The RAND Blog

June 2009

Pakistan
commentary
Policing Pakistan
C. Christine Fair
Jun 30, 2009
Wall Street Journal Asia
The United States has spent some $12 billion trying to help Pakistan save itself. Unfortunately, Washington has lavished most of the aid on the Pakistan army. It is time to reconsider that decision and focus instead on improving the country's police force, writes C. Christine Fair.
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Recidivism
commentary
Can Gitmo's Terrorists Be Rehabilitated?
Aidan Kirby Winn
Jun 29, 2009
The Christian Science Monitor
Before he closes Guantánamo, Obama must take a clear-eyed look at the record – and anticipate the next chapter of the fight against terrorism. What happens to terrorist suspects after they leave the detention center at Guantánamo Bay, writes Aidan Kirby Winn.
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Health Insurance Cost Sharing
commentary
The Public Option: Sorting Rhetoric from Reality
Elizabeth A. McGlynn
Jun 24, 2009
ABC News
President Obama and several Congressional leaders have recently expressed support for the idea of allowing citizens to buy into a public insurance program as part of any health reform legislation. The intensity of the ensuing debate has been fascinating given the lack of specifics that have been offered by either side, writes Elizabeth A. McGlynn.
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Health and Wellness Promotion
commentary
Improve Health, Not the Health Care System
Dana P. Goldman
Jun 23, 2009
NYTimes.com
One reason that health reform proposals always seem to fail is that proponents promise too much. Reformers declare they will improve quality, lower costs and increase access — all at the same time. This mantra is repeated so often that the public tends to believe it is possible, when really it isn't, writes Dana P. Goldman.
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Iran
commentary
Iran's Real Winners: The Revolutionary Guards
Alireza Nader
Jun 22, 2009
RAND.org
Despite the huge protests on the streets of Tehran, Iranian President Ahmadinejad has once again triumphed. A relative newcomer to Iranian politics, Ahmadinejad's re-election and subsequent crackdown on the demonstrators suggest that the Iranian political system is moving in a new and potentially dangerous direction, writes Alireza Nader.
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commentary
The Science of Health Care Reform
Robert H. Brook
Jun 17, 2009
The Journal of the American Medical Association
It is time for physicians to commit as a profession to helping the President and Congress achieve the vision of a new health care system by improving the way medicine is practiced, writes Robert Brook.
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Security Cooperation
commentary
Getting Value from the U.S.-ROK Summit
Bruce W. Bennett @bwbennett
Jun 15, 2009
The Korea Herald
For months, North Korea has been trying to upstage the summit between South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and U.S. President Barack Obama that is scheduled for June 16. Almost all Americans I know have heard of these North Korean provocations. But few have heard anything about the U.S.-ROK summit, writes Bruce Bennett.
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commentary
BRIC-à-Brac
Andrew S. Weiss
Jun 15, 2009
ForeignPolicy.com
The leaders of the BRIC countries—Brazil, Russia, India, and China—hold their first stand-alone summit in Yekaterinburg, Russia, on Tuesday, June 16. The timing of the BRIC summit, just a few weeks before U.S. President Barack Obama's arrival in Moscow and the G-8 meeting in L'Aquila, Italy, is hardly accidental, writes Andrew S. Weiss.
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Security Cooperation
commentary
Lebanon Vote Tilts to the West
Aram Nerguizian, Ghassan Schbley
Jun 10, 2009
The Washington Times
The result of Sunday's parliamentary elections in Lebanon is a boon for the United States, but it also presents a challenge. The U.S. would be well-advised to play for the long term in Lebanon with a pragmatic policy that deals with the reality of Hezbollah's political power while continuing to strengthen moderate forces and national institutions, write Aram Nerguizian and Ghassan Schbley.
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Lebanon
commentary
Living with the Outcome: Elections in Lebanon
Aram Nerguizian, Ghassan Schbley
Jun 5, 2009
GlobalSecurity.org
Lebanon is scheduled to hold elections Sunday [June 7], and the pro-Western political alliance favored by the United States may lose. If it does, the Obama Administration should not consider the result a triumph for Hezbollah, but a challenge, write Aram Nerguizian and Ghassan Schbley.
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Nuclear Deterrence
commentary
No Surprise in Failure to Deter N. Korea
Bruce W. Bennett @bwbennett
Jun 2, 2009
Chicago Tribune
North Korea's latest misbehavior highlights an uncomfortable truth: the failure of the United States and the international community to deter North Korean actions. In this case, it is pretty easy to see why North Korea has not been deterred, writes Bruce Bennett.
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International Diplomacy
commentary
Rethink Washington's 'War of Ideas'
Christopher Paul
Jun 2, 2009
The Christian Science Monitor
The term
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June 2009

Policing Pakistan

Can Gitmo's Terrorists Be Rehabilitated?

The Public Option: Sorting Rhetoric from Reality

Improve Health, Not the Health Care System

Iran's Real Winners: The Revolutionary Guards

The Science of Health Care Reform

Getting Value from the U.S.-ROK Summit

BRIC-à-Brac

Lebanon Vote Tilts to the West

Living with the Outcome: Elections in Lebanon

No Surprise in Failure to Deter N. Korea

Rethink Washington's 'War of Ideas'

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