All The Monitor's View
- Afghanistan's trial against fear
Unusual public concern over the mob murder of a woman has forced a televised trial that includes police among the accused. Afghan society may be at a turning point for women’s rights and rule of law.
- Ordering up stability for the Mideast
As President Obama works with both theocratic Iran and Arab monarchies, he must help the Middle East agree to a moral order based on respect for the dignity of the nation state.
- Executive pay, company performance: Always a link?
A proposed federal rule would require companies to compare executive pay to their bottom line. While this transparency might help shareholders, would it track intrinsic motives of those running a company?
- Clean hands for elected judges
A Supreme Court ruling upholds a ban on judicial candidate asking directly for campaign donations in state elections. While such a ban restricts free speech, the constitutional need is for judges to remain principled and impartial.
- For Baltimore post-riots, a role for clergy
During Monday's riots in Baltimore, more than a dozen clergy members helped end the violence. Police have only begun to work with faith-based institutions, which can also help reform the police.
- Social media's big lift after Nepal earthquake
Instant communication through Google, Twitter, and Facebook allowed people in Nepal to help survivors of the earthquake in ways government could not. The Digital Age is turning victimhood into instant neighborhoods.
- Take fearmongering out of US politics
As presidential campaigns for the 2016 election start to demonize candidates, a study finds a sharp rise in American voters disliking those in opposing camps. This coarsening of society can end if politics stop relying on 'negative partisanship.'
- Armenia's best use of a genocide's anniversary
The dominant church in Armenia has used the 100th anniversary of the 1915-23 genocide to honor the victims in hopes this act of love will liberate Armenians from hatred toward the Turks. The canonization is one sign of both sides inching toward reconciliation.
- A Moroccan fix to Europe's migrant crisis
Once harshly criticized for its mistreatment of African migrants, Morocco has changed its view and now lays down a well-regulated welcome mat. If Europe did more of the same, fewer migrants would risk dangerous sea journeys with smugglers.
- Chlorine attacks in Syria: Time to reassert a global ban
As evidence mounts of Syria dropping chlorine gas bombs on civilians, the UN needs to act. On the 100th anniversary of the world’s first major chlorine attack, humanity must reaffirm a standard against such indiscriminate weapons.
- Why Obama needs a key tool for trade talks
A new bipartisan bill in Congress would give the president special authority to negotiate trade pacts. Such economic measures are a vital means for peaceful cooperation between nations.
- Putting Libya back together again
As civil war saps and splits the North African country, leaders of rival groups are in talks aimed at forming a unity government. The UN-led talks require a patience in turning Libya's shared suffering into hope for a shared democratic vision.
- Europe's urgent task of saving migrants
A rapid rise in migrants trying to reach Europe across the Mediterranean – with many not making it – requires the EU to overhaul its immigration policies and anti-migrant fears.
- What propels the 'sharing economy'
The booming business of digital transactions between strangers in providing services and goods relies on new ways of determining trust. Consumers say the 'sharing economy' is building strong communities.
- Protecting the purity of the Olympics
As a rise in sports betting leads to more scandals, the International Olympic Committee must safeguard athletes from corruption and ensure fair competition. A new IOC hot line is one good step.
- Body cameras can help police to perfect their work
Recent shootings of black men have resulted in a rush to put body cameras on police as a way to 'catch them.' Yet recordings of police who handle difficult situations well would be the best result from 'body cams,' creating models to emulate.
- Why Tsarnaev deserves the mercy of a life sentence
The jury that convicted Dzhokhar Tsarnaev for the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing will start to decide his penalty on April 21. Choosing a life sentence will be an act of grace with a greater potential for deterrence than the death penalty.
- What North Charleston can teach America
The April 4 shooting of a black man in the South Carolina city evoked reactions of empathy, transparency, and swift justice. That helped keep the city calm and focused on solutions and unity.
- How to read the alphabet soup of global 'clubs'
This week's summit of Western Hemisphere leaders reflects a churn in the membership of many multinational bodies – and a search for common values that endure against rising global challenges.
- Kenya's unity against a terror tactic
The unity of Kenya's Christians and Muslims in reaction to last week's slaughter of more than 140 Christian students sends a strong message against a terrorist tactic of division.