By Taylor Loeb March 15, 2020 Last month, I was in Taiwan, watching the presidential election and its democracy, in action. I sat around table-mounted microphones, drinking black coffee, listening to experts meditate on election results, observing Taiwanese society, and, as experts do, analyzing what it all means. I went to raucous political rallies with hundreds…
Continue reading ➞ Conceiving a country: A rapid-fire initiation to Taiwan
By Yilin Wang March 2, 2020 WASHINGTON, D.C. – As the economy has stagnated amidst the coronavirus epidemic, the Chinese government has stepped up its economic stimulus efforts in an attempt to prevent further downturn. Following its initial economic stimulus package announced on January 1 that promised a $174 billion liquidity injection into the market,…
Continue reading ➞ China pumps cash into economy, second time in 2020
By Leif Olson March 5, 2020 WASHINGTON, DC - In 2016, Stephanie Kelton, an economist at Stony Brook University, joined the Bernie Sanders campaign. With Kelton came a new economic idea: Modern Monetary Theory (MMT). MMTers claim that governments need not worry about deficit spending or debt, a belief that spawned policies like the Green…
Continue reading ➞ Modern Monetary Theory – What do SAIS faculty make of it?
By Dennis Murphy February 11, 2020 With over 24,500 confirmed global cases of Coronavirus, governments around the world have initiated quarantine protocols. The worst of the outbreak, however, has remained localized in its nation of origin: China. The virus has made life difficult for Chinese SAISers. One Chinese student found herself unable to return to…
By Michael Hall February 6, 2020 BOLOGNA, Italy — Walking towards the sliding door on the way to the water fountain, Giulio’s bar is a collection of aggressively-lit roadside furniture. While one hand digs in a pocket for a plastic card with peeling filament, the other puts forth a bottle; sea-foam green, translucent razzmatazz, a…
Continue reading ➞ Verified results in water fountain socializing
By Adam DuBard BOLOGNA, Italy - On January 3rd, the world awoke to the news that the United States had assassinated the head of Iran’s infamous Revolutionary Guard, Qasem Soleimani, in a drone strike at Baghdad Airport. The killing of Soleimani, itself a dramatic escalation between Iran and the United States, sparked an immediate…
By: Laura Rong February 5th, 2020 BOLOGNA, Italy - Home to the SAIS Europe, Bologna has welcomed students from different parts of the world since the 1960s. Although the local cafeteria on campus, Giulios, offers delicious Italian breakfast and pasta everyday, sometimes one just wants to feel closer to home by going to a restaurant…
Continue reading ➞ Feeling Homesick? Check out these restaurants!
By Gerhard Ottehenning February 17, 2020 WASHINGTON, D.C. — After a long winnowing phase, the Democratic primaries are finally underway. SAIS Virginia residents will get the chance to vote on March 3 (“Super Tuesday”), followed by Maryland residents on April 28 and D.C. on June 2. A recent poll administered by the SAIS Observer provides…
By Yilin Wang February 16, 2020 WASHINGTON, D.C. – The 2020 Academy Awards has brought the South Korean movie “Parasite” into the spotlight, with the film winning four Oscars including the Best Picture Award. The triumph of “Parasite” marked the first time a non-English language movie has won this award, an achievement that invites excitement…
By Niki Ottolia February 20, 2020 WASHINGTON, DC - Look around you. Approximately, one of every 67 SAIS students is a Canadian Studies concentrator or minor. This elusive student often cross-concentrates in Latin American Studies, making them the Students of Fire and Ice. Although their natural habitat is the Great White North, at SAIS you…