The Ambiguities of Nuclear Power

The New Appeal of Nuclear Energy and the Dangers of Proliferation
The New Appeal of Nuclear Energy and the Dangers of Proliferation

Every country has a right to the peaceful use of nuclear power. Some even argue that this ‘clean-burning’ fuel could be the CO2 emissions cure-all.

But how to keep states from using these plants to disguise weapons programs?

And how to tackle the risk of nuclear terrorism?

In a new CSS Analysis, Olivier Thränert provides an overview of current efforts and debates to address this nuclear power conundrum.

 

 

Dr Thränert is an expert on the proliferation of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) in Berlin.

You can download his paper here.

ISN Weekly Theme: US-Mexico Border

At a beach in Tijuana, a balloon vendor attempts to bring some joy, photo: Romel Jacinto/flickr
At a beach in Tijuana, a balloon vendor attempts to bring some joy, photo: Romel Jacinto/flickr

Almost 12 million people live in the US-Mexico border area: hundreds of thousands cross the 3000 km-long border every day – legally and illegally. It is the most protected US border, with no less than 90 percent of all US border patrol agents working there. In addition to immigration and associated human rights challenges, cross-border security issues include organized crime, drug trafficking and human smuggling.

Here’s an overview of some ISN website highlights:

  • The ISN Special Report Desperation Route, in which Sam Logan offers a first-hand account of the circumstances that keep the drugs, guns and desperate people pouring across the US-Mexico border
  • The CGD’s Don’t Close the Golden Door by Michael Clemens in our Policy Briefs section, outlining policies on immigration for the US administration
  • New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson’s speech on comprehensive immigration reform in our Primary Resources section

The New Ethical Order

Just one day before the 35th G8 summit in the earthquake-torn town of L’Aquila, Italy, the Holy See released the third encyclical of Pope Benedict XVI. who will meet with US President Obama on Friday.

photo: Kevin Dooley, flickr
The passion of Christ / photo: Kevin Dooley, flickr

Being the Holy Father’s first social encyclical, the 144-page “Caritas in Veritate” profoundly examines the depraved morals of market economy, the inhuman side-effects of globalization, consumerism and relativism, the need for a sustainable protection of the environment, the role of media and technology in modern life, the strengthening of workers’ rights and, above all, the imperative of “love and forgiveness, self-denial, acceptance of others, justice and peace”.

Continue reading “The New Ethical Order”

Remembering Robert McNamara

Nuclear bomb casing / photo: Andrea Church, flickr
Nuclear bomb casing / photo: Andrea Church, flickr

A ”mathematical genius”, statistics wonk, the man behind the escalation of the Vietnam War, the longest-serving US defense secretary, controversial World Bank president and nuclear disarmament advocate: Robert S. McNamara left big footprints in post-World War II international politics – for better and for worse. He died yesterday at the age of 93 at his Washington home.

Continue reading “Remembering Robert McNamara”
Categories
Business and Finance

Explore the Newspaper Crisis: An Interactive Map

Do newspapers have a future in the digital age? What strategies could help them stay afloat? The quest for smart survival models has begun.

Take this example from Puerto Rico: The Daily Sun is now exploring whether cooperatives can function as lifesavers in the media crisis. But are nonprofit employee cooperatives really a potential answer to failing newspapers? Maybe, if a newspaper like The Daily Sun can find a niche market and the necessary local support. In this form it could even survive without a digital component.

The Daily Sun’s idea could be added to the interactive map, “What next for newspapers?”- offered by The Independent. The collaborative project is streamlined too; similar ideas on how to save the newpaper business are weaved together “into a single rich, transparent structure,” so you can quickly glimpse and assess a wide range of opinions.