The Donald Trump-JD Vance victory marks a repudiation of the post-Cold War neoconservative Washington playbook of militarised responses to foreign policy challenges. Tulsi Gabbard, the director of National Intelligence-designate, shares their anxiety over America’s addiction to intervening in foreign conflicts not of vital interest to the US, whose net effect has been to destabilise countries Continue reading »
politics
The FrameLab Book Club is launching in 2025! First on the list: “The Political Mind: A Cognitive Scientist’s Guide to Your Brain and Its Politics” by Dr. George Lakoff. Nearly 400 readers have signed up to participate! This online book club will feature personal insights from Dr. Lakoff, as well as an ongoing Q&A with […]
Prudent public policy seeks to protect us against black swan events. Black Swan Theory (BST) is a metaphor that describes a rare, unexpected event that has a huge impact and is difficult to predict. These events are considered outliers because there is no past data to indicate when they could occur. Governments already invest in Continue reading »
In August 2023, nurse Lucy Letby was convicted of the murder of seven babies and attempted murder of six babies in the neonatal unit of a UK National Health Service (NHS) hospital. The Australian media has reported on the current instalment of the saga (viz. a judicial inquiry into conditions at the hospital where Letby Continue reading »
The Pacific Islands’ voting patterns on Palestinian self-determination reveal the complex interplay of geopolitics, development incentives, and shifting religious dynamics. The rise of evangelism, intertwined with Christian Zionist theology, has increasingly influenced foreign policy decisions, underscoring the cultural and demographic transformations shaping the region’s stance on global issues. There has been a dramatic turn-away from Continue reading »
Since Baidu launched its autonomous ride-hailing platform Apollo Go in Wuhan in May 2022, the driverless taxi service has rapidly gained popularity among locals and visitors alike. It has become one of the city’s “must-try” experiences, drawing widespread attention from industry professionals both in China and abroad. Market analysts have even suggested that Apollo Go’s Continue reading »
I have learned a few things in my time on this earth. Not many, but a few. I have learned that western regime change interventionism is reliably disastrous, and that men like John Bolton and Bill Kristol are always on the wrong side of history when it comes to such matters. I have learned that Continue reading »
In defending Israel’s actions in Gaza, a common refrain from supporters and right- wing politicians is that Israel is the only democratic country in the Middle East. The notion a democratic country can be above criticism despite charges of war crimes and genocide, suggests this exclusive club of democratic states can never be subject to Continue reading »
Free speech has become a political hobby horse in today’s world of increasingly divisive populism. On the one side, the cancel culture left is accused of erecting ideological barriers that silence the expression of political opinions that do not conform to the party line. On the other, the right often supports no-holds-barred public dialogue, including Continue reading »