The following conversation did not take place... but wouldn't it have been interesting if it did?

Geithner: Glad I found you. We really need to talk about our trade imbalance. Every month America's importing over $20 billion more in Chinese goods than we export to China. It's unsustainable to have...

2011 marked the announcement that the world's population had reached 7 billion. While the media coverage focused on the implications of the growing population and the resulting strains that this growth can cause, less attention was paid to the fact that the population growth varies greatly from country to country....

While many international travels arrive into Tibet by flying into Lhasa, the Qinghai-Tibet Railway is a increasingly popular route. This railway includes the world's highest railway track and highest rail tunnel. Though I began my journey through the country in Lhasa, I also toured the nearby town of Shigatse and...

Many historians argue that the bombings in Hiroshima and Nagasaki were a turning point in mankind's history, events that marked the beginning of humanity's ability to instantly self-annihilate. After the United States had its first successful nuclear test in 1945, the nuclear club was soon expanded to include tests by...

"You Americans sure do have a funny democracy."

"Tell me about it."

"Let me get this right, you have to win the party nomination in order to be on the presidential ballot."

"So far, so good."

"And the party nomination is determined by these states saying which candidate they want."

I was in the supermarket a few days ago and came across a bag of goji berries. The bag was proudly labeled as a Superfood. Now, I know Americans love a good advertising pitch as much as a simple solution to a complicated problem, but, I have bad news for...

In a recent article , I discussed how according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute Yearbook 2011, America spent nearly $700 billion in military expenses 2010 or about 43% of the entire global military spending. The US military expenditure as a percent of GDP is...

How much a country spends on its military budget is a reflection of a number of factors, including the size of the economy, the perceived military threat or opportunity, the influence of the private sector on government policy and the overall priorities of a society.

When we look at...

In a recent interview with Piers Morgan, Colin Powell was asked about the enormous salaries paid in the financial industry. Powell's reply, in echoing the words that so many have parroted before, praised the capitalist system and expressed the conviction that the rewards in the finance industry are...

Mayor Bloomberg just learned a lesson that leaders have known for centuries and was most recently seen in the latest Zuccotti Park showdown. Only a few days earlier, the mayor stated that peaceful protests would be allowed, as one might expect since Freedom of Speech is in the Bill of...

What are your rights? Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, according to the Declaration of Independence. There are all of those rights listed in the Bill of Rights. We talk about rights to privacy regularly but few people can point to what exactly those rights are. More importantly, what...

East Timor, officially known as the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a lower-middle-income country that officially became an independent country in 2002. Timor-Leste is one of the smallest countries in the world, consisting of the eastern half of the island of Timor (western half belongs to Indonesia), and the islands...

When New York City huddled down in anticipation of Hurricane Irene, public transportation was shut down, the stores ravaged of their goods and nearly all shops closed. Shoppers acted as if the end of the world would arrive. This is a storm tradition. Regardless of whether it is a winter...

Every news outlet loves reporting about the activities of the Tea Party, the influence of the Tea Party, which candidate is most supported by the Tea Party.... Some talk about the Tea Party as being a great positive influence on American democracy and others mock the Tea Party and its...

After the hurricane passed, the following images were taken of Manhattan as it recovers.

\Please join Howard's Facebook Fan page\

"Thanks for inviting me to your baseball tournament. So explain the rules to me again."

"The rules are simple. All the teams from my hometown play each other until we have a hometown champion. All the teams that came from somewhere else play each other. The top team from my...

In the months leading up to the 1980 Democratic nomination, incumbent President Carter was challenged by Ted Kennedy. The Iran Hostage Crisis and poor economy had painted Carter as a weak leader, one with little chance of re-election. Carter eventually won the nomination as Kennedy's presidential profile was mortally wounded...

In a previous article, I discussed the fact that the U.S. is an outlier regarding incarceration rates, having a rate that is about 7 times the amount of typical OECD countries (the OECD is an international organization comprised of 34 countries, representing many of the wealthier...

In high school, a friend of mine once borrowed $100. That was a decent amount of money for a 14-year-old to lend out but, since he was a friend in need, I figured why not. Problem was, he never felt it was important to pay me back. He trivialized my...

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an international organisation comprised of 34 countries, representing many of the wealthier countries in the world. Its members include North American countries (Canada, Mexico and the U.S.), much of Western Europe, as well as New Zealand, Australia, Chile, Israel, Japan and...