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Grand corruption as a systemic parasite upon society

Grand corruption as a systemic parasite upon society

Sudhir Chella Rajan writes: In the 1970s, international development professionals settled on the following definition of corruption: the abuse of public power for private gain. For economic modellers and political sciences, this focus provided clear parameters to describe the institutional conditions that motivate government officials to make money on the side while providing public services. Bilateral and multilateral donor agencies, too, found the definition helpful to create programmes to reduce incentives for private gain by streamlining the bureaucracy, creating appropriate…

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The man rethinking the definition of reality

The man rethinking the definition of reality

Tom Chatfield writes: If you woke up one day and discovered that you were living in a virtual world – that everything you’d ever known was, like the Matrix, a form of hyper-realistic simulation – what would this imply for your hopes, dreams and experiences? Would it reveal them all to be lies: deceptions devoid of authenticity? For most people, the intuitive answer to all these questions is “yes”. After all, the Matrix movies depict a dystopian nightmare in which…

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Beijing uneasily weighs how far to go in backing Putin on Ukraine

Beijing uneasily weighs how far to go in backing Putin on Ukraine

The Wall Street Journal reports: China’s longstanding foreign-policy stance, set forth soon after the founding of Communist China by then-Premier Zhou Enlai in the “five principles of peaceful coexistence,” is to not endorse any country’s aggression or intervention in another’s affairs. That helps explain why China hasn’t recognized Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, or fully supported Moscow when it deployed forces to Kazakhstan early this year to quell unrest in the Central Asian nation. Beijing is aware that by so…

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In 2008 Russia announced a military withdrawal from its border with Georgia. 8 days later, it invaded

In 2008 Russia announced a military withdrawal from its border with Georgia. 8 days later, it invaded

Business Insider reports: Russia on Tuesday claimed it was withdrawing some troops from Ukraine’s border as it denies plans to attack the country, but the US and NATO said Russia appeared to be increasing its military presence there. They may worry that the situation could mirror Russia’s actions in 2008, when it said it was withdrawing troops and invaded eight days later. At the time, Russia said it sent soldiers to the Abkhazia region to fix a railroad, and then…

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How Russia hooked Europe on its oil and gas – and overcame U.S. efforts to prevent energy dependence on Moscow

How Russia hooked Europe on its oil and gas – and overcame U.S. efforts to prevent energy dependence on Moscow

Is it a weapon or merely trade? AP Photo/Dmitry Lovetsky By Ryan Haddad, University of Maryland The Biden administration hopes its threat of “severe economic consequences” deters Russia from invading Ukraine – an event Americans officials say could be imminent. In response, the U.S. said it may ban the export of microchips and other technologies to critical sectors like artificial intelligence and aerospace and freeze the personal assets of Russian President Vladimir Putin, among other sanctions. Meanwhile, the Senate is…

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Trump Organization accounting firm delivers blow that could be pivotal to NY AG case

Trump Organization accounting firm delivers blow that could be pivotal to NY AG case

Michael Conway writes: Mazars USA LLP, the longtime accounting firm for the Trump Organization, has a new role: star witness in New York Attorney General Letitia James’ civil investigation into whether Trump’s company engaged in fraud. Mazars has some explaining to do. And none of it bodes well for the Trump Organization. On Monday, James made public a bombshell letter from Mazars dated Feb. 9 warning that 10 years of the “Statements of Financial Condition for Donald J. Trump” ending…

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GOP plunges into season of ‘self-hate’ that will rewire the party

GOP plunges into season of ‘self-hate’ that will rewire the party

Politico reports: Republicans are embarking on a primary season that is poised to reshape the GOP for a generation, and that journey begins in Texas. In less than two weeks, the first primary election of 2022 will take place in the nation’s second-most populous state, and it’s a blockbuster: The state’s Republican governor, attorney general and agriculture commissioner all face spirited challenges, as do several GOP House incumbents. From there, fractious primaries will unfold across the electoral map in the…

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Texas is America’s clean energy leader, almost in spite of itself

Texas is America’s clean energy leader, almost in spite of itself

Inside Climate News reports: In the race to build renewable energy projects in 2021, Texas lapped the competition. The state had 7,352 megawatts of new wind, solar and energy storage projects come online during the year, according to a report issued this week by the American Clean Power Association, a trade group. The runner-up, California, brought 2,697 megawatts online. But what got my attention wasn’t Texas’ dominance in 2021. It was that Texas also is the leader when ranking the…

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World spends $1.8tn a year on subsidies that harm environment, study finds

World spends $1.8tn a year on subsidies that harm environment, study finds

The Guardian reports: The world is spending at least $1.8tn (£1.3tn) every year on subsidies driving the annihilation of wildlife and a rise in global heating, according to a new study, prompting warnings that humanity is financing its own extinction. From tax breaks for beef production in the Amazon to financial support for unsustainable groundwater pumping in the Middle East, billions of pounds of government spending and other subsidies are harming the environment, says the first cross-sector assessment for more…

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As oil nears $100, Saudis snub U.S., stick to Russian pact amid Ukraine crisis

As oil nears $100, Saudis snub U.S., stick to Russian pact amid Ukraine crisis

The Wall Street Journal reports: Rising oil prices and fears of a Russian invasion of Ukraine have created a dilemma for Saudi Arabia: Help the West by pumping more crude to tame the market, or stand by a five-year-old oil alliance that is helping Moscow at the expense of Washington. For now, the world’s largest crude exporter is sticking with Russia. President Biden has repeatedly called on Persian Gulf producers to pump more oil to reduce gasoline prices that, for…

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Trump’s inner circle freaks that his tax firm ‘screwed’ him

Trump’s inner circle freaks that his tax firm ‘screwed’ him

The Daily Beast reports: Predictably, Donald Trump wants you to think his longtime accounting firm’s decision to ditch the Trump Organization last week is no big deal. In fact, he would like you to not think about it at all. But that hasn’t stopped members of his inner sanctum from wondering if the highly publicized investigations in New York could actually be what ultimately torches the ex-president’s sprawling family business. Which is why after accounting firm Mazars USA dropped the…

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Afghans who bet on fast path to the U.S. are facing a closed door

Afghans who bet on fast path to the U.S. are facing a closed door

The New York Times reports: As a combat interpreter in Afghanistan, Sharif Azizi helped U.S. Special Forces hunt down Taliban targets, even after suffering leg and chest injuries from stepping on a land mine. When his life was threatened by the insurgents, the United States acknowledged his eight years of service and in 2017 brought him to safety in Los Angeles. Last year, when Taliban fighters seized Kabul, they came looking for his mother and siblings. Unable to make it…

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They used to just run elections. Now they fight foreign agents

They used to just run elections. Now they fight foreign agents

Politico reports: Voting for the 2022 midterms is already underway, and the nation’s top election officials are caught fighting a two-front war: Battling disinformation stemming from the last election, while simultaneously preparing for the next one. The officials are no longer just running elections. They’ve become full-time myth-busters, contending with information threats coming from the other side of the globe — and their own ranks. In interviews with 10 state chief election officials — along with conversations with staffers, current…

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In France, a racist conspiracy theory edges into the mainstream

In France, a racist conspiracy theory edges into the mainstream

The New York Times reports: Until a couple of years ago, the “great replacement” — a racist conspiracy theory that white Christian populations are being intentionally replaced by nonwhite immigrants — was so toxic in France that even Marine Le Pen, the longtime leader of the country’s far right, pointedly refused to use it. But in a presidential race that has widened the boundaries of political acceptability in France, Valérie Pécresse, the candidate of the mainstream center-right party in the…

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