As the far-right propagates a simplified and emotionally resonant message, the lack of coordination and a shared vision among the “non-far-right” strengthens the far-right’s illusion of representing the entirety of “the people.”
Tag: politics
Categories
Why Bullying In Spain Is So Rampant
Spain’s education ministry found that more than 9% of secondary school students have felt harassed or cyberbullied by their classmates at some point.
As nearly half of the world prepares to vote in elections this year, Turkish journalist and author Ece Temelkuran warns, in the Istanbul-based weekly Oksijen, that many countries are following Turkey’s path from democracy to dictatorship.
Updated Dec. 30 2023 at 12:00 p.m. The portrait of Winston Churchill was taken in 1941 by Armenian-Canadian photographer Yousuf Karsh in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, as he was set to address the Canadian members of Parliament following action taken in World War II. Why is the Roaring Lion such an iconic photograph? The portrait shows […]
Updated Dec. 29 2023 at 12:00 p.m. Caused by Nazi bombing raids which set off a series of fires, the Second Great Fire threatened to destroy London. It was ultimately contained, symbolized by the saving of the famed St. Paul’s Cathedral. How did the Second Great Fire of London start? On the evening of December […]
Updated Dec. 28 2023 at 12:00 p.m. After serving in World War II as a Korean-contingent major in the Soviet Army, Kim Il-Sung became the first premier of the newly formed Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. Years later, he would become the nation’s supreme ruler. How did Kim Il-Sung become the first president of North […]
Updated Dec. 27 2023 at 12:00 p.m. Benazir Bhutto, twice Prime Minister of Pakistan, and then leader of the opposition Pakistan People’s Party, had been campaigning ahead of elections scheduled for January 2008 when she was shot, in a suicide terrorist attack. When Was Benazir Bhutto killed? After eight years in exile in Dubai and […]
Updated Dec. 20, 2023 at 12:00 pm On this day in 1973, Admiral Luis Carrero Blanco, the prime minister of Spain was killed in Madrid after a massive bomb exploded under his car. Why was Carrero Blanco killed? Carrero Blanco was killed in Madrid by the Basque separatist group ETA, targeted due to his support […]
Updated Dec. 19, 2023 at 12:30 p.m. The Russian diplomat Andrei Karlov served as an ambassador to North Korea, and then Turkey. On this day in 2016, he was assassinated while giving a speech in Turkey — the moment captured by an Associated Press photographer who’d been assigned to cover the speech. How was Andrei […]
Updated Dec. 18, 2023 at 12:25 p.m. The United Arab Emirates is a monarchy, and had never allowed elections in its political system. That would change on this day in 2006. Why did the Arab Emirates decide to hold elections? The aim was to increase political participation among Emiratis through a “political empowerment program”, which […]
Updated Dec. 17, 2023 at 11:35 a.m. On December 17th, 1976, Australian prime minister Harold Holt disappeared after going for a swim. He was never heard from again. How did Harold Holt go missing? The Prime Minister of Australia from 1966-1967, Holt was an avid outdoorsman and loved to swim in the ocean near to […]
A poll shows increased Palestinian support for Hamas since the October 7 attacks, making the Israeli government’s objective of taking military action alone unrealistic. Continuing to bombard Gaza with no end in sight is not only cruel, but counterproductive.
Egypt is holding a presidential election during which President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is certain to win another term. To protest a lack of genuine democracy, some opponents have chosen to boycott the whole process, others opted to invalidate their votes. It’s a loaded calculation.
Updated Dec. 11, 2023 at 12:10 p.m. After the death of his father, George V, on January 20, 1936, Edward VIII became the King of England at 42 years old, but shockingly announced his decision less than a year later to abdicate the throne on this day in history. Why did Edward VIII abdicate the […]
Updated Dec. 9, 2023 at 12:20 It was on this day in 1987 that a series of Palestinian protests and violent uprisings began in the West Bank, Gaza and Israel in defiance of Israeli occupation. The confrontation would last for nearly six years. How did the first Intifada begin? An Israeli Defense Forces’ (IDF) truck […]
Founder of the Revolutionary Bolivarian Movement-200 (MBR-200) in the early 1980s, Hugo Chavez went on to be elected president of Venezuela in late 1998, serving until his death in 2013. How did Hugo Chavez rise to power? Chávez led the MBR-200 in an unsuccessful coup against the Democratic Action Government of then President Carlos Andrés […]
Censorship in Russia has increased rapidly over the last couple of decades, especially since their invasion of Ukraine. Russian rap, which has often challenged the politics and society of Russia, has become even more censored than before, even causing some rappers to emigrate.
