The Islamic State continues to wreak havoc against Shia communities in Iraq. It took responsibility for a bomb blast in a market that killed at least 60 people. The terror war represents the Islamic State’s desire to reestablish Sunni control in Iraq, control which disappeared after the US overthrow of Saddam Hussein in its 2003 invasion. Unfortunately, the tragedy in Iraq is obscured by political posturing in the US about the threat ISIS poses to American national security. The real focus of US foreign policy should be on how to protect the innocent civilians in Iraq who are being slaughtered.
China allowed its currency to decline in value for the third straight day, leading to a 4.4% devaluation of the yuan. The inability of the Chinese government to gain control over the currency mirrors its inability to stabilize the Shanghai stock market without extensive intervention. The market failures are not necessarily dangerous in and of themselves–we witness similar failures in the US and Europe at various points. But the governments in the US and Europe only intervene when catastrophe looms (as in the bank bailouts in 2008). We do not know how the Chinese people will regard the inability of their government to control these problems. Trying and failing may raise questions of legitimacy.
An 11-year old girl has given birth in Paraguay to a child conceived after her rape by her stepfather. Paraguayan law does not permit abortion (which was requested by the girl’s mother) except to save the life of the mother, so the baby was born by a Caesarean section. There were protests from several international organizations who regarded the inability of the girl to receive an abortion to be a violation of her human rights. The conflict between those who support liberal conceptions of freedom and those who support a more culturally determined definition of freedom continues.
Photograph of the Perseid Meteor Shower from Finland
World Politics News 
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