Trump’s election to the US presidency created an impression that Eastern European-style populism was engulfing the West. In reality, the situation in Western Europe and the US is starkly different.As political scientists Martin Eiermann, Yascha Mounk and Limor Goultchin of the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change have shown, only in Europe’s postcommunist east do populists routinely beat traditional parties in elections. Of 15 Eastern

Feb. 2, 2018