A democracy is not just the vague and dangerously malleable promise of popular rule. It is instead an institutional regime or “republic” that defines and protects the rights of the people, and of individuals.
The West’s decision to pressure Israel over Gaza, and indulge Iran’s violent and troublesome regime, follows the U.S. Democrats’ line with the Middle East: just keep us out of your murderous affairs.
The victory of Geert Wilders’ far-right party in this week’s elections in the Netherlands shows that politics in Europe, at both the national and European Union level, has fundamentally failed to overcome its contradictions.
Heated debate in Israel and abroad over the increase in the budget for settlements in the occupied West Bank is a reminder that wartime national unity will not outlast a deep ideological divide.
Updated on Nov. 27, 2023 at 12:50 p.m. Helen Clark became the first elected female Prime Minister of New Zealand on this day in 1999. Who is Helen Clark? On Nov. 27, 1999, Helen Clark became the 37th prime minister of New Zealand, and the first woman to ever be elected to that office. She […]
Protests in big cities in the U.S. and Europe against Israel may remind some Iranians of the Western Left’s deluded, and arrogant, support in 1979 for a revolution that turned Iran and the Middle East into a cesspool of terrorism.
Taiwanese, though under the weight of a far more powerful neighbor, have the tendency to idealize Israel and fail to create a self-definition beyond the island nation’s anti-China image.
Argentina has elected a “paleolibertarian” outsider with little experience, and by a wide margin. What does this say about the existing structures of power around the democratic world?
Frustrated by the United States’ unwavering support for Israel’s war on Gaza, Arab governments have looked at other options to help establish a ceasefire before it becomes too late. First stop: Beijing. Moscow’s role may be more obscure, but no less essential, in building a global coalition that counters the West’s stance.
Trashing politics and politicians is a classic tool of populists to seduce angry voters, and take countries into quagmires far worse than the worst years of democracy. It’s a dynamic Argentina appears particularly vulnerable to.
Updated Nov. 17, 2023 at 12:10 p.m. In the push for an end to the Communist regime, Prague’s international students took to the streets to have their demands heard on November 17, 1989. It was the beginning of what would come to be known as the Velvet Revolution. How did the Velvet Revolution begin? On […]
Palestinians are suffering under the Israeli regime and relentless bombardment of Gaza, yet the Western world, also known to be the “civilized” world, continues to support Israel. Turkey’s complex relationship with Islamic and Middle Eastern countries as well as with the West brings back the most fundamental questions about the past and future.
Leftist states defending rigged elections to be held Nov. 7 in Nicaragua are not so much protecting regional socialism as approving despotism itself, which they too were victims of…
Israel has reacted sharply to the French president’s criticism of the IDF continued bombing of civilians in Gaza. France is the first country to break with Western unanimity on Israel since October 7, which explains the virulence of the reaction.
A ghost state, an economy in ruins … Lebanon has still not recovered from the explosion at the port of Beirut a little over three years ago. With war looming on its southern border, the country teeters near total collapse.
The use of “Xizang” instead of “Tibet” by Chinese officials is supported by some nationalists, but viewed by Tibetans, including those affiliated with the Dalai Lama, as veritable erasure of identity.
In the wake of Hamas’s attack on Israel, the United States, often projected as no longer wanting to be the region’s policeman, finds itself deploying aircraft carriers in the eastern Mediterranean and conducting F16 raids against Iranian targets in Syria. But the epoch-shifting challenge is elsewhere.
As the Rugby World Cup final approaches, French writer Yves Bourdillon notes that the sport is popular almost exclusively in democratic countries. The reason? Its Anglo-Saxon origins, the complexity of its rules and its values, a miracle of balance between individualism and collective spirit.
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva won the presidency in Brazil on this day in 2002. Who is Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva? Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, commonly known as Lula, is a Brazilian politician who first served as the 35th President of Brazil. He served two terms, from 2003 to 2010, and he was […]
What happens next in the Middle East, including a possible expansion of the war at the Israeli-Lebanon border, will be determined by choices that are made in different capitals. Keep your eye on Tehran.
The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas has raised numerous issues under international law, including Israel’s unlawful siege of Gaza and Hamas being a non-state actor.
The Indian government’s decision to move from its historic stance on the Israel-Palestine conflict and to actively support Israel following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack is not only questionable, writes a New Delhi commentator, but it could also have consequences for the country on a diplomatic and geopolitical level.
The results from the landmark Polish election, which saw a surge by liberal and center-right parties, is long awaited good news for the European Union… and not-so-good news for Viktor Orban.