World News Insights: Opinion Articles

Our lakes, rivers and oceans are increasingly clogged with plastic, plus trillions of microscopic fragments thereof, from all the useful and disturbingly durable products made possible by the petroleum industry. This deluge of waste has grown exponentially over 60 years. Some 10 million tons of…

Fourth of July fireworks echo eerily in a divided country. In theory, this patriotic holiday marks what holds us together, beyond all our disagreement. In practice it amplifies American division. The year that Independence Day memorializes, 1776, also lends its name to the Trumpist 1776 Project, a…

Judging from the American and Australian reactions, China’s push to raise its profile in the Pacific Ocean seems frightening indeed. Secretive negotiations between Beijing and the government of my home country, the Solomon Islands, have raised speculation that they could lead to a Chinese…

As in politics and economics, so in environment and climate; it is compromises that allow for reaching major agreements, where facts are intertwined, interests are diverged and options are conflicting. Compromises are not a defect, as no one is the sole possessor of the truth in these complex…

If it feels as if the Supreme Court is hellbent on dividing us further, Thursday’s ruling on the Environmental Protection Agency’s powers raised that feeling to whole new level. In effect, the 6-3 decision constrains the EPA in regulating greenhouse-gas emissions from stationary sources — power…

Although freelancers have been around for ages — the English word originally referred to a “free lance,” or a medieval mercenary willing to fight for the highest bidder — working independently is often considered unstable. It certainly can be, but it also forces one to learn how to navigate…

The question used to be: “Have you had Covid?” Now it’s: “How many times have you had it?” Both of us have had a Covid (re)infection in recent months. Many of us know people currently sick with Covid or recently recovered. In the week ending June 24, an estimated 1 in 30 people in the UK (some…

The world’s biggest car company, Toyota Motor Corp., reluctantly released an electric vehicle in May. Weeks later, it recalled 2,700 of them because there was a risk their wheels — the most fundamental component — would fall off. If that’s the level of quality and safety traditional auto giants are…

The Russian war on Ukraine dominated the two summits that brought Western countries together in the German province of Bavaria and the Spanish city of Madrid. G7 leaders sought to show their unity as they declared their support for Ukrainian President Zelensky and affirmed that they are standing by…

India’s attempt to reform military recruitment — which has set off political convulsions that show no signs of abating — once again shows that its aspirations to superpower status are no match for a below-par economy. India’s military — particularly its army — is antiquated in organization and…

Early bicycles came in a variety of sizes, shapes and styles, and they had colorful nicknames. The “dandy horse” had no pedals and was propelled by the rider’s feet pushing the ground — essentially wheel-assisted walking. The “penny farthing” had pedals, but the rider sat above a huge front wheel…

While Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping are marketing their authoritarian rules as alternatives to a “moribund” Western democratic system, the Khomeinist mullahs in Tehran are also throwing their hat, sorry turban, into the ring as contenders for leading a new…