The Optimist

The global working class is starting to unite -- and that's a good thing.

The case for sending America's unemployed abroad.

How opening borders gives economies a lift.

Why Walmart may have done more for the poor than any business in American history.

A little government monitoring can be a good thing.

The oft-predicted "clash of civilizations" has not materialized. If anything, values are converging across cultures.

The case against long hours.

Why millions of people choose to live in urban squalor.

It's time to stop calling countries like Brazil and China "developing." They're just rich.

Are development experts becoming racists?

If you want to work in international development, go work for a big, bad multinational company.

There's good news on the drug war: The world knows how to end it -- so why can't the United States figure it out?

Why climate doomsayers are selling humanity short.

Why Africa doesn't need your white guilt anymore.

Why President Obama's curious nomination for the new chief of the World Bank could turn out to be a smart pick -- and an interesting indication of how aid lending is changing for good.

The U.S. middle class is still incredibly wealthy by international standards.

If religious conservatives want to put a stop to abortions, there's no better tool than making contraception a lot more available. And there's a world of good it'll do.

Across the world, crime is down -- and in a big way. Are violent movies to thank for less real blood and gore?

Trying to save money on a university and still get a good education? Forget the local community college -- send your kid to school overseas.

The global economic crisis is good news for trees, but how can we make sure the gains keep coming?