Articles

When angry youths in Nepal gathered for violent anti-corruption protests this month, setting fire to public buildings and chasing government officials from their homes, the fast-unfolding story received expansive coverage on a surprising social media account: the Kenyan Vigilante, a news site with 188,000 followers on X…  

One of the world’s oldest affirmative action efforts is coming under fresh criticism — including from many of its former proponents. The program had been a well-meaning plan to reduce poverty, but it became a benefit mainly for a privileged racial elite, according to its critics. A policy was designed as a temporary way to…

The Trump administration wants to enlist Southeast Asian countries to build a giant wall around China. The idea is to reduce the countries’ reliance on Chinese supply chains, wean them off Chinese exports and get them to stop letting China transship goods through their ports to evade U.S. tariffs. This was a major point in…

THE WASHINGTON POST – In major cities in southern Europe, protesters have railed against overtourism. In Thailand, the complaint is the opposite; visitor numbers are declining, and the government is starting to panic. This year so far has seen a noticeable decline, from 17.5 million tourists in the first half of 2024 to 16.6 million…

THE WASHINGTON POST – Politics in the Philippines has always been something of a family affair. But lately, it has devolved into a family feud, complete with assassination threats and impeachment charges. The bitter rivalry between the country’s two most prominent political dynasties might seem good — from an entertainment standpoint. But there are real-world…

The Vietnam War ended 50 years ago on April 30, 1975, with the departure of the last American helicopter in Saigon and the arrival of North Vietnamese tanks in the city. The more than decade-long conflict was a defining event for America’s baby boomer generation. Support for the war, and opposition to it, cleaved society.…

THE WASHINGTON POST – President Donald Trump’s edict to rename the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” might have been dismissed as a distraction — a pointless nod to patriotism and “greatness” like calling french fries “freedom fries.” When he then banned the Associated Press from official White House events for refusing to go…

THE WASHINGTON POST – On April 1, 2001, just past the stroke of midnight, four same-sex couples in the Netherlands exchanged wedding vows at the Amsterdam City Hall, which was festooned for the occasion with red and pink roses. Afterward, the couples and guests — and the journalists on hand, including me — were treated…

THE WASHINGTON POST – The fall of a longtime dictator or dynasty typically opens a window of joy, hope and the possibility of healing. Boisterous crowds pour into the streets. Statues and symbols of the old regime are destroyed. Jails are emptied of political prisoners. Mass graves are uncovered. The search begins for the millions of dollars missing from the central bank…

Around the world, especially during this “year of elections,” people have shown that when their elected governments fail to deliver economic prosperity, or cannot provide security, they vote the incumbents out and give the opposition a shot.