Can social media promote lasting political change, perhaps even a revolution? If so, to what extent? And which Internet-related policies can help foster democracy in countries with repressive regimes?
The Pentagon Papers were a top-secret history of U.S. involvement in the brutal conflicts of Southeast Asia. Commissioned by Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara in 1967 and completed in 1969, they were leaked to the press in 1971 by Daniel Ellsberg, a government employee.
As anyone who lives on Earth can attest, weather is rarely “average.” However mild or extreme a climate may be, it can be relatively warm one day and cool the next; clouds appear or the sun breaks through; precipitation, if it occurs, tends to do so in bursts. Yet many climate models focus on “average” weather for a particular time and place, something that occurs only rarely in the real world.
Perpetrators of violent crime can impact economies in a variety of ways, from encouraging emigration and brain drain to discouraging foreign direct investment. In many parts of the developing world, violent crime related to gang activity has risen to crisis levels, negatively impacting people, property and business activity. These issues periodically gain media visibility, but the true scope of the problem worldwide is seldom captured.
Firmly identifying the specific factors that trigger conflict and instability around the globe has long been a goal of policymakers, humanitarian organizations, security agencies and academics. In the past, many analysts have pointed toward underlying economic factors, and the type and character of political institutions present have often remained a secondary area of focus, researchers note.
