News

With the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the move toward world peace appeared to take a positive turn. Although there have been conflicts around the globe since then, the major world powers have been at relative peace with each other—at least until very recently. According to the head of NATO, “The world is more dangerous today than it has been in a generation” (The Guardian, September 8, 2017).

In the past few weeks, thousands around the globe have been traumatized by powerful hurricanes in the Atlantic and typhoons in the Pacific that have caused tremendous devastation and suffering.

A recent study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences highlights the loss of animal species worldwide and a significant reduction in their habitat (The Guardian, July 10, 2017).

The days of Britain ruling the waves are apparently over. “The Royal Navy can only send a quarter of its warships to sea due to spending cuts which have left the armed forces ‘struggling to protect Britain’s citizens.’” This is due to a lack of supplies, lack of manpower and lack of fuel (The Telegraph, September 14, 2017).

EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker delivered his “State of the European Union” speech on September 13 and outlined several bold proposals for the Eurozone. One idea was to create a “super president” position that would merge “the presidencies of the European Commission and the European Council” and result in streamlining the bureaucracy (EU Observer, September 14, 2017). Another proposal in Mr.