a semiconductor in china

On Aug. 9, U.S. President Joe Biden helped bolster the United States’ technological lead over China by signing the CHIPS Act. Despite the hype, though, the history shows that governments’ best-laid plans to develop technology often falter amid bureaucracy, inefficiency and an over-reliance on state control.

United Nations members vote on a resolution concerning the Russian invasion of Ukraine during an emergency meeting of the General Assembly.

It is tempting to think that the liberal international order might have stood a better chance absent Russian revanchism and Chinese ambition. But to do so ignores the degree to which the globalization narrative disregarded globalization’s real impact on local communities. If the war in Ukraine represents a meaningful change, it is about reasserting the centrality of the state in globalization’s violent practices.

A woman protests against bullfighting, Spain.

The practice of bullfighting has long been controversial and is already forbidden, outright or effectively, in several Latin American countries. Now, though, reeling from the pandemic, losing popularity everywhere, and facing political and social pressure, the bullfighting industry’s fate is hanging in the balance.

A protester affected by tear gas fired by police splashes water on his face, during a protest in Haiti.

Across Haiti, mass protests are erupting against insecurity and government impunity. But Prime Minister Ariel Henry seems more interested in protecting his power than in addressing Haiti’s crisis. Since 2021, however, Haitian civil society has been working to develop local solutions to the country’s problems.