All Editorials
OpinionObama must support India-Pakistan rapprochementAmid all the bad news, there is a bit of hope in South Asia:聽India and Pakistan have restarted their peace dialogue, with greater economic engagement.聽The Obama administration should reinforce this effort, which would help US security interests in the region, especially in Afghanistan.
8 ways to find common groundGridlock plagues Washington. Polarizing soundbytes get constant play in the 24/7 news cycle. The culture wars rage on. But these Monitor op-ed writers suggest there鈥檚 more common ground than meets the eye. Here are eight powerful perspectives on the possibilities for meeting in the middle.
The Monitor's ViewYoung people, post recession: Ready to launch?Post-recession data and the government's pro-elderly policies don't give much hope to Millennials. Yet they remain surprisingly optimistic.
Global ViewpointWill China's Communist Party prove James Madison wrong? Unlikely.Ruling in China used to be like hammering a nail into wood. Now it is much more like balancing on a slippery egg. Whether the authorities can sustain their present balancing act seems doubtful.- Global ViewpointWill China's Communist Party prove James Madison wrong? Unlikely.Ruling in China used to be like hammering a nail into wood. Now it is much more like balancing on a slippery egg. Whether the authorities can sustain their present balancing act seems doubtful.
OpinionSyrians feel caught in an external power struggle, less willing to confront their ownSyrians聽feel caught in a proxy power struggle among the US, Gulf states, China, and Russia 鈥� who all seem more concerned with their interests and less with democracy for all. This external fight聽is preventing Syrians from making vital decisions about their own internal challenges.
The Monitor's ViewMontana's challenge to 'super PACs'Montana's high court challenges the moral basis for the US Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling that spawned super PACs. The high court needs to rebalance free speech vs. democracy.
OpinionIndia's support for Iran threatens its US relationship and global leadership roleIndia's statement that it will continue to purchase oil from Iran is a major setback for the US attempt to isolate the Iranian government over the nuclear issue. It's also聽bitterly disappointing news for those of us who have championed a close relationship with India.
OpinionTwo cheers for super PACsSuper PACs aren鈥檛 the constitution-eating monsters critics have made them out to be. In fact, they engage voters in the democratic process. So why only two cheers? Loopholes prevent full transparency on where these groups get their funding. But Congress can fix that.
The Monitor's ViewObama's needed rapport with China's XiXin Jinping will be in power for a decade, so his visit to the US must establish a trust that can help smooth growing differences and prevent confrontations.
OpinionOutrage over Egypt's arrest of NGO workers, but US would have done the sameThe outrage over Egypt's arrest of 43 NGO workers, at least 16 of whom are American, is understandable and well deserved. But it also speaks to a little acknowledged paradox: These organizations are conducting democracy-building work that would never be tolerated in the US.
OpinionTesla SUV with wings or not, we should kill the electric carEnvironmental groups are cheering:聽Tesla unveiled its newest fleet of electric vehicles this weekend, and California recently tightened its emissions standards. I was once enthusiastic about electric cars, too 鈥� as a聽solution to our environmental and energy challenges. I was wrong.
The Monitor's ViewReasons for Obama to aid Syria 鈥� other than moral onesObama intervened in Libya for humanitarian reasons 鈥� to prevent a slaughter. Why not in Syria 鈥� to end actual killing? Perhaps he needs the reasons of a realist.
OpinionWhat a smart phone can't find: happinessI watched a basketball game with one of our sons the other night.聽Every time I made a comment or asked an off-handed question he went to his iPad to summon statistics or video clips. We didn鈥檛 experience the game together in real time; we processed it search by search.
OpinionHow an Obama shift helps unstable regimes get nuclear weaponsIn past nuclear cooperation agreements, the US has required nations to commit to not enriching uranium and opening nuclear sites to inspections. The Obama administration has just done away with the requirement. Congress needs oversight to combat this possibility of nuclear proliferation.
The Monitor's ViewThe Obama birth-control mandateThe president's health-care regulation expanding access to birth control, including abortion pills, impinges on churches that oppose abortion, especially Catholic ones, by narrowly defining their religious activity to teaching only. Government must be wary of determining where the works of faith end.
Walter RodgersMaggie vs. Gorby: the scene that 鈥楾he Iron Lady鈥� forgotThe scripted and unscripted confrontations between Margaret Thatcher and Mikhail Gorbachev were of such epic consequence they could not be condensed into film. Yet we do Britain鈥檚 first female prime minister a great disservice in omitting them.- Walter RodgersMaggie vs. Gorby: the scene that 鈥楾he Iron Lady鈥� forgotThe scripted and unscripted confrontations between Margaret Thatcher and Mikhail Gorbachev were of such epic consequence they could not be condensed into film. Yet we do Britain鈥檚 first female prime minister a great disservice in omitting them.
OpinionMissing: my Republican party. Please help me find it.I have been a life-long Republican (I first voted in 1968), but lately I seem to have lost my party, and I鈥檓 hoping you can help me find it. Let me describe it for you.
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.
