All The Monitor's View
Liberating child soldiers as a path to peaceThe UN reports progress in getting armed groups to end recruitment of children as soldiers. Such success often brings a side benefit: It can open a door for peace talks.
A Nobel that awards a deeper view of human behaviorThis year’s Nobel Prize for economics went to an American who challenged old theories about selfish interests driving prosperity. His work opens the potential for greater insights on the role of character in economics.
Welcome the world’s newest welcome matDespite its own poverty, Bangladesh has allowed in more than 500,000 Muslim Rohingya from Myanmar in what is the world’s most urgent refugee crisis. It joins a list of a few other countries with a generosity toward strangers in need.
Here’s a seed of hope for storm-struck Puerto RicoSome places devastated by catastrophic storms learn to reinvent themselves, not merely recover. Puerto Ricans can look to one Kansas town leveled by a tornado.
Take the gun debate to a shared levelWill another mass shooting alter the debate over gun laws? Not unless both sides deal with a common fear of gun violence and admit a mutual desire for community safety.
Can the Supreme Court define political communities?A court case on partisan gerrymandering will test if the justices want the courts, rather than voters, to define the identity of voting districts.
The real lights of Vegas must shine onThose tales of poise, sacrifice, and compassion after the Oct. 1 shooting are a necessary antidote. Americans must not mirror the evil motives behind mass violence.
The start-ups in an upstart US economyThe US rose in a global ranking on competitiveness, in part because its innovation ‘ecosystem’ lessens fears for entrepreneurs.
A different approach to curbing atrocitiesThe UN focus on Myanmar’s atrocities toward the Rohingya may need a new approach, one that speaks to the ‘ordinary virtues’ of the country’s majority.
Saudi Arabia hands women the keysAllowing women to drive cars signals the kingdom’s wider desire for an innovative, knowledge-based economy. Placing limits on women is not the road to such a goal.
An artistic lift after disastersPerformers and other artists rose to the occasion after recent hurricanes and other recent tragedies. The arts can play a crucial role in healing a community of fear and trauma.
Why elections in Europe spring a surpriseGermany follows France in holding an election in which voters showed a new independence from the main parties and seem to seek a different political identity.
Why the Supreme Court is rarely in the dockA new poll suggests why Americans put more trust in the high court than in the other branches. Even as the justices take on difficult cases, their role is seen as essential in applying the highest ideals to individuals and society.
Aid to North Koreans? The idea has roots.South Korea’s offer of humanitarian aid to North Korean children and pregnant women, despite the North’s military threats, fits a trend to protect the innocent even in the midst of a conflict.
Lessons in identity from Kurds and CatalansComing votes for independence in Kurdish Iraq and Spain’s Catalonia represent a challenge of shifting identity in the 21st century. Both peoples must be careful in defining a new collective ‘self.’
The awards and rewards of grasping infinityTwo mathematicians who made a breakthrough in understanding infinity were recently given a medal. Their work itself reflects an unbounded progress in explanations of reality.
Apple thinks different – and the same – about the ‘town square’The company plans to turn its stores into community centers (while still selling Apple products) in yet another sign of how much the Digital Age creates new groupings even as it feeds a natural desire for connection and shared destiny.
What to think of North Korea on Peace DayOne reason the United Nations is so focused on preventive diplomacy regarding North Korea is a growing emphasis on ‘positive drivers’ of peace. One example is the widening celebration of International Peace Day.
EU advice for nations with big visionsA leader of the European Union reflects on the need for values as other parts of the world try to link up Asia into EU-style unions.
The West’s learning curve on Russian election meddlingAfter seeing Russian attempts to influence the US and French vote, Germany has learned to firmly protect the integrity of its democracy before a Sept. 24 vote.
