The Korbel Report’s Weekly Link Roundup

Happy Monday! The staff of The Korbel Report spends its fair share of time on the internet staying up-to-date on a wide-range of international news and trends. Here’s a list of the articles, blog posts, and resources we found interesting, enlightening, or infuriating over the past week:

• “American Gun Use is Out of Control” by Henry Porter at The Guardian
  Porter poses a controversial question–has gun violence in America reached a level of “humanitarian crisis,” and should the international community intervene?
• “Assad and the Death of the International Criminal Court” by Eric Posner at Slate
  Although some may question the premise that the ICC is actually capable of fully and legitimately carrying out its mission, Posner asserts that the ICC becomes completely irrelevant if it does not prosecute Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
• “AusAID to Be Absorbed into the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade” from SBS
  Government shake-ups in Australia have resulted in a downsizing of the Australian international development program.
• “China’s Spending 39% of its GDP Paying Off Debts” by Gwynn Guilfod at Quartz
• “The End of Kindness” by Greg Sandoval at The Verge
  A terrifying look at the consequences of the largely unregulated frontier that is the internet, especially in the context of harassment, hostility, and privacy.
• “The Great Escape” by Angus Deaton at Foreign Policy
  Thought-provoking article on why we may never alleviate global poverty. 
• “Putin’s Downhill Race” by Amy Knight at The New York Review of Books
  Based on a global average, the upcoming Sochi Olympics should have cost $24 billion (USD); it’s $50 billion (USD) price tag reflects kickbacks and embezzlement.

Did we miss your favorite link from this week?  Let us know in the comments, on our Facebook page, or Twitter @korbelreport.

The Korbel Report’s Weekly Link Roundup

The staff of The Korbel Report spends its fair share of time on the internet staying up-to-date on a wide-range of international news and trends.  Here’s a list of the articles, blog posts, and resources we found interesting, enlightening, or infuriating this week:

• “The Global Elite’s Favorite Strongman” by Jeffrey Gettleman at The New York Times Magazine
• “The Failure of Free-Market Finance” by Adair Turner at Project Syndicate
  Five years after Lehman’s collapse, Turner says we still haven’t addressed the fundamental assumptions that generated the 2008 crisis.
• “Huge Aquifers Are Discovered in North Kenya” by Nicholas Kulish at The New York Times
• “Iran Surprises Itself and the World” by Suzanne Maloney at The Brookings Essay
  An insightful, interactive, and visually beautiful essay on Iran’s recent elections and the broad implications of presidential change.
• “Malawi Sells Jet to Avert Food Crisis” from AlJazeera
  President Banda sells a previously purchased $22 million (USD) jet to make ends meet for a looming food crisis.
• “Should Access to the Internet be a Human Right?” by Doreen Akiyo Yomoah at allAfrica
• “South Africa: Timeline of a Troubled Province” by Laura Watermeyer at allAfrica
  The Eastern Cape of South Africa is in the midst of controversy over their health system, stemming from mismanagement and corruption.  Although service delivery in the province has been notoriously poor, the accusation is highly political as the Eastern Cape is Nelson Mandela’s home province and a stronghold of the ANC.
• “Syrian Caves a Window Onto the Conflict” by Tara Sonenshine at Defense One
  35 miles northeast of Damascus lies Maaloula, a Syrian village home to culturally important and once tourist-attracting caves.  This article looks at the importance of Maaloula – both culturally and strategically.

Did we miss your favorite link from this week?  Let us know in the comments, on our Facebook page, or Twitter @korbelreport.

The Korbel Report’s Weekly Link Roundup

The staff of The Korbel Report spends its fair share of time on the internet staying up-to-date on a wide-range of international news and trends.  Here’s a list of the articles, blog posts, and resources we found interesting, enlightening, or infuriating this week:

• “3 Things We Need to Stop Saying About Poverty” by Joanne Goldblum at The Huffington Post
  A thought-provoking article that, at its heart, tells us to challenge our assumptions about poverty, the lives of impoverished people, and what it takes to get by.
  
• “The Baby in the Well: The Case Against Empathy” by Paul Bloom at The New Yorker
• “The Charity That Just Gives Money to People” by Jacob Goldstein at NPR’s Planet Money
  This story examines a charity–Give Directly–who is challenging mainstream charitable organizations working in the developing world by giving money directly to the poor, with no strings attached.  You can also listen to a longer report on this story in “Act One: Money for Nothing and Your Cows for Free” on This American Life Episode 503.
• “Military Jury Convicts Army Psychiatrist on All 45 Counts in Fort Hood Rampage” by Manny Fernandez at The New York Times
• “Russia Calls for UN Probe in Alleged Syria Gas Attack” from Al Jazeera America
  Al Jazeera has had strong coverage and moving images from the on-going conflict in Syria, and the reported chemical weapons attacks this week.
• “US Soldier Sentenced to Life in Prison for Shooting 16 Afghans” from Al Jazeera America
• “When Will Solar Get Cheap Enough for Everyone to Use?” by Kasia Cieplak-Mayr Von Baldegg at The Atlantic
  An animated look at how far solar energy has come since the 1950s, and the point at which it becomes viably cheap for mass consumption.
• “World Humanitarian Day: UN Marks 10th Anniversary of Baghdad Attack”  from the UN News Centre
  Each year World Humanitarian Day (19 August) honors the continuous work of humanitarians in the field, and remembers those who have lost their lives in the line of duty.