Politics & Current Affairs

What is the Big Idea? Vladimir Putin is officially back for his third term as president of Russia, but this time he faces a different political climate than he did […]

The FCC is trying to balance the threat of terrorism against the benefits of having wireless networks in an emergency, e.g. to aid first responders. And what about free speech rights?

Senator Bill Bradley sits down with Big Think to discuss his latest book, We Can All Do Better, out in hardcover today, May 8, 2012. He talks about what it […]

The troubling chronicle of blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng has me thinking about the trial of another dissident who faced a life-changing dilemma of his own 2411 years ago in […]

Voters in France and Greece have strongly rejected the politics of austerity, electing a president and parliament that vow to soften Europe’s plan to slash government spending. 

What will the world look like without a single superpower setting the rules? That’s the question that Ian Bremmer, the political risk expert, tries to answer in his new book, […]

While in American and the UK, having a picturesque family life is considered practically essential for holding the highest office, it confers no political gain on French politicians. 

Much of what we know about the world’s most ostracized country comes from a clandestine network of some 200 informants that communicate via cell phone to a news agency in Seoul.

Despite the attention we give the Internet for making us socially isolated, it may be that automobile traffic is more to blame for isolating people from their neighborhoods. 

My Tuesday post examined parents’ limited options in the age of the standardized test. But what is a teacher to do who is fed up with the testing regime? “I’d […]

To what extent should our desire for Internet freedom allow the industry to operate outside of laws that are meant to protect the public good. Whose responsibility is it to protect children? 

New draft guidelines drawn up by the German government say that future military missions should not be focused on spreading Western conceptions of democracy

The story of a smooth power transfer began to unravel last February when a Party official was accused of murder. The tale is emblematic of the State’s problem with transparency. 

What is the Big Idea? French voters go to the poll today for the first round of the presidential election. Nicolas Sarkozy, and his Socialist challenger, François Hollande, will probably emerge as […]

What is the Big Idea? Samir N. Kapadia’s career in Washington D. C. seemed routine in comparison to the exciting jobs his friends had in India, a surging nation in […]

President Obama apparently thinks the safer way to justify higher taxes on the super rich is to pitch the proposal based on its deficit-reduction potential. But if he wants to get the ball rolling for meaningful tax reform, Obama will summon his rhetorical powers to explain how the Buffett Rule could help reduce the nation’s massive and destructive wealth inequality.

What is the Big Idea? Leaders from many western hemisphere countries gathered for the Summit of the Americas meeting this weekend to discuss alternatives to the failed “war on drugs.” President Obama […]

What is the Big Idea? If rocket launches are a symbol of a country’s ambitions, then what the world witnessed on Friday was North Korea’s failed attempt at a Sputnik […]

The accusation “you are not living in the real world” is always either ideological, narcissistic, or a poorly phrased attempt to say something else. But it is frequently used. I […]

Connecticut is set to become the 17th state without the death penalty, marking another victory for advocates who point out that the practice wastes a great deal of money—and is unjust.

Social topics like politics and economics have been sectioned off from society and are now treated as expert fields beyond the scope of mere mortals, says economics writer Aditya Chakrabortty. 

What is the Big Idea? Chinese authorities have shuttered the 42 websites and more than 210,000 posts about a major political scandal rocked the country,Agence France Presse reported. A three-line announcement on the official […]

Computer performance has doubled roughly every 18 months since the 1970s. But computers’ energy efficiency has also been doubling, which may prove to be the more important development. 

Though Internet freedom is often a nebulous concept, one thing is sure: We want it. Venture capitalist Fred Wilson warns that taking it away will cause a revolt among younger generations. 

What is the Big Idea? Michaelis Klouvas came back to New York City about a year ago, after a 20-year absence where he prospered as a restaurant owner in Athens. […]

Predictions of America’s precipitous fall are premature, thanks to its economy and military might. But the US cannot ignore the fact that non-Western ideologies are gaining regional prominence. 

Thanks to the recent Citizens United Supreme Court decision, this campaign season will be flush with unprecedented amounts of cash, risking future corruption, says jurist Richard Posner.

What is the Big Idea? An orthopedic surgeon was abducted by masked security forces from his operating room. He was tortured while detained in Bahrain. Gaddafi’s soldiers held an anesthesiologist […]

Mandatory ultrasounds are becoming a required part of the abortion process across the United States, and some states might be taking it too far.

What is the Big Idea? Foxconn’s employees in China may be getting a raise, but it’s only a matter of time before higher wages prompts the manufacturer to move its […]