Gen Z Has Finally Found Its Karl Marx
The German philosopher’s “Grundrisse” is an indispensable guide to our current chaos—from AI to the rise of China.
List of Government Bureaucracy articles
![An illustration shows a gavel cracking down on a digitized background of ones and zeroes for a story about regulating artificial intelligence.]()
An illustration shows a gavel cracking down on a digitized background of ones and zeroes for a story about regulating artificial intelligence.
The Global Race to Regulate AI
The intelligence may be artificial, but the regulation is real—or might be.
![An illustration for Puck magazine from 1905 shows the battle against bureaucracy.]()
An illustration for Puck magazine from 1905 shows the battle against bureaucracy.
Only an Absolute Bureaucracy Can Save Us
The West will only restore its stability when civil servants are again devoted to the public rather than themselves.
![Protesters wave flags during a rally in Almaty.]()
Protesters wave flags during a rally in Almaty.
Kazakhstan’s Reforms Should Be More Than Just Show
Promised changes after January’s chaos are unpromising so far.
![CIA headquarters]()
CIA headquarters
Washington’s Secrecy Bubble Needs to Be Popped
Too much classification undermines the rule of law. Here’s how to fix a broken system.
![A close-up photo of Hossein Amir-Abdollahian's face.]()
A close-up photo of Hossein Amir-Abdollahian's face.
Meet Iran’s New Foreign Minister: Qassem Suleimani’s ‘Soldier’
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian is a staunch backer of Iran’s “Axis of Resistance.”
![Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani inspect a guard of honor.]()
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani inspect a guard of honor.
Afghanistan Needs a Weaker President
Decentralizing power can be key to long-term peace.
![British Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a televised press conference at 10 Downing Street on Feb. 22 in London.]()
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson during a televised press conference at 10 Downing Street on Feb. 22 in London.
British Prime Minister Is a Broken Job
Why Boris Johnson’s failures in the pandemic are partly the product of the office he holds.
![A photograph of German-American philosopher and political theorist Hannah Arendt printed on a silk screen is on display during a press preview of the exhibition "Hannah Arendt and the Twentieth Century" at the German Historical Museum (Deutsches Historisches Museum - DHM) in Berlin on May 6, 2020.]()
A photograph of German-American philosopher and political theorist Hannah Arendt printed on a silk screen is on display during a press preview of the exhibition "Hannah Arendt and the Twentieth Century" at the German Historical Museum (Deutsches Historisches Museum - DHM) in Berlin on May 6, 2020.
What Hannah Arendt Would Do About Trump’s Former Bureaucrats
Why civil servants and other officials deserve to be held responsible for the outgoing administration’s misdeeds.
![Anthony Fauci (left), the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, listens as Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, speaks during a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump and Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards in the Oval Office of the White House on April 29.]()
Anthony Fauci (left), the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, listens as Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, speaks during a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump and Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards in the Oval Office of the White House on April 29.
To Survive the Pandemic, Washington Needs to Learn How to Listen
The U.S. policy process—if there is one—has been driven by public health experts. Their input is important, but governments must balance their advice with input from other sectors.
![A Guerrero community police member stands guard at an illegal poppy field in Heliodoro Castillo, Guerrero state, Mexico, on March 25, 2018.]()
A Guerrero community police member stands guard at an illegal poppy field in Heliodoro Castillo, Guerrero state, Mexico, on March 25, 2018.
When Poppies Don’t Pay
With a stark decline in the price fetched by opium gum, Mexico’s government should take strides toward making crop substitution proposals a reality in Guerrero.
![Then-British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May, and U.S. President Donald Trump arrive for a working dinner meeting at the NATO summit in Brussels, on May 25, 2017.]()
Then-British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May, and U.S. President Donald Trump arrive for a working dinner meeting at the NATO summit in Brussels, on May 25, 2017.
Don’t Fear the Deep State. It’s the Shallow State That Will Destroy Us.
Populists like to blame elites, but from Israel to Britain to the United States their crusade against hardworking civil servants is undermining the foundations of democracy.
![Demonstrators gather outside a deradicalization center in Pontourny, France, the country's first Center for Prevention, Integration, and Citizenship on February 11, 2017 during a protest demanding its closure.]()
Demonstrators gather outside a deradicalization center in Pontourny, France, the country's first Center for Prevention, Integration, and Citizenship on February 11, 2017 during a protest demanding its closure.
Want to Deradicalize Terrorists? Treat Them Like Everyone Else.
Many counter-extremism efforts falter because ideological reform programs run by governments lack credibility. Appealing to the basic psychological needs of ex-radicals is more promising.
![US Secretary of Defense James Mattis (L), US Vice President Mike Pence (2ndL), White House Chief of Staff John Kelly (2ndR) and Pence Chief of Staff Nick Ayers (R) listen as US President Donald Trump speaks to the press before a meeting in the Pentagon January 18, 2018 in Washington, DC.(BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)]()
US Secretary of Defense James Mattis (L), US Vice President Mike Pence (2ndL), White House Chief of Staff John Kelly (2ndR) and Pence Chief of Staff Nick Ayers (R) listen as US President Donald Trump speaks to the press before a meeting in the Pentagon January 18, 2018 in Washington, DC.(BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)
The Insubordination of Trump Isn’t Treason. It’s Normal.
