National success requires achieving both continuity and economies of scale. Those big enough to have economies of scale rarely have good borders – think Russia. Those sufficiently isolated to have long continuities rarely have scale – think New Zealand. The Americans have changed their mind about their alliance and have turned sharply more insular. There […]
Tag Archives: Geopolitics
Has The West Lost It? (2018) Kishore Mahbubani
I first discovered Kishore on the Sinica Podcast (highly recommended). His eloquence and sharp takes on America and China inspired me to read some of his work. Being from Singapore, a country born of Chinese and British influences, Kishore provides a balanced (or at least, a fresh) view on Sino-Western relations. I enjoyed his constructive […]
The New Tsar: The Rise and Reign of Vladimir Putin (2015) Steven Lee Myers
Quotes “The KGB’s ranks has swollen under Yuri Andropov, who served as its chairman from 1967 to 1982, when he became the paramount leader of the Soviet Union. Andropov became on of Putin’s heroes, a distant and yet revered leader. Andropov understood the limits of the Soviet system and sought to modernize it so it […]