The Crumbling Foundations of American Strength: Knowledge is Power and the United States is Losing It. (Amy Zegart, Foreign Affairs)

When Russia’s invasion of Ukraine appeared imminent in early 2022, U.S. intelligence officials were so confident that Russian tanks would roll quickly to victory that staff evacuated the U.S. embassy in Kyiv. Based on traditional measures of power, the intelligence assessment made sense. In 2021, Russia ranked fifth in the world in defense spending, whereas …

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Clouds over the American Economy (Richard A. Epstein, Hoover Institution)

It’s not just inflation—the impact of taxes, regulations, and political mandates sharpens voters’ choices. Fast forward from London and Paris during the French Revolution to today, and nothing much has changed. A recent headline in the Wall Street Journal reads: “Mixed signals cloud economic forecast,” referring to whether we shall have the proverbial “soft landing” or the …

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Deal or no deal (Julian E. Barnes, New York Times)

For weeks, the White House said the stars were aligned for a cease-fire agreement that would free the hostages held in Gaza. The framework of a deal first announced by President Biden has been in place since July. Since then, a phalanx of American officials has traveled frequently to the region, pushing Israel and Hamas to sign on. …

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A country in ruins (Declan Walsh, New York Times)

After more than a year of civil war, the toll in Sudan is heartbreaking: thousands killed, millions scattered and cities besieged or destroyed across a vast nation three times as large as France. Much of the capital lies in rubble. This month, international officials declared that part of Sudan was in a famine. At least …

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How Everything Became National Security: And National Security Became Everything (Daniel W. Drezner, Foreign Affairs)

Since when did everything become a matter of national security? “From climate change to ransomware to personal protective equipment to critical minerals to artificial intelligence, everything is national security now,” writes the political scientist Daniel Drezner in the upcoming issue of Foreign Affairs.  But while it is true that the number of unconventional threats to the United States …

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Summer 2024 Hoover Digest (Hoover Institution)

THE ECONOMY 9 Good Job, FedWhen the Federal Reserve started paying interest on itsreserves, economists worried that the practice could lead toinstability and other problems. Instead, it proved a success—and may have staved off a recession. By John H. Cochrane ISRAEL AND THE MIDEAST 14 Requiem for a Grand StrategyMere months ago, American foreign policy …

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Canceling Palestine (SLAVOJ ŽIŽEK, Project Syndicate)

Current debates about Israeli policy are rife with double standards, leading to absurd decisions like Germany’s recent cancellation of a pro-Palestinian gathering. By quashing legitimate speech and assembly, an Israel-aligned establishment risks inciting precisely the kind of anti-Semitism that it wants to prevent. LJUBLJANA – It is only April, but we already have a good …

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