An already strong contender for the most absurd news story of 2024 became one of the outstanding favorites for the title this week when Lionel Messi,
Opinion
Beijing Anger-ometer, February 2024: Trade Tantrums, Summit Slights and a Messi Mess
Every sports fan gets disappointed when their favorite player cannot take to the field. Not everyone, however, flies into such a solipsistic fury that
Red Carpet Redacted: Nicole Kidman and Lionel Messi Expose Hong Kong’s Image Charade
Hong Kong authorities and their Beijing backers have a quixotic vision: They want a city composed of 7 million servants who shut up, smile, beaver
Beyond Equality: Why Democracies Must Reclaim the U.N. From Autocrats
“We the peoples of the United Nations determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war,” begins the preamble to the U.N. Charter. It
From Runway to Runaway: Will U.S. IPO Unravel Fast-Fashion Giant Shein?
January 2024 ought to be a high point for Shein. Preparing to launch its U.S. Initial Public Offering (IPO), the company has achieved everything that
Five Ways Xi Jinping Is Ticking the Doomsday Clock to Midnight
Born in 1947 as the world was just waking up to the reality of the nuclear bomb and people’s newfound ability to threaten the continuation of their
Nauru’s on the Naughty Step, but Western Hypocrisy Fuels China’s Rise
Remember Liz Truss, the famous China hawk and 44-day prime minister of the United Kingdom? Remember her publicly urging her country’s subsequent
Beijing Anger-ometer, January 2023: A Swarm of Elections Stings China’s Dictatorship
China, a dictatorship drowning in a sea of democracies, started 2024, the year in which over a billion people are registered to participate in
Taiwan Election: The Return of Ma Ying-jeou
Any momentum Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) presidential candidate Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) gained after the Tsai administration cried wolf about a Chinese
Survival Mode: Why China’s Assault on Video Games Will Never End
On December 22, 2023, China announced yet more rules to govern the gaming industry. Having already prevented the import of foreign-made consoles from
From Falsehoods to Fighter Jets: China’s Election Manipulation Tactics in Taiwan
China’s most consequential election tampering is also its most forceful: aircraft carrier formations in the Taiwan Strait, Chinese warplanes crossing
Taiwan 2024 Election: The Pointless Illusion of Consensus Over Renewable Energy
If you listen to liberal commentators, the idea of cross-party agreement often turns into a panacea for all problems. If political parties could