Law

The New Monopolies

Have America's big Internet companies become too powerful?

BY DANIEL ALTMAN | JANUARY 7, 2013

The Year in Unfreedom

An encouraging number of the world's people voted in 2012. But voting does not a democracy make.

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | JANUARY 4, 2013

Rough Cut

Nearly all the world's diamonds -- legal or not -- pass through this one Indian city.

BY JASON MIKLIAN | JANUARY 2, 2013

The Midlife Crisis of Bangladesh

Bangladeshis want a reckoning with their bloody past. But they can do it without partisanship?

BY JOSEPH ALLCHIN | DECEMBER 21, 2012

Pirates of the Guinean

How West Africa is replacing Somalia as the new pirate lair.

BY THIERRY VIRCOULON | DECEMBER 20, 2012

America’s Exceptional Gun Culture

Four reminders about just how entrenched guns are in American society.

BY ELIAS GROLL | DECEMBER 19, 2012

The Anti-Godfather

How a mayor set out to save a Sicilian city from neglect and Mafia influence.

BY LAURA BACON, RUSHDA MAJEED | DECEMBER 10, 2012

Clash of the Balance Sheets

The most important showdown between China and the United States isn't happening in the Pacific. It's happening at the SEC.

BY PATRICK CHOVANEC | DECEMBER 10, 2012

Off with Their Heads

Has Vladimir Putin lost control of his “corruption crackdown”?

BY SIMON SHUSTER | DECEMBER 5, 2012

Is it Legal for the Military to Patrol American Networks?

Posse Comitatus meets the 21st century.

BY TIM MAURER | DECEMBER 5, 2012

Stop Talking About Civil Society

Using terms like "civil society" is a distraction from the real problems in authoritarian countries. 

BY SARAH KENDZIOR | DECEMBER 3, 2012

There's a New Caliph in Town

The Muslim Brotherhood sees a conspiracy to oust it from power around every corner, and it’s prepared to strike preemptively against its enemies -- both real and imagined.

BY EVAN HILL | NOVEMBER 30, 2012

The Key to Bringing Democracy to China

It's naked self-interest, stupid.

BY YASHENG HUANG | NOVEMBER 19, 2012

Words Are Weapons of Mass Destruction

Why Hamas should watch its language.

BY DAVID KEYES | NOVEMBER 19, 2012

Human Rights Now

Six ways China's new leader could be the reformer the Chinese have been waiting for.

BY SOPHIE RICHARDSON | NOVEMBER 15, 2012

Is Bashar al-Assad Syria’s Abraham Lincoln?

The Syrian president's fans are comparing him with the hero of America's Civil War. Here's why they're wrong.

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | NOVEMBER 14, 2012

Coming Apart at the Seams

Burma’s ruling party is under stress. Democrats should be careful what they wish for.

BY LARRY JAGAN | NOVEMBER 12, 2012

Kafka in Beijing

A tale of an alleged rape and one woman's futile quest for justice in modern China.

BY JOHN GARNAUT, SANGHEE LIU | NOVEMBER 8, 2012

The Corruption Pandemic

Why corruption is set to become one of the defining political issues of the 21st century.

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | NOVEMBER 8, 2012

Nightmare Squared

Longing for the days of Kim Jong Il? Maybe it's time to transfer your affections to the delusional dictator of Equatorial Guinea.

BY PEDRO PIZANO | NOVEMBER 6, 2012

Breaking the Grip of the Oligarchs

How a tragic twist of fate is fueling a revolt against Armenia’s overweening tycoons.

BY LIANA AGHAJANIAN | NOVEMBER 5, 2012

Prosperity Isn't Just a Matter of Wealth

Man does not live by GDP alone. An introduction to the Legatum Institute's latest Prosperity Index.

BY PETER PASSELL | NOVEMBER 2, 2012

The Collaborator's Song

We often ask why some people choose to resist authoritarian regimes. But the better question might be why so many decide to cooperate.

BY ANNE APPLEBAUM | OCTOBER 31, 2012

The Secret of Islamist Success

Islamist political parties aren't succeeding in the Middle East because they stand for Islam. It's because they have a well-established political brand.

BY DALIBOR ROHAC | OCTOBER 31, 2012

Georgia Versus the Forces of Chaos

In the wake of this month’s watershed election in Georgia, a new prime minister and an incumbent president are figuring out how to keep their personal enmity from breaking into open warfare.

BY MOLLY CORSO | OCTOBER 26, 2012

In Praise of Apathy

It's time to stop deriding the Americans who refuse to vote. They're trying to tell us something.

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | OCTOBER 24, 2012

Where the Arab Spring Has Not Yet Sprung

The spirit of rebellion continues to simmer in the Middle East and North Africa. But you won’t see much about it in the headlines.

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | OCTOBER 17, 2012

To Leave or Not to Leave

President Hugo Chávez’s victory in the presidential election has some Venezuelans wondering whether it's time to leave.

BY DANIEL LANSBERG-RODRIGUEZ | OCTOBER 16, 2012

Why a Constitution Is a Bad Place for a Blasphemy Law

A constitutional ban on blasphemy might sound like a good idea to some. But it can mean less freedom for everyone.

BY KATRINA LANTOS SWETT, ROBERT P. GEORGE | OCTOBER 15, 2012

Remembering the White Terror

25 years after the end of authoritarianism, Taiwan is still struggling to come to terms with its past.

BY AMBER PARCHER | OCTOBER 12, 2012