2011

commentary

Tokyo's Transformation

The U.S. response to the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami showcased its lasting commitment to Japan, as well as the unique logistical and material capabilities that the U.S. military forces stationed in the Pacific can provide, write Eric Heginbotham, Ely Ratner, and Richard J. Samuels.

commentary

Commanding Democracy in Egypt: The Military's Attempt to Manage the Future

commentary

California's Prisoner Shuffle

The state needs to deal with prison overcrowding and inadequate medical care for prisoners in ways that don't simply transfer the burden to county criminal justice systems and the healthcare safety nets of local communities, writes Lois Davis.

commentary

The Role of Physicians in Controlling Medical Care Costs and Reducing Waste

Because the budget crisis is really a crisis, it behooves physicians to answer the waste question as rapidly as possible. Without an answer, there is no hope that an appropriate policy process for reining in health care costs will be identified, writes Robert H. Brook.

commentary

Insurance Expansion and Health Literacy

The ongoing evolution of the health care system is leading US households toward greater responsibility for their own well-being. With this responsibility, however, comes an increasing need to be able to find, trust, use, and act on relevant information to make informed choices, write Laurie T. Martin and Ruth M. Parker.

commentary

The Case for Keeping U.S. Troops in Northern Iraq

Both Iraqi and Kurdish officials have expressed concern that ethnic violence will break out in the north once U.S. troops withdraw. Though many state publicly that the U.S. "occupation" must end, some of these same officials say privately that they would like U.S. troops to remain as a go-between, writes Larry Hanauer.

commentary

Redefining the Transatlantic RelationshipEurope's Paradoxical Pacifism

While Europeans dislike a ubiquitous America which is always ready to prove its power, they seem to dislike an isolationist America even more, writes Jeremy Ghez.

commentary

Follow the Money

If the U.S. does not improve its ability to track federal spending and develop reliable measures of effectiveness, precious federal disaster aid will continue to be at risk of being squandered, writes Agnes Gereben Schaefer.

commentary

Ahmadinejad vs. the Revolutionary Guards

Khamenei and Jafari are unlikely to allow the political faction loyal to Ahmadinejad to win elections for parliament in 2012 and the presidency in 2013, writes Alireza Nader.

commentary

Clinical Decision Support and Malpractice Risk

From the standpoint of policy makers, the basic challenge is to ensure that liability concerns do not derail the clinical value of new CDS technology, write Michael Greenberg and M. Susan Ridgely.

commentary

Africa Needs Its Own Indicators of Scientific Innovation

Policies to stimulate African development require evidence that is difficult to obtain using existing indicators, writes Watu Wamae.

commentary

Europe's Ukrainian Test

The EU should conclude the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA) with Ukraine only if the Yanukovych administration demonstrates clear commitment to European values, write F. Stephen Larrabee and Taras Kuzio.

commentary

Obama on Afghanistan: Strategic Drawdown or Rush for the Door?

Most major plots and attacks, including 9/11 and 7/7, were directly linked to the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region. Travel there has been essential to improving bomb-making skills, receiving strategic and tactical guidance, and undergoing religious indoctrination, writes Seth Jones.

commentary

How Whistleblower Rule Enables Corporate Compliance

The kerfuffle over Dodd-Frank conceals broad agreement that corporate fraud and misconduct are bad and that internal compliance mechanisms are intended to protect companies as well the community at large from bad behavior, write Michael Greenberg and Donna Boehme.