The Global Citizen podcast addresses foreign affairs from a human-interest standpoint, meaning that principles of social justice, environmental stewardship, protection and promotion of human rights, and peace frame the analysis. Greed, injustice, and violence are my targets; and diplomacy focused on engagement is the preferred strategy for transcending differences. As Einstein said, “those who have the privilege to know have the duty to act.”
Japan's government has decided to release into the ocean millions of tons of radioactive wastewater from the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, scene of a meltdown in 2011. The government and the power company are reassuring neighboring countries and fishermen of the wastewater's safety, but there...
Published 08/25/23
Electric vehicles are touted as one answer to the climate crisis, but as Barry Commoner warned years ago, there is no such thing as a free lunch. The mining, processing, and manufacture of EV components, dominated so far by China but being challenged by the US and several other countries, are...
Published 08/15/23
The July coup that ousted a democratically elected leader in Niger is the seventh in West Africa since 2020. This time it has aroused the anger of the African Union and the regional economic bloc ECOWAS; the latter issued an ultimatum to the Niger junta that was ignored. Meantime, the coup...
Published 08/07/23