Egypt’s Pretenders

Egypt has had its fill of heroes in the form of Gamal Abdel Nasser, Anwar al-Sadat, Mubarak, and Morsi — all false prophets of particular versions of modernity — but it is crying out for leadership. Unfortunately, the politicians stocking the new government do not inspire confidence that Egypt will finally get what it needs. […]

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A Fantasy From New Jersy

Is the “India Story” over, as many commentators have begun to observe? Actually, the more relevant question today is: How did it grow and circulate as widely and rapidly as it did? Unlike China, with which it was routinely and inaptly compared, India never undertook extensive land reforms, nor did it adequately train its workforce […]

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In China, Xi Is Supreme

In the six months since he took over as General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Xi Jinping has accumulated more power and more personal authority than any Chinese leader since Mao Zedong, the founder of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) whom Xi often quotes. Even Deng Xiaoping had to contend with a […]

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China’s Economic Slowdown: How Much Can Beijing Tolerate?

To be sure, Chinese leaders would prefer balanced high growth to low growth. However, the current leadership is aware of the enormous risks of allowing highly distorted growth to continue. Since 2008, Beijing has maintained growth with a massive injection of credit, much of it invested in speculative real estate, excessive industrial capacity, and infrastructure […]

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Prosperity And The Americans

If proverbial Martians descended on Earth and toured America’s crowded shopping malls, traveled its congested highways and sampled its technological marvels — from the many cable channels to ubiquitous smartphones — these visitors would be hard-pressed to describe the United States as poor or its economy as failing. The truth is that, even in its […]

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One-Party Rule Back In Japan, But Can Abe Blow It?

Sunday’s sweeping victory by the Liberal Democratic Party–New Komeito ruling bloc in the Upper House election put an end to the divided Diet and hopefully to the “revolving door” of prime ministers over the past seven years, as ridiculed by foreign media. That is at least until the next Lower House election, which must be held […]

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For Pakistan, Water A Bigger Problem Than Terrorism

In a report released last week by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Pakistan was pinpointed as “one of the most water-stressed countries in the world, not far from being classified, ‘water-scarce’.” As water demand exceeds supply in the South Asian country, more and more water is being withdrawn from the nation’s reservoirs, leaving them in a critically […]

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Let’s Not Talk Of “Likonomics”

Well before Li and President Xi Jinping officially took the reins in March, exports were falling, manufacturing was contracting and economists were downgrading forecasts. Big reforms are always easier when growth is booming. If Li could wave a magic wand and get gross domestic product back into double-digit territory without pumping more air into China’s […]

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