Many powerful critics of Sri Lanka were friends till recently. As the country moved decisively to defeat the rebels in the north and east of the country, it has faced increasing pressure from some western countries where significant populations of Sri Lankan Tamils are domiciled, and from human rights activists. In a recent interview, Sri Lanka's new ambassador at the UN Dr. Palitha Kohona said that many of them had been swayed by a very effective campaign carried out by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)and their sympathisers.
Disappointed with the lack of support from the west at a crucial time in its fight against terrorism, Sri Lanka has successfully bonded with new friends. Vital support from a range of countries including Iran, China and Libya has helped Sri Lanka scoff at the big stick wielded by western countries. Read the full story ...
Read the full interview here.
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Sunday, September 13, 2009
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
How Did Economists Get It So Wrong?
It’s hard to believe now, but not long ago economists were congratulating themselves over the success of their field. Those successes — or so they believed — were both theoretical and practical, leading to a golden era for the profession. On the theoretical side, they thought that they had resolved their internal disputes. Thus, in a 2008 paper titled “The State of Macro” (that is, macroeconomics, the study of big-picture issues like recessions), Olivier Blanchard of M.I.T., now the chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, declared that “the state of macro is good.” The battles of yesteryear, he said, were over, and there had been a “broad convergence of vision.” And in the real world, economists believed they had things under control: the “central problem of depression-prevention has been solved,” declared Robert Lucas of the University of Chicago in his 2003 presidential address to the American Economic Association. In 2004, Ben Bernanke, a former Princeton professor who is now the chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, celebrated the Great Moderation in economic performance over the previous two decades, which he attributed in part to improved economic policy making.
This article by Paul Krugman is quite interesting and well worth reading. Click to read the full story in the New York Times
This article by Paul Krugman is quite interesting and well worth reading. Click to read the full story in the New York Times