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According to the World Bank, Argentina is now the country with the second highest rate of food inflation (AP News, May 12, 2023). Food prices in the nation have seen a 115 percent increase over the last twelve months—surpassed only by Lebanon, where food prices have increased over 300 percent! Argentina’s general annual inflation rate has also increased by over...
The people of Lebanon are suffering under severe inflation, turning the U.S. dollar into the preferred local currency over the Lebanese pound (Deutsche Welle, May 8, 2023). Prices for goods are doubling, including the price of olive oil, the crucial, locally produced cooking staple. For many, this once-ubiquitous household product is now beyond their financial...
China’s aggressive regional actions are seen as a threat by many of its neighbors—which, in turn, are looking to gain support from allies. As the war in Ukraine continues, Germany and Japan are working more closely. In March, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz led a high-level delegation of German cabinet ministers to Japan for talks on strategic collaboration (...
Over a quarter of the European continent is currently in drought, and summer has not yet arrived (Politico, April 28, 2023). “A key reservoir serving millions of Catalans is dwindling away. A conflict over water triggered clashes in France, where several villages can no longer provide their residents with tap water.
Lawlessness abounds in the Caribbean nation of Haiti, and the sitting government appears helpless to arrest it (Deutsche Welle, April 28, 2023). Public lynchings are increasing, and the government seems powerless to stop them. About two weeks ago, a dozen suspected gang members were pulled off a bus, stoned, and burned alive by a mob—a horrifying instance of...
In a recent meeting at the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, scientists discussed the direction of fertility research. Current investigations are exploring the potential to improve fertility and treat fertility-related issues, but also darker and more troubling avenues.
The Wall Street Journal found 43 percent of Americans now consider “money” a very important value, up from 31 percent in 1998. “Patriotism” declined from 70 to 38 percent; “having children” from 59 to 30 percent; and “religion” from 62 to 39 percent. “Tolerance for others, deemed very important by 80 percent of Americans as recently as four years ago, has fallen...
Nearly a billion people dwelling in cities around the globe are experiencing a crisis concerning access to water, and in the next three decades, that number is predicted to double, according to a new United Nations report (The Guardian, March 21, 2023). In fact, water demand in cities is predicted to increase by 80 percent by 2050. Currently, two to three...
In 2022, Canada was the fastest growing of 38 nations in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (BBC, March 23, 2023). The nation grew by over a million people, raising its total population by 2.7 percent. This is Canada’s fastest year of population growth since 1957, and if this rate continued, the nation would double its population in just...
On a recent visit to Berlin, the Czech president “called on Germany to take on a leadership role in European security efforts that would inspire other countries” (Euractiv, March 22, 2023).