World Views

There is very little time to make major improvements in world politics and to mobilize the resources and personnel needed for the unprecedented, life-threatening climate challenges that are already happening and will soon become much worse. Here is a plan for major changes/improvements to existing U.N. institutions and for the creation of two new U.N. agencies, a Global Infrastructure Fund (GIF) and a Global Emergency Management Agency (GEM), along with expanded roles for the World Bank and for INTERPOL. It could be called a large carrot, small stick strategy.  In the words of The New York Times’ columnist, Thomas Friedman, “later will be too late.”

Welcome 2024! Among our resolutions for the new year, we can choose to become better listeners. Our feature Listen to This explores the idea that there is no greater gift we can give someone than the chance to be heard. Barbara McMichael writes about historic preservation in her article Preserving the Past | Protecting the Future. Thinking about historic preservation makes me remember my small book—The Death of a Library. With war raging in the Ukraine, and in Gaza, it’s a good time to ponder whether there is such a thing as a Good War. Many predict 2024 will be a tumultuous year. We offer the perfect antidotes to stress in Take Comfort in Small Things. This month we present the sixth and final chapter of Dr. Peter Corning’s groundbreaking new book Superorganism. My book review of  Picasso by Gertrude Stein asserts that Stein’s craft and technique does not stand the test of time.