Year: 2017
An Economic War: Sino-Japanese rivalry in Southeast Asia
While the international community has been focusing on the possibility of an armed conflict on the Korean peninsula, a war – even though not mentioned in the headlines – is
Read MorePlotting Against Democracy: Conspiracy Theories and Their Ramifications on Politics
“Gravity as a theory is false. Objects simply fall.” You can find this answer to the question “What is Gravity?” on the website of the Flat Earth Society. This is,
Read MoreBitcoin mining: Undermining state legitimacy?
Cryptocurrencies are digital assets meant to work as mediums of exchange. They do not rely on central regulation but cryptography which, in the absence of banking control, secures transactions, verifies
Read MoreWhat’s happening in Pakistan?
On Sunday night, the law minister of Pakistan, Zahid Hamid, was forced to resign after days of protests in the nation’s capital, Islamabad. But how and why did this forced
Read MoreBloody Interventions and Opportunistic Alliances – How Putin is Challenging the Unilateral World Order
In the abundant chaos in the streets of Homs, the unprecedented destruction of the sites of Palmyra and the stains of blood on the walls of Aleppo, Russia, Iran and
Read MoreAnd the Twelve Points Go to… Amsterdam!
For over sixty years the Eurovision Song Contest has brought Europe together for an extravagant celebration of its cultural diversity and shared identity. It remains the most watched television broadcasting
Read MoreFailing of Jamaica and the Implications for Germany
The island in the Caribbean has in fact little to do with a political development in central Europe. Late on Sunday evening news from the coalition talks in Berlin shocked
Read MoreThe Australian dual-citizenship scandal – How the Constitution sparked a government crisis
One article in the Australian Constitution which has no connection to every-day political business could bring down the Australian government. It sparked the dual-citizenship scandal that is spreading further through
Read MoreThe Role of Internet Memes in Modern Political Discourse
In his 1976 bestseller, The Selfish Gene, evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins coined the term “meme”, ascribing it to any idea, behavior or style that spreads from person to person within
Read MoreGreatest Nation on Earth?: the Downside to Patriotism
Despite the dramatic partisan polarisation the United States has seen over the past two decades, there is one thing on which all US politicians seem to agree: America is the
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