鶹Ƶ

What Were We Thinking? Selected Schar School Op-Eds (November 2021)

Body

From the Washington Post:

The Russians' objective was to breed discord, and they succeeded beyond their wildest expectations. Now others have gone to school on the Russian example and will seek to prey on our country’s state of affairs in just the same way.

—Michael V. Hayden and James Clapper

From the Conversation:

I am also troubled to see so few nonprofits led by people of color on this list. Some notable exceptions include theUnited Way,Planned ParenthoodandFeeding America. But the vast majority are led by white people.

—Mirae Kim, et al.

From Defense One:

The great power competition between the United States and China is taking place on a planet that israpidly changing in unprecedented ways. China’s strategists appear to be taking this broadly into account; U.S. policymakers must do so as well.

—Erin Sikorsky, et al.

From the Washington Post:

Social science research regularly finds that economic support for families is associated with improved childwell-being, including better health, academic performance, and future earnings. Yet, the United States spends significantly less on social supports than do other advanced democracies.

Mariely López-Santana and Lucas Núñez

From Foreign Affairs:

The United States cannot deal with these states as though they are democracies. The Biden administration must use sanctions, criminal prosecutions, trade regulation, and support for judicial reform to force change in Central America.

—Claudia Escobar Mejía

From the Hill:

One reason right-wing extremism is thriving in the Republican Party is that there is no figure in the party willing to lead the opposition to it.

—Bill Schneider

From the Washington Post:

As with all new governors, there’s a learning curve, and Youngkin’s first lesson in changing Virginia law is that while the governor proposes, the General Assembly disposes.

—Mark J. Rozell

From the Hill:

To be blunt, neither of the intelligence oversight committees—the House or the Senate—is really doing the kind of intrusive work that must be done to safeguard the people’s money and our national security interests.

—Ronald Marks

From Higher Ed Dive:

The use of search firms to hire executives in the private sector clearly is embedded in higher education.

—Judith Wilde and Jim Finkelstein

From War on the Rocks:

The administration is reportedly considering placing a greater emphasis on human rights in the policy’s text, shifting the regulation of firearms and munition sales back to the State Department, and joining and ratifying the Arms Trade Treaty.

—PhD Candidate Jordan Cohen

From the Hill:

On a lot of social issues, the right is more intensely committed than the left. Call it “the passion gap.” That's why conservatives have often won battles over gun rights and abortion and immigration. They are more watchful, better funded, better organized — and angry. They let politicians know that if they dare to take the wrong position, a posse of voters will come after them.

—Bill Schneider

From the Washington Post:

The Virginia GOP for now is on a roll, anchored in part by low job-performance numbers for Democrats in Congress and the White House.

—Mark J. Rozell

From the National Interest:

If most countries permitted a larger, more regular flow of migrants and had procedures and capacity to deal with sudden spikes—as are predictable given the sporadic nature of conflict and climate-driven disasters—then disorder would not manifest.

—Jack Goldstone

From War on the Rocks:

As the United States talks more and more of defending Taiwan from an attack from the mainland, Taiwan’s military seems to be taking its defense preparations less and less seriously.

—Michael Hunzeker

From Defense News:

A continued partnership with Turkey does more harm than good.

—Jordan Cohen and Natalie Armbruster

From La República:

Nacido Para Combatir el Crimen

But it is striking that a congressman questions Guillén's appointment not because he considers that he is not suitable for the position, but because of his role in obtaining the conviction—in the words of the congressman—of the "best former president of Peru," Alberto Fujimori.

—Jo-Marie Burt

From American City & County:

Hundreds of thousands of tech jobs are open and begging for qualified applicants. Before the pandemic the greatest challenge regarding hiring in the public sector was the inability to be competitive with the private sector in terms of compensation. Now it appears money alone is not the key issue it once was as staff burnout from the pandemic appears to be a leading factor in the great resignation phenomenon.

—Alan R. Shark

From the Richmond Times-Dispatch:

We’ve been here before. It’s a story of clashing cultures, the importance of education and the role of women in society.

—Master’s alum James D. Riggle

From the Washington Post:

This election reminds us, however, that the one-third of the electorate who are independents decide which party wins.

—Mark J. Rozell

From InkStick:

While U.S. weapons have supported anti-democracy and anti-U.S. organizations in fighting war and committing human rights violations all over the world, these two examples in Afghanistan illustrate how U.S. weapons sales and military training can—and often do—backfire.

—A. Trevor Thrall and PhD Candidate Jordan Cohen

From Federalism:

Artificial Intelligence and Intergovernmental Relations—Connecting More Than Dots

As AI programs advance, there is also a growing and recognized need for AI program oversight and audit for all levels of government.

—Alan Shark

From the Hill:

To get things done in politics, sometimes you need a warrior and sometimes you need a diplomat.

—Bill Schneider

From Defense One:

The Taliban are hunting them, making it harder to access basic human services. With winter approaching, freezing and starvation will grow.

—Zak Kallenborn and Mike Edwards

From Taiwan Insight:

Unfortunately, this is a cold into which it had been pushed through no fault of its own but by the actions of two repressive regimes more than 50 years ago.

—Gerrit van der Wees

From the Washington Post:

For Virginians who just endured two consecutive years of exhausting political campaigns, there is no rest for the weary. Next year, Virginians may be voting once again for House of Delegates members. And the fall after that.

—Mark J. Rozell

From Foreign Policy:

Despite the optimism presented by adherents to such a perspective, overlooking the UAE’s rogue behavior has been detrimental to U.S. interests not only within the Middle East but at home as well.

—PhD Candidate Jon Hoffman

From the Washington Post:

Because the Democrat-dominated state Senate is not up for election until 2023, the most likely result, if Youngkin wins, would be two years of deadlocked government with each chamber frustrating and stalemating the other’s priorities, reducing legislation to a trickle of bills with rare bipartisan consensus.

—Mark J. Rozell

From Just Security:

On this note, it is important to return to the relief that former President Trump is ultimately asking the court to grant: he is asking the court to substitute its own judgment for that of the head of a co-equal branch regarding whether or not that branch is appropriately protecting its interests.

—Mark J. Rozell and Kel McClanahan

From the Washington Post:

But for Maryland Democrats, the results in Virginia represented painful political deja vu.

—Mark J. Rozell and Mileah Kromer (Goucher College)

From Higher Ed Dive:

While identifying these is relatively easy, we've been curious about the possible causes.

—Judith Wilde and Jim Finkelstein

From Higher Ed Dive:

We identified only one Black search firm leader. While among the least experienced in the executive search industry, he was one of only two individuals who had been a president, provost, dean, and tenured faculty member. He also had spent more years in higher education than any of the other search executives.

—Judith Wilde and Jim Finkelstein

From Higher Ed Dive:

First, based on our research, it is essential that the institution, not the search firm, maintain control of the search. Beware of so-called listening sessions conducted by search firms. They often are little more than a cover for ultimately justifying a secret search.

—Judith Wilde and Jim Finkelstein

From DAWN:

For another, Ponting looked disturbingly like George W. Bush, hardly the most endearing figure in the mid-2000s.

—Ahsan Butt