Obama In Flux

William Bradley, 11.13.2009

California-based Political Analyst NewWestNotes.com

As he embarks on his first big trip to Asia, President Barack Obama's strategies are in flux in many areas.

What Chinese Currency Manipulation Looks Like

Eric Lotke, 11.13.2009

Research Director at the Campaign for America's Future and author of 2044

As President Obama packs for China, I thought I'd show him a picture of how China is manipulating its currency.

What Obama Wants in Afghanistan -- and What Women Need

Anushay Hossain, 11.13.2009

Founder and Editor, Anushay's Point

As the administration ponders the very real possibility of becoming the newest addition to the "graveyard of empires", there is one aspect of Afghan society everyone seems to have forgotten: the women.

The Saudi-Iranian Neo Cold War

Jamal Dajani, 11.13.2009

Senior Director and Producer of Mosaic News, Link TV

For more than a week, Saudi Arabia has been carrying out military operations on its remote southern border to punish Houthi rebels from Yemen who crossed over and attacked one of its patrols.

To Iraq and Back

Lisa Haisha, 11.13.2009

Founder of The Whispers Foundation

Sometimes returning to our roots inspires us to revisit ourselves within the concentric circles of shared destiny. In search of my own heritage I journeyed to Iraq after the first Gulf War.

Succumbing to "Worst-Case" Analysis of North Korea

Eric C. Anderson, 11.13.2009

Eric C. Anderson is a national security consultant

Having decided to eschew modernity, Pyongyang has rendered assessment of North Korea's political intentions an art best likened to divining the truth through an examination of scattered chicken bones.

The U.S. and China: The Defining Issue of Our Day

Zachary Karabell, 11.13.2009

President, River Twice Research

Americans still don't quite get it. There is no vote, quick resolution, or unitary policy that will "solve" China. That allows it to linger as a concern, but not to shape action.

The Word Not Spoken: Bagram

Harry Shearer, 11.13.2009

Actor, author, director, satirist, musician, radio host, playwright, multi-media artist

When Fox staged a special Veterans Day version of its NFL pregame show at Bagram AF Base last Sunday, they failed to mention one interesting fact about Bagram: It's the site of America's other Gitmo.

China's Shopping List for Obama

Oliver Lough, 11.12.2009

Researcher, New America Foundation

Without a skeptical electorate or an independent media snapping at his heels, there seems on the surface to be less at stake this week for China's President Hu Jintao than for his American counterpart.

Paying Peter to Kill Paul

Jon Soltz and Richard Allen Smith, 11.12.2009

American and NATO service members deserve better than to possibly die fighting an insurgency that even American contractors admit is being funded by the Department of Defense.

Cuba's Soft Power: Exporting Doctors Rather Than Revolution

Steve Clemons, 11.12.2009

Publisher of "The Washington Note"

I would have encouraged Cuba's foreign minister to say that the embargo was an anachronism of the Cold War, has not achieved the goals the US had for it, and harmed both Cuban and US interests.

Gates Says Too Many Kids' Deaths Are Preventable

Katherine Gustafson, 11.12.2009

Tonic, the "good news" site

2.2 million kids under the age of 5 die every year from diarrheal diseases. The vast majority of these deaths could be prevented with basic hygiene, water quality improvements and sanitation.