Petraeus at Atlantic Council
[caption id="attachment_26018" align="alignright" width="400" caption="Lt.Gen. Brent Scrowcroft, GEN David Petraeus, and Atlantic Council President and CEO Fred Kempe"][/caption] I had the privilege of sitting in on an Atlantic Council meeting with General David Petraeus this afternoon. He's making the rounds in Washington in preparation for taking over CENTCOM. He mostly came to listen to selected members of our Strategic Advisors Group ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on October 9, 2008 16:25
America’s Demise Greatly Exaggerated
Over at New Atlanticist, I have a new post up entitled, "America's Coming Decline?" Contra Arnaud de Borchgrave, Thomas Friedman, and others, I argue that it is highly unlikely that China, Europe, or anyone else overtakes the United States as the major economic player in the world. The bottom line is that the current financial "crisis" is almost certainly a short term ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on October 7, 2008 14:46
Expanding the Security Council?
French and EU President Nicolas Sarkozy issued a call from the floor of the UN yesterday to expand the Security Council and G8. Declaring that, "The 21st century world cannot be governed with the institutions of the 20th century," he argued that inclusion of today's emerging powers is not just "a matter fairness" but a necessary condition ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on September 25, 2008 12:52
Where I’ve Been
As regular readers may have noted, I've been less prolific than normal as of late. After several weeks being bogged down with the technical matters of launching the new Atlantic Council website, I'm now swamped with my editorial responsibilities. Things will hopefully settle down a bit once I've got a steady stream of submissions coming in. I've written two more pieces ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on September 10, 2008 11:34
‘New’ Europe Outworks ‘Old’
Workers in eastern Europe work more hours and take less vacation than their counterparts to the west. In a study published Wednesday by Dublin-based EU think tank Eurofound, official and reported work hours were compared across the EU. Europe's hardest workers, at least in terms of hours spent on the job? Full-time workers in Romania and Bulgaria, the EU's newest members, ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on September 6, 2008 08:17
Russia Orders Georgia ‘Cease-Fire’
Russian president Dmitry Medvedev has ordered what the press is describing as a "cease-fire" in Georgia. Given that he is not withdrawing Russian forces and is going to keep killing Georgian troops in South Ossetia in violation of international law, however, that term doesn't quite seem to fit. NYT: The president said Russia had achieved its military goals during five days ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on August 12, 2008 08:14
Georgian Forces Retreat, Wonder Where Friends Are
Georgian forces have been routed and have retreated from their South Ossetia province after being outmatched by the Russians. Now, many Georgians are wondering where their Western allies are. Tony Halpin for The Times of London: As a Russian jet bombed fields around his village, Djimali Avago, a Georgian farmer, asked me: “Why won’t America and Nato help us? If they won’t ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on August 11, 2008 08:50
Government can Seize your Laptop at the Border
Via Reuters: U.S. agents can seize travelers' laptops: report U.S. federal agents have been given new powers to seize travelers' laptops and other electronic devices at the border and hold them for unspecified periods the Washington Post reported on Friday. Under recently disclosed Department of Homeland Security policies, such seizures may be carried out without suspicion of wrongdoing, the newspaper said, ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on August 1, 2008 18:43
In Case You Were Wondering…
Via Reuters: World's oldest joke traced back to 1900 BC. And let me tell you, they have unearthed some hy-larious stuff! The shocker of the day: the study "suggests that toilet humor was as popular with the ancients as it is today." The world's oldest recorded joke has been traced back to 1900 BC and suggests that toilet humor was as popular ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on July 31, 2008 15:30
AKP Escapes Ban (Barely)
Via the BBC: Turkey's ruling party escapes ban Turkey's Constitutional Court has decided not to ban the ruling AK Party, accused of undermining the country's secular system. But the judges did cut half the AKP's treasury funding for this year. That'll show 'em! (I honestly have no idea which funds or what they are used for--and the story does not elaborate.) In all ...Posted in Outside The Beltway | OTB on July 30, 2008 15:15
