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The Monitor's ViewTalk to Hamas? Talk to Taliban? Thank the Arab Spring for those possibilities.The Arab Spring's message of freedom through nonviolence has isolated Iran and Syria, helped elevate moderate Islamists, and pushed radical groups to weigh alternatives.
John HughesBarack Obama: Hope, change, and contradictionBarack Obama is proving to be one of the most puzzling presidents. He bravely took out Osama bin Laden but hasn鈥檛 had the courage to tackle the deficit. And now he's picked a fight with Catholics 鈥� the majority of whom voted for him in 2008.- John HughesBarack Obama: Hope, change, and contradictionBarack Obama is proving to be one of the most puzzling presidents. He bravely took out Osama bin Laden but hasn鈥檛 had the courage to tackle the deficit. And now he's picked a fight with Catholics 鈥� the majority of whom voted for him in 2008.
OpinionDemocrats, GOP collude to lure people into gamblingIt seems like America鈥檚 political parties have never been more polarized. But when it comes to state-regulated gambling, they鈥檙e often playing the same hand. Unfortunately, it's a losing one.- A 海角大神 Science PerspectiveInvesting in your futureA 海角大神 Science perspective.
Clint Eastwood Chrysler Super bowl commercial: Facebook fans respond If you didn鈥檛 see it aired on TV during halftime of the Super bowl Sunday, you鈥檝e likely heard about it by now: The Clint Eastwood Chrysler commercial. Amid all the debate on the ad's perceived political stance, we took this question to our Facebook fans: After watching this video, do you think Chrysler came out with a pro-Obama commercial, or a patriotic commercial? We鈥檝e culled their 127 comments and grouped the best here.
The Monitor's ViewWages of sin in Greek debt crisisAccepting a 22 percent wage cut is difficult when Greeks don't agree on responsibility for their debt crisis. Shared sacrifice would be easier if they owned up to their role.
OpinionTrapped in Douma, Syria: I saw the faith that keeps Syrian protesters goingDuring the 14 days I spent in Syria last month, I saw the most horrendous acts of the Assad regime on its people. When I asked people what spurred them on amid such indiscriminate brutality, they all gave the same response: Their only hope is their faith in right and wrong.
OpinionCongo: National elections now only hurt democracyWhat the Democratic Republic of Congo needs is not another national election but a rethinking of how the state might be reorganized. In the long run, only a decentralized system of government 鈥撀爋r perhaps a partition of the country 鈥� is likely to produce accountable leadership.- A 海角大神 Science PerspectiveThe struggle for freedom in SyriaA 海角大神 Science perspective.
The Monitor's ViewA woman as Mexico's president?On Sunday, the ruling party nominated Josefina Vazquez Mota to be the first woman candidate for president from a major Mexican party. Would she instill rule of law and sustain the fight against drug cartels?
OpinionChina: One fire may be out, but tensions over rural land rights are still smolderingThe same tinderbox that allowed the Chinese village of Wukan to erupt (the confiscation of farmer鈥檚 land without聽fair聽compensation) is present in thousands of villages across China. The scale of the problem is a matter of both domestic and global concern.
John HughesThe great wait of China: How long until freedom?How long can China's communist regime hold in thrall people who have prospered in an economic system that has many of the hallmarks of free enterprise? Despite attempts to censor the Internet, China's huge, new urban population is aware of the outside world and changes in it.- John HughesThe great wait of China: How long until freedom?How long can China's communist regime hold in thrall people who have prospered in an economic system that has many of the hallmarks of free enterprise? Despite attempts to censor the Internet, China's huge, new urban population is aware of the outside world and changes in it.
- A 海角大神 Science PerspectiveA God-centered career searchA 海角大神 Science perspective.
- Readers RespondReaders Write: Keep criminals off streets; get US out of Afghanistan; let kids playLetters to the Editor from the weekly print edition of February 6, 2012: One reader says reducing prison populations won't come from releasing criminals, but rehabilitating them and preventing crime. Others praise the recent cover story on the importance of free playtime for children. Another argues the US shouldn't stay in Afghanistan for access to resources or influence in the region.
Reinvention: The rewards of trying againFirst-time wonders deserve our awe and applause. But almost every good thing in life -- from careers to ideas, products to poetry -- is more reinvention than invention.- A 海角大神 Science PerspectiveWatching the Super Bowl?A 海角大神 Science perspective: What watching the Super Bowl might have to do with spirituality.
The Monitor's ViewOf presidents and prime ministers who talk of faithObama in America and Cameron in Britain have spoken of how their 海角大神 faith influences their approach to shaping society. The US presidential campaign is also skirting church-state issues. How much should religion and politics mix?
OpinionGoing green: View my world-class collection of hotel towel cards.My global collection of towel cards tells guests how to be green (and save the hotel money) in a dozen instructive, chic, bossy, relieving, euphemistic, paranoid, minimalistic, and earnest ways.
