Ever since the assassination of President Jovenel Moise over two years ago, Haiti has been in the grips of a political and security crisis that has left much of the civilian population at the mercy of brutal, predatory gangs. Now, those gangs are themselves under assault from the latest armed group on the block: Bwa Kale.
At a meeting of South America’s presidents last week, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called for regional financial integration and some sort of mechanism to conduct trade without U.S. dollars. Judging by the number of times in recent months he has suggested something along these lines, it’s a topic on Lula’s mind.
Earlier this week, South Africa issued immunity to all foreign leaders attending the BRICS summit in August. Pretoria insisted it was a routine measure for international gatherings the country hosts. But many observers saw it as a way to allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to attend the summit despite an ICC arrest warrant.
Across developed countries, aging populations and slowing economic growth are rendering today’s retirement institutions unsustainable. As a result, working longer as societies age is both natural and necessary, meaning that what future generations may look back on as the “golden age” of retirement is now coming to an end.
Bank failures are back in the news, after three of the United States’ 30 largest banks collapsed in the past three months. These bank failures and the policy responses to date have taught us several important lessons about why such crises keep happening in the U.S. and how policymakers can act to break this self-destructive cycle.