All Commentary
- A Christian Science PerspectiveThe struggle for freedom in Syria
A Christian Science perspective.
- The Monitor's ViewA woman as Mexico's president?
On Sunday, the ruling party nominated Josefina Vazquez Mota to be the first woman candidate for president from a major Mexican party. Would she instill rule of law and sustain the fight against drug cartels?
- OpinionChina: One fire may be out, but tensions over rural land rights are still smoldering
The same tinderbox that allowed the Chinese village of Wukan to erupt (the confiscation of farmer’s land without fair compensation) is present in thousands of villages across China. The scale of the problem is a matter of both domestic and global concern.
- John HughesThe great wait of China: How long until freedom?
How long can China's communist regime hold in thrall people who have prospered in an economic system that has many of the hallmarks of free enterprise? Despite attempts to censor the Internet, China's huge, new urban population is aware of the outside world and changes in it.
- John HughesThe great wait of China: How long until freedom?
How long can China's communist regime hold in thrall people who have prospered in an economic system that has many of the hallmarks of free enterprise? Despite attempts to censor the Internet, China's huge, new urban population is aware of the outside world and changes in it.
- A Christian Science PerspectiveA God-centered career search
A Christian Science perspective.
- Readers RespondReaders Write: Keep criminals off streets; get US out of Afghanistan; let kids play
Letters to the Editor from the weekly print edition of February 6, 2012: One reader says reducing prison populations won't come from releasing criminals, but rehabilitating them and preventing crime. Others praise the recent cover story on the importance of free playtime for children. Another argues the US shouldn't stay in Afghanistan for access to resources or influence in the region.
- Reinvention: The rewards of trying again
First-time wonders deserve our awe and applause. But almost every good thing in life -- from careers to ideas, products to poetry -- is more reinvention than invention.
- A Christian Science PerspectiveWatching the Super Bowl?
A Christian Science perspective: What watching the Super Bowl might have to do with spirituality.
- The Monitor's ViewOf presidents and prime ministers who talk of faith
Obama in America and Cameron in Britain have spoken of how their Christian faith influences their approach to shaping society. The US presidential campaign is also skirting church-state issues. How much should religion and politics mix?
- OpinionGoing green: View my world-class collection of hotel towel cards.
My global collection of towel cards tells guests how to be green (and save the hotel money) in a dozen instructive, chic, bossy, relieving, euphemistic, paranoid, minimalistic, and earnest ways.
- A Christian Science PerspectiveA relationship restored
A Christian Science perspective.
- OpinionRussian protests – echoes of US civil rights movement
To see the December protests in Russia as primarily a political wave is to miss a more fundamental leaven at work in Russian society: a moral awakening akin to the American civil rights movement. An early test is Saturday, when a massive protest in Moscow is planned.
- The Monitor's ViewRussia must rethink what Syria protests mean
Russia under Vladimir Putin sees only a civil war in Syria, justifying its threat to veto any US Security Council action against Assad. But Syria is in a revolution, a shifting of sovereignty.
- Three factors that will determine Syria’s future The most realistic scenario in Syria is quagmire: Assad still has loyalty; the opposition is splintered, though protests continue; and the international community is indecisive, including the Arab League. But stalemate could finally prompt foreign intervention and a needed ‘safe zone. Benedetta Berti, a fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies of Tel Aviv University, lists the three factors that will determine Syria’s future.
- Global ViewpointMario Monti is working through Italy's debt crisis. Is the US watching?
Italy may find Prime Minister Mario Monti's dose of discipline hard to swallow, but his depoliticized democracy is the only form of government that can move Italy forward. Monti's experiment may also serve as an antidote to the political dysfunction in the West – especially the US.
- Global ViewpointMario Monti is working through Italy's debt crisis. Is the US watching?
Italy may find Prime Minister Mario Monti's dose of discipline hard to swallow, but his depoliticized democracy is the only form of government that can move Italy forward. Monti's experiment may also serve as an antidote to the political dysfunction in the West – especially the US.
- OpinionA look back: In spite of super PACs, this isn't the most negative campaign in history
Negative campaigning is actually an American tradition. In fact, attack campaigning has been around since the beginning without derailing the electoral process. Mudslinging can hardly be called a positive campaign feature, but it is a sign of democracy in action.
- A Christian Science PerspectiveThe US and Iran: neighborly signs of love
A Christian Science perspective.
- The Monitor's ViewWith Facebook IPO, time to friend privacy
Facebook's IPO, or initial public offering, will lead to shareholder pressure on the firm to squeeze profits out of users' personal data. Google, too, faces more scrutiny as it mines user data even more. Privacy watchdogs need to be on the alert.