During the past decade, attacks on religious minorities have cast a shadow over Indonesia’s reputation as a tolerant and moderate Muslim-majority nation. Across the archipelago Christian, Buddhist, Ahmadi and Shi’ite communities have been exposed to increasing levels of discrimination, harassment, intimidation and violence, largely at the hands of Sunni hardliners.
A number of major issues threaten to degrade, if not entirely disrupt, Myanmar’s elections scheduled for November. These issues include ongoing fighting between the military and various armed ethnic armies, violent social and religious tensions between Buddhists and Muslims, and the lethargic pace of constitutional reforms.
What does China’s rise as a major power mean for Australia? The answer depends on whom you ask.
In March 2015, the Sydney Morning Herald’s International Editor, Peter Hartcher, described China as a fascist state that bullies its own citizens and neighbouring countries alike. That about sums up the ‘China threat’ view.
Yet there is also no shortage of CEOs gushing with praise for Chinese government policies that are expected to deliver more than 850 million people into the ranks of the middle class by the end of next decade.
Arrests of the leaders of the international football federation FIFA on corruption charges happened in Zurich, Switzerland.
The police arrested seven FIFA officials though 14, both in and out of the group, are facing charges of high-level corruption. The arrests came from the U.S. Department of Justice, who alleged the group’s leaders were involved in a racketeering, wire fraud, and money laundering conspiracy.
A recent study has shown an interesting correlation between the drop in US alcohol-related car accidents and the overall growth of the US economy. According to the study, as the number of alcohol-related accidents has dropped, the US economy has experienced a corresponding boost to overall GDP.
A light bout of profit taking has seen yesterday’s strong dollar gains pared. Yesterday, the Dollar Index rose 1.3%, its biggest single day rise since July 2013. There has been a dearth of fresh trading incentives, and consolidative tone has emerged, with the greenback staying near yesterday’s highs.
A two-page paper published by John Nash in 1950 is a seminal contribution to the field of Game Theory and of our general understanding of strategic decision-making. That paper, “Equilibrium points in N-person games”, introduced a cornerstone concept, which came to be known as Nash equilibrium.
Game theory is concerned with situations where decisions interact – where the “payoff” or reward for a decision maker depends not only on his or her own decision but also on the decisions of others.
I’m not much for glossing over the true state of affairs just to make things look better, which is why I take issue with many government reports. When it comes to providing clear information on the economy, the U.S. government is more late-night pitchman than serious news anchor. And to make matters worse, many of the numbers they peddle have been “adjusted” so that reports show better results.
Over the past six years, unilateral and escalatory actions by claimants to territories in the South China Sea have exacerbated tensions in the region.
China has not been the precipitator of the tensions in these waters — whether it is in initiating resource exploration activities in disputed areas, introducing military vessels to enforce jurisdictional claims, or conducting land reclamation work in the adjoining waters. In each instance, other claimants were the first to roil the waters.
Of the 8.5 million Americans that remain unemployed, 40 percent of those have given up looking for work. The job participation rate has fallen to a 37-year low.
