OPINION

Japan as Number Four

TOKYO – Harvard Professor Ezra Vogel’s 1979 book, Japan as Number One: Lessons for America, became an instant bestseller in Japan. The flattering title certainly helped sales, but it was the book’s central argument – that the Japanese approach to governance and business were superior to others – that really made …

Read More »

The Toxic Legacy of the Green Revolution

NEW DELHI – There are more than 390,000 identified plant species in the world, but just three – rice, maize, and wheat – account for roughly 60% of the plant-based calories in our diets. The dominance of these three grains is largely the result of major technological breakthroughs, particularly the development of high-yielding varieties (HYVs) of …

Read More »

How to Democratize AI

‘PARIS – The rapid advance of artificial intelligence evokes both wonder and dread. Many regard AI as an object of marvel and awe (a Stupor Mundi, to borrow a Latin phrase), while others believe it can be a benevolent savior (a Salvator Mundi). Regardless of whether AI is seen as miraculous or …

Read More »

The AI Octopus

CHICAGO – With long-gestating antitrust cases against Google, Apple, and Amazon coming to fruition, many observers think that 2024 could be a turning point for Big Tech. Yet even as authorities press ahead with this litigation, they risk being blindsided by the rise of artificial intelligence, which is likely to …

Read More »

Getting over Mediocrity and Pettiness

The Gelephu Mindfulness City project is not only an economic and infrastructure project, but it is a challenge to us to get over our comfort zone of mediocrity and the mindset of pettiness when someone challenges that mediocrity. While the media likes to cite others as examples it is probably …

Read More »

The Google Trial’s Dangerous Secrecy

WASHINGTON, DC – The largest antitrust trial of the modern internet era, which wrapped up last month, has pitted the world’s most popular search engine, Google, against the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). The case hearkens back to the DOJ’s landmark lawsuit against Microsoft in the 1990s, but with a critical difference: most …

Read More »

Biden and Xi Pick the Low-Hanging Fruit

NEW HAVEN – “A Better Biden-Xi Summit?” was the title of my commentary last month, and the emphasis was on the question mark. With good reason: Last year’s summit in Bali was a flop. Owing to poor preparation and an overemphasis on slogans (setting a “floor” for the troubled US-China relationship), any …

Read More »

The Rules-Based International Order Is Collapsing in Gaza

ISTANBUL – In 2007, I found myself in a car with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and then-Israeli President Shimon Peres en route to Turkey’s Grand National Assembly. During their historic visit to Ankara, which I had the privilege of hosting, both leaders addressed the Turkish parliament, advocating peace and a …

Read More »

Western media failures in Gaza

It has been more than two weeks now since another war in Gaza started. More than 6,500 Palestinians have been killed by relentless Israeli bombardment and 1,400 Israelis died in the attack by the armed Palestinian resistance group Hamas on southern Israel. Watching the media coverage of these events, I …

Read More »

People in Gaza are dying

As we speak, people in Gaza are dying.  They are dying only from bombs and strikes. Soon, many more will die from the consequences of siege imposed on the Gaza Strip.   Basic services are crumbling.  Medicine is running out.  Food and water are running out. The streets of Gaza have started overflowing with sewage. Gaza …

Read More »