by Peter Schurman | Feb 17, 2015 | Uncategorized
Roger Cohen argues today that the rise of ISIS and the threat it poses to the West stem from the failure of the Arab Spring to provide a more civil path to frustrated Arabs: “The rise of the Islamic State, and Obama’s new war, are a direct result of the failure...
by Peter Schurman | Nov 11, 2014 | Uncategorized
(A version of this article was published at The Huffington Post / The World Post on November 8th, 2014) The Berlin Wall fell 25 years ago this winter. People on both sides filled the streets in celebration, cheered on by virtually everyone around the world. For all...
by Peter Schurman | Apr 23, 2014 | Uncategorized
When considering a global democracy, it makes sense to ask what policy outcomes would result from enabling everyone in the world to vote. There’s a lot of polling data that suggests generally reassuring answers to this question. Not all mainstream American values are...
by Peter Schurman | Apr 9, 2014 | Uncategorized
When we think about the logistics of enabling everyone on earth to participate in a single democracy, it’s intuitive to envision technology playing a central role. The potential advantages for scale and cost-efficiency are compelling. Unfortunately, it’s not as...
by Peter Schurman | Mar 1, 2013 | Uncategorized
I believe that world peace is possible, within our lifetimes, and that we should make it our goal. Is there any higher goal? I can’t think of one. If we define world peace not as the elimination of all conflict, but rather as the end of wars — organized violence...