All The Monitor's View
- The payoff for society in rewarding whistle-blowers
A US program that pays for tips on company fraud helps highlight the role of employees as guardians of their firm's integrity.
- Taking the high road in a Himalayan hostility
India and China, two giants that cannot afford a war, are in a military standoff over a piece of Bhutan. Patient diplomacy will hopefully win the day.
- When Congress wields a tool of peace
Lawmakers are strongly bipartisan in support of new sanctions on Iran, Russia, and North Korea. The mixed record on sanctions requires Congress to be vigilant in tracking their impact.
- The prodigal Greeks return to financial markets
A bond sale shows how much Greece has reformed after it nearly went bankrupt and threatened the eurozone.
- What restores peace for Jerusalem’s Old City
Ending violence over the control of Islam's third-holiest site rests on a mutual appreciation by Jews and Muslims of the promise of peace in each other's religion.
- The bounty that heads off famine
East African countries battling hunger, the focus of a Monitor series this week, are learning that resilience lies in treating the poor as leaders, not victims, in defining their own solutions.
- Poland’s challenge to EU values
The ruling nationalist party is on track to end the independence of the courts, forcing both Poles and the European Union to reassert equality before the law. Such a democratic principle helps unite Europe against the kind of inequality of rights that ignites war.
- Curiosity as an answer for income inequality
The rise in the wage gap may be caused in part by a productivity gap in companies. One answer for the less-productive firms: Increase worker curiosity in ideas and technology.
- Why the ground shifts under Venezuela's regime
The country’s political crisis is coming to a head as the poor embrace democratic rights and reject the Maduro regime.
- A toehold for peace in Syria
The truce in Syria’s southwest, brokered by Russia and the US, hints at war fatigue and some hope for ending a six-year war now largely driven by foreign interests.
- Creating a virtuous circle with North Korea
South Korea’s offer of talks with Pyongyang on minor issues aims to create enough trust and goodwill to tackle the tougher issues. The alternative is more of a vicious circle in military escalation.
- Best lesson yet in Brazil's anti-graft drive
A prison sentence on corruption for a once-popular president helps illustrate how deeply Brazilians now uphold equality before the law.
- The Trump-Macron partnership
In speeches if not in tweets, these two new presidents find common purpose in defending Western civilization and revitalizing Europe.
- Amid the rubble of Mosul, Iraqi reconciliation
In contrast to ISIS’s rule over the city, Iraq’s government has already shown a path to reconcile Iraqis, especially its minority Sunnis.
- How Germany forced a rethink of Africa
At last week’s G20 summit, Germany won a major boost of private investment in Africa as a way to stem mass migration. But first Germany itself had to look at its own neglect of the continent.
- In G20 protests, a different view of extremism
Violent protests in Hamburg revealed the rise in left-wing extremism in Germany. But the challenge of the extremist mind-set – either left- or right-wing – is in many ways the same worldwide.
- Turning down the temperature on town halls
Town halls are a crucial tool in creating connections between citizens and their lawmakers. But how do you mix civility with passion? There are ways.
- Angela Merkel and overcoming division
German Chancellor Angela Merkel has seen her country overcome deep skepticism to become unified and integrated into Europe. The next step, as she sees it, is for Germany to become a more unifying force globally.
- The tiny cracks inside North Korea
North Korea's missile tests present a picture of a threat to the world. But the world is pushing back in small ways that matter, too.
- Hong Kong’s uneasy deal with China
‘One country, two systems’ has allowed the island to keep its independent democratic system. But after 20 years the agreement shows signs of eroding.