Is it another sign of Washington’s withering clout in Latin America? Or does it indicate the rule of law’s rising stature in the region? Or will it just let Venezuelan officials who are allegedly in the pockets of drug lords off the hook? When it comes to Colombia’s final decision to extradite alleged narco-kingpin Walid Makled to …
drugs
Mexico’s New Top Cop Pick: Can Its First Female Attorney General Rein In the Narcos?
Mexican President Felipe Calderón could stand to build a few bridges with Washington at the moment. Last month saw the resignation of the U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Carlos Pascual, who many believe was forced out by Calderon’s unusually public complaints about confidential U.S. diplomatic cables, released last December by WikiLeaks, …
Global Briefing, Mar. 29, 2011: Chuck Norris and Other Superheroes
Orator-in-Chief — Obama’s Libya speech was long on doctrine, but short on details, writes Michael Crowley on Swampland; On Global Spin, Tony Karon explains how the president aligned American and Arab goals.
Sizing Up Social Media — A new study, ‘Who Says What to Whom on Twitter,’ shows that a mere 20,000 Twitter users steal almost …
Can Obama and Calderon Solve Mexico’s Bloodshed — and the Bad Blood?
Are the U.S. and Mexico in “distant neighbors” mode again?
In the wake of last month’s murder of a U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent, by narco-criminals on a Mexican highway, the façade of U.S.-Mexico drug-war camaraderie appears to be cracking. Already irked by recently WikiLeaked cables between U.S. diplomats …
South African Airways: Flying High?
South African Airways is once again scrambling to contain the damage after yet another crew member was arrested on suspicion of drug smuggling. Nonnie Nyoba, 44, who had worked for the airline for 12 years, was arrested in Sao Paulo on Feb. 15 as she prepared to board an SAA flight to South Africa after Brazilian customs officers seized …
Typhoon in a Teacup
Hong Kong has made the startling discovery that some of its young people are taking drugs instead of being the well-behaved ping-pong playing, academic over-achievers that they are supposed to be. Each day, it seems, the papers gloat over some new tale of teens and chemical depravity. Oddly, much of it occurs in the last place you would …
Popstars in Drug Shock (Yawn)
In Hong Kong, public reaction to celebrity misbehavior is far exceeding metropolitan norms. Last year’s Edison Chen imbroglio—in which photos of the singer-actor having sex with former celebrity lovers were distributed online—led to preposterous scenes as sobbing fans and outraged community leaders struggled to come to terms with …