The Baines Report
The economy is slow, domestic scandals grip the land, and the President wants action against WMD’s in the Middle East. What year is this, 2003? America finds itself debating the merits of military intervention again, this time in Syria. Great rifts in both parties have been opened, showing signs of weathered support for a continual […]
On Monday Brazilians took to the streets for another night of protests against government corruption and poor services. São Paulo, Brasilia and Rio de Janiero have been sites of protests and some violent police reactions over the past week. Headlines in the United States have described the protests as a fight against a 10-cent increase […]
It’s difficult to ignore the impact of social media on the U.S. State Department. Hillary Clinton was the first Secretary of State to fully embrace the potential of social media on diplomacy efforts, and since then, its use within U.S. diplomacy has exploded. The State Department is now a member of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, […]
For the first time ever, a former head of state faces charges of genocide by his own nation’s judicial system. And he deserves it. Though he only ruled for 17 months, his rule has been deemed as one of the bloodiest chapters in the 30 years of the Guatemalan Civil War. He authorized scorched earth […]
Since fighting broke out two years ago in Syria, roughly 70,000 have been killed and nearly a quarter of the nation’s 23 million people have been displaced. Refugees flee into neighboring countries on a daily basis. Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey have all established camps near their Syrian borders to house these individuals and families. […]
In mid September 2012, The New York Times’ computer systems were infiltrated by a series of cyber attacks traced to Chinese hackers. Reporters’ passwords were stolen and sensitive information was breached.[1] The Chinese government denied any responsibility. Since then, there have been multiple reports of Chinese hackers infiltrating other American news organizations, such as The […]
In one of his first presidential directives, President Obama called for more transparency, participation, and collaboration between the government and its people. The state of our democracy is under question because of money in politics, political inequality, and opaque backroom deal making that creates conflicts of interest in public policy. Advancements in technology and […]
The tragedy in Syria grows worse by the day. Battles between rebel forces and the Assad regime continue to rage across the country. With over 30,000 casualties and hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing war-torn areas, the suffering endured by the Syrian people is an abhorrent tragedy. However, an even greater tragedy is the comprehensive […]
The U.S. election year can be a frustrating time for foreign policy wonks. This is especially true in 2012, when both presidential campaigns are laser-focused on issues of the economy and jobs. Tonight’s debate is sure to feature a question or two on international affairs, but the answers will likely matter more to policy elites […]