Year: 2018

How the Pursuit of Extremes Doomed China’s Sui Dynasty

The Sui Dynasty (A.D. 581-618) was the seventh major dynasty in Chinese history. Though very powerful, it lasted less than 40 years across the reign of just two emperors: Yang Jian (楊堅) and his son Yang Guang (楊廣). Yang Jian was a Chinese bureaucrat who…
US Renews Sanctions as Iranian Government Struggles

On Nov. 5, the U.S. government re-imposed what, a few days earlier, the White House termed “the toughest sanctions regime ever” on Iran’s theocratic government, mainly targeting the country’s petroleum exports. The sanctions also targeted Iranian shipping and shipbuilding, as well as its banking system.
United on China: Tough U.S. Policies Gaining Bipartisan Support

While the November 6 U.S. midterm elections saw the Republican Party lose control of the House of Representatives, the upheaval is unlikely to derail America’s evolving policies on China and its communist regime. In the spring, the U.S. government began imposing heavy tariffs on Chinese exported goods, largely…
Honoring 100 Million Victims of Communism

In November 1917, Vladimir Lenin’s revolutionaries stormed the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, overthrowing the legal Russian government and establishing the world’s first communist regime. In November 1917, Vladimir Lenin’s revolutionaries overthrew the legal Russian government, establishing the world’s first communist regime.
‘Letter From Masanjia’ Receives Award at Portland Film Festival

In October 2012, Julie Keith opened a Halloween decoration that she had bought for her daughter, and in it found a letter written by an inmate imprisoned for his beliefs at Masanjia, one of China’s most notorious labor camps. The discovery set Julie, a…
China’s ‘Unprecedented’ Efforts to Influence US Politics

During and following the 2016 U.S. presidential election, the public was heavily focused on the possible effects of Russian state interference in the outcome. But that narrative has overshadowed the existence of China’s operations — many of them years in the making — to exert influence not just…
New President of Brazil Vows to Change His Country’s Destiny

Jair Bolsonaro, a Brazilian congressman and former army officer, won the second round of presidential elections on Oct. 28, becoming president-elect of South America’s largest country. Bolsonaro, who ran on a right-wing platform against corruption and crime, got 56 percent of the vote, defeating the…
US Bill Combats Fentanyl and Other Deadly Opioids

President Donald Trump has signed into law a bill combating the nation’s opioid epidemic, which he last year called a public health emergency. The bill provides funding for federal agencies and states to prioritize access to addiction treatment. It also enables authorities to take more…
USGS: Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier at ‘Very High’ Risk of Eruption

In its first update to the list of America’s most dangerous volcanoes since 2005, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has listed the Washington state mountains of Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier as posing a “very high threat” of eruption. The USGS rating, detailed…
80 Percent of Americans Say Political Correctness Is a Problem

A recent study that included a poll with 8,000 respondents suggests that 80 percent, or one in five Americans, consider political correctness to be a problem, with objections being reflected even more strongly among ethnic minorities and among those who…
Why the US Wants to End a Cold War Nuclear Missile Treaty

On Oct. 20, U.S. President Donald Trump announced his intention to end a Cold War-era treaty that was designed to make nuclear war less likely by eliminating intermediate ballistic missiles (IRBMs) from the American and Soviet arsenals. Speaking to reporters, Trump maintained that the Intermediate-Range…
Unemployment: China’s Achilles’ Heel?

The U.S. unemployment rate has recently reached a low of 3.9 percent, with over 200,000 new jobs added in August alone. But across the Pacific, China is struggling with a massive, yet hidden crisis. Due to the Sino-U.S. trade war, many foreign investors have been pulling capital out of China,…