The president isn't being subverted by the deep state—he's being thwarted by bureaucracy.
![Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is greeted by Pope Francis during the Ordinary Public Consistory at St. Peter's Basilica on February 14, 2015 in Vatican City, Vatican. (Franco Origlia/Getty Images)]()
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI is greeted by Pope Francis during the Ordinary Public Consistory at St. Peter's Basilica on February 14, 2015 in Vatican City, Vatican. (Franco Origlia/Getty Images)
The Catholic Church Is a Dysfunctional Workplace
The ferocity of the Vatican’s civil war has less to do with theology or justice than petty office politics.
![Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis greets incoming National Security Advisor John Bolton at the Pentagon on March 29. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)]()
Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis greets incoming National Security Advisor John Bolton at the Pentagon on March 29. (Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
John Bolton Can’t Be Contained
For the first time in his career, Washington’s most belligerent foreign policy wonk is officially outside the bureaucratic box.
![Mike Pompeo speaks at the American Enterprise Institute on Jan. 23, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)]()
Mike Pompeo speaks at the American Enterprise Institute on Jan. 23, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Good Riddance to CIA Director Pompeo
Nobody's throwing goodbye parties at Langley for the outgoing boss.
![HUD Secretary Dr. Ben Carson speaks at the White House, on January 12, 2018 in Washington, DC.
(Mark Wilson/Getty Images)]()
HUD Secretary Dr. Ben Carson speaks at the White House, on January 12, 2018 in Washington, DC.
(Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
Making American Bureaucracy Terrible Again
The Trump administration's petty corruption will have a clear legacy: more red tape for years to come.
![U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey on Aug. 11, 2017. (Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)]()
U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey on Aug. 11, 2017. (Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)
Serving Under Trump Is Not a Crime
Officials in both parties urgently need to assure diplomats that working for the Trump administration won’t derail their future careers.
![Saudi women sit in a stadium for the first time to attend an event in the capital Riyadh on Sept. 23, commemorating the anniversary of the founding of the kingdom. (Fayez Nureldine/AFP/Getty Images)]()
Saudi women sit in a stadium for the first time to attend an event in the capital Riyadh on Sept. 23, commemorating the anniversary of the founding of the kingdom. (Fayez Nureldine/AFP/Getty Images)
Amid a Saudi Purge, Women Face the Test of a Lifetime
As the kingdom experiences momentous change, women are keenly aware that the weight of history is on their shoulders.
Load 10 More Articles
The Global Race to Regulate AI
The intelligence may be artificial, but the regulation is real—or might be.
Only an Absolute Bureaucracy Can Save Us
The West will only restore its stability when civil servants are again devoted to the public rather than themselves.
Kazakhstan’s Reforms Should Be More Than Just Show
Promised changes after January’s chaos are unpromising so far.
Washington’s Secrecy Bubble Needs to Be Popped
Too much classification undermines the rule of law. Here’s how to fix a broken system.
Meet Iran’s New Foreign Minister: Qassem Suleimani’s ‘Soldier’
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian is a staunch backer of Iran’s “Axis of Resistance.”
Afghanistan Needs a Weaker President
Decentralizing power can be key to long-term peace.
British Prime Minister Is a Broken Job
Why Boris Johnson’s failures in the pandemic are partly the product of the office he holds.
What Hannah Arendt Would Do About Trump’s Former Bureaucrats
Why civil servants and other officials deserve to be held responsible for the outgoing administration’s misdeeds.
To Survive the Pandemic, Washington Needs to Learn How to Listen
The U.S. policy process—if there is one—has been driven by public health experts. Their input is important, but governments must balance their advice with input from other sectors.
When Poppies Don’t Pay
With a stark decline in the price fetched by opium gum, Mexico’s government should take strides toward making crop substitution proposals a reality in Guerrero.
Don’t Fear the Deep State. It’s the Shallow State That Will Destroy Us.
Populists like to blame elites, but from Israel to Britain to the United States their crusade against hardworking civil servants is undermining the foundations of democracy.
Want to Deradicalize Terrorists? Treat Them Like Everyone Else.
Many counter-extremism efforts falter because ideological reform programs run by governments lack credibility. Appealing to the basic psychological needs of ex-radicals is more promising.
The Insubordination of Trump Isn’t Treason. It’s Normal.
The president isn't being subverted by the deep state—he's being thwarted by bureaucracy.
The Catholic Church Is a Dysfunctional Workplace
The ferocity of the Vatican’s civil war has less to do with theology or justice than petty office politics.
John Bolton Can’t Be Contained
For the first time in his career, Washington’s most belligerent foreign policy wonk is officially outside the bureaucratic box.
Good Riddance to CIA Director Pompeo
Nobody's throwing goodbye parties at Langley for the outgoing boss.
Making American Bureaucracy Terrible Again
The Trump administration's petty corruption will have a clear legacy: more red tape for years to come.
Serving Under Trump Is Not a Crime
Officials in both parties urgently need to assure diplomats that working for the Trump administration won’t derail their future careers.
Amid a Saudi Purge, Women Face the Test of a Lifetime
As the kingdom experiences momentous change, women are keenly aware that the weight of history is on their shoulders.
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