Think Again

They told us it would usher in a new era of freedom, political activism, and perpetual peace. They were wrong. 

It's not time to panic. Yet.

It's a civil rights movement, not a revolution.

President Obama’s pledge to rid the world of atomic bombs is a waste of breath. But not for the reasons you might imagine.

The idea of states as autonomous, independent entities is collapsing under the combined onslaught of monetary unions, CNN, the Internet, and nongovernmental organizations. But those who proclaim the death of sovereignty misread history. The nation-state has a keen instinct for survival and has so far adapted to new challenges -- even the challenge of globalization.

Virtually every nation resorts to the "dark arts" of espionage to protect its government, economy, and citizens. But with the end of superpower conflict, the spread of democracy, the advent of new information technologies, and the emergence of a more transparent world, the central question about spying today is whether it is still necessary.

Views on William Jefferson Clinton's record as a world leader have been sharply divided. Where supporters see pragmatic leadership and bold innovation, critics see improvised initiatives that have left America adrift. In preparation for the coming rash of retrospectives, FP's editors look at which aspects of the conventional wisdom are likely to stand the test of time.

From Moscow to Buenos Aires, money laundering scandals sap economies and destabilize governments. Policymakers blame crime cartels, tax havens, and new techniques like cyberlaundering. But dirty money long predates such influences. Without unified rules governing global finance, outlaws will always exploit disparate legal systems to stash the proceeds of their crimes.

The markets may have soured on Internet start-ups. High-tech oases in countries like Malaysia and India may not lift their countries out of poverty. But all those dot-coms and Silicon Valley dreams never had much to do with the real economic impact of the Internet. The new economy is alive and well.

Lost your job? Your cultural identity? Your democratic rights? Your clean air and water? Blame globalization -- everyone else does. From Seattle to Copenhagen and Washington, D.C., to Genoa, protesters of all stripes and creeds have turned globalization into a shorthand for many of the world's ills. But judging by the widespread misconceptions about the true consequences of the integration of markets, politics, and cultures, a smaller world is not necessarily a smarter one.

The Soviet Union stoked mythology by being a closed society, allowing people to allege just about anything without being exposed as wrong. Ironically, Russia's transformation into an open society has engendered its own mythology. With Russia's faults laid bare for all to see, Western politicians and media have commonly described the former superpower as a nation in decline, beset by corruption and a collapsing infrastructure. But most of these flaws are remnants of Soviet mismanagement only now being put right.

U.S. Africa Command was launched to controversy and has been met with skepticism ever since. Behind two years of mixed messages, a coherent mission might finally be emerging. Here's what you need to know about the world's next U.S. military hub.