EUROPEAN POLITICS GETS OLD-TIME RELIGION. Timothy A. Byrnes, Current History, March 2008, pp. 126-132. "The reintroduction of religious diversity into European society... is also reintroducing religion, and religiously motivated conflicts, to European politics." READ MORE

DIPLOMACY IN AN AGE OF FAITH. Thomas F. Farr, Foreign Affairs, March-April 2008, pp. 110-123. "The United States has failed to understand the global resurgence of religiosity. Washington should put the promotion of religious freedom at the center of U.S. foreign policy -- recognizing that it is vital not only to liberty and stability abroad but also to U.S. national security." READ MORE

IS NATIONALISM GOOD FOR YOU? Gustavo de las Casas, Foreign Policy, March-April 2008, var. pages. "It’s blamed for everything from unruly populism to genocide. But what if nationalism isn’t the unevolved reflex so many assume it to be? In fact, nationalism could help create wealth, fight corruption, and lower crime." READ MORE

LANGUAGE, ETHNICITY AND RELIGION: A COMPLEX AND PERSISTENT LINKAGE. William Safran, Nations and Nationalism, January 2008, pp. 171–190. "Among the markers of ethnonational identity, language and religion have figured with equal prominence. In many cases, religion has been the bedrock of nation-building; and even today, it is difficult to separate a number of national identities from their religious matrices. Religious identity is based on, and perpetuated in, narratives expressed in a specific language. Language and religion are related; in our secular age, however, that relationship is no longer consistent. The two may feed upon one another; language may substitute for religion; or religion may trump language. This article explores the varying relationships between language and religion." READ MORE

MIRROR-IMAGING THE MULLAHS: OUR ISLAMIC INTERLOCUTORS. Reuel Marc Gerecht, World Affairs, Winter 2008, pp. 91-100. "The tendency to view Muslims through secular eyes, or to recast them and their faith into a version of Christianity ('Islam is a religion of peace'), is perhaps the greatest impediment to rational American policy. The CIA, like the State Department, is a secular institution where officers typically do not discuss their faith (or, more to the point, lack thereof) or the faith of others. On the upside of the ledger, modernity, especially the female side of it, continues to rearrange the ethics of Muslim homes and communities." READ MORE

RELIGION AND FOREIGN POLICY MAKING IN THE USA, INDIA AND IRAN: TOWARD A RESEARCH AGENDA. Jeffrey Haynes, Third World Quarterly,  February 2008. pp. 143-165. "This article is concerned with religious soft power in foreign policy making through a focus on the foreign policies of the USA, India and Iran. It suggests that, if religious actors 'get the ear' of key foreign policy makers because of their shared religious beliefs, the former may become able to influence foreign policy outcomes through the exercise of religious soft power. In relation to the above-mentioned countries, the article proposes that several named religious actors do significantly influence foreign policy through such a strategy. It also notes that such influence is apparent not only when key policy makers share religious values, norms and beliefs but also when policy makers accept that foreign policy should be informed by them." READ MORE

US AND THEM. Jerry Z. Muller, Foreign Affairs, March/April 2008, var. pages. "Americans generally belittle the role of ethnic nationalism in politics. But in fact, it corresponds to some enduring propensities of the human spirit, it is galvanized by modernization, and in one form or another, it will drive global politics for generations to come. Once ethnic nationalism has captured the imagination of groups in a multiethnic society, ethnic disaggregation or partition is often the least bad answer." READ MORE

Climate Change Side Effects

ARCTIC MELTDOWN. Scott G. Borgerson, Foreign Affairs, March/April 2008, var. pages. "Thanks to global warming, the Arctic icecap is rapidly melting, opening up access to massive natural resources and creating shipping shortcuts that could save billions of dollars a year. But there are currently no clear rules governing this economically and strategically vital region. Unless Washington leads the way toward a multilateral diplomatic solution, the Arctic could descend into armed conflict." READ MORE

CAMPUS GREENING BEHIND THE HEADLINES. Ann Rappaport, Environment, Jan/Feb 2008, pp. 7-16. "The 4,200 colleges and universities in the United States have more than 17 million enrolled students,1 many of whom live, learn, eat, and exercise on campuses. Add the global university population, and the resources consumed by educational institutions are staggering. If colleges and universities improve their environmental performance dramatically, and if they have a long-term influence on choices made by graduates in their work, homes, and communities, the collective effect could be vast. Although campus greening has been going on for decades, recent initiatives fueled by concern for global warming have the potential to establish new thinking about infrastructure development, research programs, investment decisions, and learning." READ MORE

HOT TIMES FOR SOLAR ENERGY. Susan Moran, J Thomas McKinnon, World Watch, Mar/Apr 2008, pp. 26-30. "'We're at a crossroads. If we take the solar energy path we become part of the solution, not the problem,' says Gene Kolkran, a former U.S. Bureau of Land Management official who heads the Rural Nevada Conservation Alliance. CSP plants, he says, could be a positive alternative to coal plants in terms of bringing new jobs and a tax base to the area: 'This is also a rural economic development issue.' " READ MORE

US Society & Values

MOVING ON.  Clausen, Christopher.  Wilson Quarterly, Winter 2008, pp. 22-26.  Whether in covered wagons or station wagons, Americans have always hit the road, driven by the belief that a better life exists somewhere else. Whether moving to a new house in the same neighborhood or going across the country, moving is a stressful, time-consuming and expensive proposition. It is also a sacred American rite, the modern-day equivalent of our immigrant ancestors on the frontier. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average American moves 11.7 times in a lifetime. Better-educated and more affluent Americans move longer distances, while approximately 60% of native-born Americans still live in the state where they were born. Between 2005 and 2006, some forty million people changed addresses, almost fourteen percent of the entire population, which is considered below the historical average for the period since the government started keeping records in 1948. READ MORE

HEALTHY SUCCESS.  Rojas, Marcela.  Hispanic, March 2007, pp.56-59.  Inner-city hospitals in major metropolitan areas in the U.S. are often underfunded and burdened with a disproportionate number of low-income patients with chronic health problems. The Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center in the South Bronx section of New York City is a remarkable exception, with efficient and high-quality service in a neighborhood of predominantly Latino and African-American households, with some of the highest incidences in the nation of health problems such as obesity, diabetes, asthma and HIV/AIDS. The article profiles the hospital’s executive director, Jose Sanchez, who has overseen major facility upgrades and spearheaded outreach and public education programs. READ MORE