I do not often cite purely opinion pieces–I prefer to refer to news articles and try to draw my own conclusions from the evidence.. But The Guardian has published an essay by Seumas Milne that is genuinely thought-provoking. It is a leftist critique of the policies pursued by the US since 11 September 2001 and it is blunt and direct. The essay is certainly worthy of discussion and thought.
The decision by Saudi Arabia not to take a seat in the UN Security Council perplexed many people. Fred Kaplan has published an essay which sheds light on Saudi reasoning. The essay is also testimony to how quickly and profoundly the politics of the Middle East are changing. Once again, the linchpin of all this change seems to be the removal of Sunni power in Iraq, a shift in the balance of power that favored Iran and its Shia allies. I suspect we will all look back at the American invasion of Iraq in 2003 as one of the most consequential moves of the 21st century, perhaps reminiscent of the Balkan Wars that preceded World War I in the 20th Century.
A very strange event occurred in Tiananmen Square in China: an SUV plowed into the crowded square killing five people and wounding many more. The most likely explanation for the crash is the obvious one: a deranged driver losing control of a car. But Tiananment Square is a highly symbolic place in China–it was the site of the famous protests that were suppressed in 1989. While we know very little about the event right now, it may be the case that something more significant is going on than the obvious explanation. We will keep an eye on this.
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