The RAND Blog

commentary

Good (Fast) Food as a Vehicle for Social Change

Neighborhood by neighborhood, a few dozen jobs at a time, two celebrity chefs are tackling complex, persistent public policy problems. They could succeed in their own way in communities where generations of government programs and charity have had limited impact.

Susan L. Marquis

commentary

Striking Back at the Islamic State's Foreign Fighter Pipeline

Islamic State training camps are the breeding grounds of tomorrow's Brussels or Paris attacks, and their consistent penchant for training foreigners suggests that military and security officials need to get serious about how to deal with returnees from Iraq and Syria.

Benjamin Bahney, Patrick B. Johnston, et al.

commentary

President Obama's Visit to Japan and the Transformation of Japan's Defense Policy

Washington and Tokyo have moved to actively shape and reinforce the values, norms, institutions, and regional order that have served to enable the Asia-Pacific to emerge as an engine of growth and bastion of freedom and democracy over the past nearly 40 years.

Scott W. Harold

commentary

Debunking Myths About Patient Experience Surveys

Patient experience surveys give patients a voice. They can provide fair and relevant indicators that complement other metrics of health care quality to monitor and improve care.

Rebecca Anhang Price, Marc N. Elliott

q&a

Researcher Q&A: Beau Kilmer on the State of Marijuana Legalization

Beau Kilmer, co-director of the RAND Drug Policy Research Center and a co-author of the nonpartisan primer Marijuana Legalization: What Everyone Needs to Know addresses developments in marijuana policy and why reasonable people can disagree about legalization.

commentary

Georgia's Delicate Foreign Policy Dance

Given the dangerous environment and the small size and relative military weakness of Georgia, it wisely pursues a good neighbor policy in all directions. Still, the country must improve its defense posture and for Georgia, the main security balancer is the United States.

Denis Corboy, William Courtney @courtneywmh, et al.

commentary

Why Has Obama Lifted the Arms Sales Ban on Vietnam?

The lifting of the arms embargo needs to be understood as part of the long process of normalizing relations with a former U.S. enemy and building toward a more cooperative, economically dynamic, and strategic future-oriented relationship.

Scott W. Harold

commentary

Did We Improve Veterans Health Care? It's Unclear

The Veterans Choice program was designed to expedite veterans' access to health care and relieve pressure on the VA system. Before making the program permanent, the VA should better understand its effectiveness.

Carrie M. Farmer @carriefarmer, Susan D. Hosek

commentary

Does Social Spending Hold the Key to Better Health?

Many governments are cutting spending on social welfare programs, such as unemployment benefits, while protecting health care spending. This could actually be negatively affecting population health.

Alex Sutherland

commentary

Brexit and Health Research: An Uncertain Picture

The impact of leaving the EU on UK health research would depend greatly upon the terms and conditions of such a major change. But by exploring different scenarios, each with its own set of political and economic assumptions, we can get a picture of the potential impacts.

Joanna Chataway

commentary

Islamic State May Be Down, but It's Far from Out

The Islamic State's loss of territory, money, and recruits would seem to demonstrate significant progress by the U.S.-led coalition. But if there is one accepted truism in the battle against the group, it is that its leaders intend to fight to the death to establish an Islamic caliphate.

Colin P. Clarke, Chad C. Serena

commentary

5 Things That Should Happen When Obama Visits Hiroshima

On May 27, President Barack Obama will be the first sitting U.S. president to visit the city of Hiroshima. The visit is a sign of respect and friendship between the American and Japanese people, and should make the two countries' ties even stronger.

Scott W. Harold

commentary

Terrorism Shouldn't Affect Travel Plans

Evidence suggests that the threat of terrorism need not affect individuals' behavior and travel decisions, not even in the wake of attacks such as those in Brussels and Paris.

Henry H. Willis @HenryHWillis, Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins

commentary

The Global Economic Costs of Antimicrobial Resistance

In addition to being a public health problem, antimicrobial resistance is also a major economic concern. It crosses sectoral boundaries, because resistant bugs can pass between animals and humans, and through food, agriculture, and the environment.

Jirka Taylor, Catherine A. Lichten, et al.

commentary

Making the 'Gap Year' More Inclusive and Purposeful

High schools and universities should work together, with the support of policymakers, to develop programs that would provide a wider spectrum of U.S. students with the opportunity to take a purposeful gap year—and enter college with some real-world adult experience behind them.

Louay Constant