World Politics News   Articles for World Politics Course

Every year the world’s largest human migration occurs in China.  It occurs around the time of the Chinese New Year as people go home to celebrate the holiday.  The movement of people is simply amazing and the traveling creates all sorts of traffic jams in virtually every mode of transportation.  The Chinese web giant, Baidu, has created a real-time heat map of the movement of people and you can see it here.

新年快乐

Graeme Wood has written an article for The Atlantic which has generated a lot of discussion.  It is entitled “What ISIS Really Wants” and it traces the religious basis for the Islamic State’s ideology. It is an extraordinary essay and is worthy of consideration.  To give an idea of Wood’s argument in the essay, consider this brief excerpt:

“In fact, much of what the group does looks nonsensical except in light of a sincere, carefully considered commitment to returning civilization to a seventh-century legal environment, and ultimately to bringing about the apocalypse.”

As you read the article, keep in mind the words of Sun Tzu:

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”― Sun Tzu, The Art of War (likely around the 6th Century BCE)

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the disputed territory of Arunachal Pradesh.  His visited elicited a strong protest by China which also claims parts of the territory.  India and China have an uneasy relationship, although both sides claim to be trying to repair relations.  But two powerful countries abutting each other often find it very difficult to reach consensus on disputed territorial matters–such matters often become symbols easily hijacked by strong nationalist emotions.