Two members of the Golden Dawn in Greece have been assassinated in a drive-by shooting and a third member of the far-right party is in the hospital. The attacks follow a government crackdown on the party, and it has raised fears that the violence may be the prelude to a civil war in Greece. The cycle of violence and counter-violence when a population becomes radicalized is very difficult to stop once it starts. The critical question right now is how the government will respond, and whether that response will reassure the population that the situation is under control.
German-US relations are unusually sour. The revelations about NSA snooping on Angela Merkel have hit a raw nerve for a country that long suffered under totalitarian governments that did not respect civil liberties. But an additional dispute has surfaced after the US criticized German economic policies for relying too much on exports for economic growth at the expense of the other countries in the European Union–the US would prefer that Germany stimulate domestic demand so that economic growth could spread to other countries as well. The Germans have not taken the criticism too well, and their response has been to reject flatly the US charges.
The Central African Republic has not had a fully functional government for several months after a coup overthrew the government. The country has descended into chaos and armed groups are inciting violence between the Christian and Muslim parts of the population. The UN Security Council has issued a report which raises the specter of genocide in the country, but it does not appear as if the Security Council has any substantive plan to intervene to prevent that crime. Unfortunately, there has been little world attention to this problem, and it is unlikely that outside governments will be motivated to offer genuine assistance to the people of the C.A.R.
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