Synopsis: The Avenger has his plaid panties in a bunch about a serious global shift that started during the big G-20 in Pittsburgh last week: a move to more representative economic and political power on the world stage. Listen as the plaid one explains the background of the G-20 evolution, and the impacts of the most recent G-20 party….specifically for the BRIC countries….as they redistribute voting power in global institutions like the IMF and World Bank. Gee golly, its G-20 genius!
Synopsis: NATO celebrated its 60th anniversary last week in Strasbourg, France. The military/defense group had clarity of purpose back in 1949: stop Soviet aggression/expansion. However, since the fall of the USSR in 1991, the group has lost a bit of focus of mission and today’s NATO is nowhere near the cohesive tight military unit it once was. The Plaid Avenger highlights a variety of issues that the organization is currently NOT doing so well at, from its relationship with Russia to the current war in Afghanistan.
The G-20 met this week, in what the Plaid Avenger predicts will be looked back upon as a hugely historic event. This meeting is the first time a truly representative group of the biggest movers and shakers has gotten together to truly try and solve some global problems. Unlike the UN, this tight 20-entity group has the capacity to actually get stuff done without the bloated bureaucracy bogging it down. It represents big changes in the global outlook of how to solve global problems…perhaps for the first time in history. The G-20 is now the premier institutions for problem solving on the global scale. How exciting!
The G-20: saying farewell to the ‘blue-eyed blond men’?
Synopsis: Watch out! ASEAN stands for the Association of South East Asian Nations, a rapidly up-and-coming trade block in Asia which may very well become the foundation stone of the largest free trade zone on the planet. The ten-nation group, while still very young, is set to fashion itself as the EU of Asia…with perhaps even more potential for growth and integration. With associate members like China, India and Australia already aligning itself with the group, this is one to keep your eye on if you want to understand the rapid evolution of Asia as the center for 21st century growth.
Synopsis: Russia has turned off natural gas supplies to Ulraine on Jan 1 since the two countries could not decide on a market price for this year. The Plaid Avenger gives you some background on what this gas issue is really all about, the ramifications to the EU, and even some possible future winners in this chilly siuation.
Are you a college professor teaching World Regions or Global Political classes? Pick up the cutting edge, most entertainly educating textbook currently on the market.
