海角大神

Presidents like to talk about mandates, but those can be something of a myth. Most of the time, it鈥檚 impossible to pin down why people vote the way they do.

Gases like methane are called super pollutants because they are such potent聽trappers of heat in Earth鈥檚 atmosphere. Yet that also means cutting their emissions can be a potent response to global warming.

Do we really need to be hearing so much about climate change and a meeting called COP26? With a global summit underway, here鈥檚 a chart-based briefing on why it matters.

Increasingly hostile parents and coaches are being blamed for a shortage of referees at all levels of youth sports. What does this say about civility in general 鈥� and can new programs make people behave better?

Does the latest movie to focus on Princess Diana help people better understand her? Film critic Peter Rainer says 鈥淪pencer鈥� intends to impart a more profound view of the famous royal than a biographical rendering ever could.

The war in Ethiopia, which for a year has largely been contained in one region, Tigray, has escalated into a 鈥渘ationwide social convulsion鈥� with 鈥渙pen warfare that now engulfs the nation,鈥� warned Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta this week. 鈥淭he fighting must stop!鈥�

Another neighbor of Ethiopia, Uganda, has called for East African leaders to attend a summit Nov. 16 to address the spreading warfare that might soon reach the capital, Addis Ababa, with the rapid advance of the Tigray People鈥檚 Liberation Front forces.

Meanwhile, the 55-nation African Union has called on the warring parties to allow former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo to mediate a political solution. The AU also reminded Ethiopian fighters to abide by humanitarian law.

These calls for peace in Ethiopia reflect an Africa that has learned a lesson from the genocide in Rwanda 27 years ago: The continent must intervene early in places when ethnic strife could result in mass violence. Today鈥檚 African leaders are better poised to raise alarms when a country like Ethiopia, with more than 100 million people and 80 ethnic groups, has the potential for large-scale atrocities.

Already in Tigray, thousands of civilians have been killed and more than 2.5 million have been forced to flee their homes. At the heart of the dispute lies different visions for Ethiopia. The minority Tigrayans want power distributed to Ethiopia鈥檚 different ethnic regions while Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who came to power three years ago, has sought to centralize power and to create a national identity, centered on his new Prosperity Party.

Outsiders like Mr. Kenyatta know that only Ethiopians can resolve the competing visions for a unified country. Africa wants to see peace in Ethiopia, says the Kenyan president. 鈥淲e all stand ready to assist the process that the Ethiopians themselves see fit.鈥�

The tragedy of the Rwanda genocide, which tarnished Africa鈥檚 image for years, has pushed its current leaders to show moral backbone in preventing similar tragedies. Ethiopia鈥檚 war could be their biggest test yet. Their sense of urgency shows a key lesson of history is not being forgotten.

View gallery