The Childbearing Burden
I’ve been revisiting a number of texts on declining fertility, and one fact remains striking above all: birth rates are falling everywhere. Across civilizations, across economic systems, among the religious…
The Two Conservatisms
“Western experts often describe the Islamic Republic of Iran as ‘conservative.’ The label is superficial, misleading, and fundamentally wrong. The regime in Tehran preserves nothing. It is a revolutionary project,…
Orbit and Empire
I have often returned to a concept that has shaped Anglo-American strategic thinking since the nineteenth century: the rivalry between sea powers and land powers. A sea power seeks what…
Industry Before Purity
Whenever I read about the military-industrial complex or the power of the arms lobby, I find myself uneasy. With investment funds or political NGOs, the judgment often feels simple: whatever…
Question of Political Will
The new rector of Prague’s technical university, Michal Pěchounek, recently said in an interview with Forbes: “I want to know that it’s safe when my child is on a social…
Jazz and the Soviet Youth
Individual battlefield events—or even entire regional wars—should not obscure the larger, long-term global trends. China first achieved overwhelming dominance in industrial capacity. Then it began closing the technological gap and,…