Carnegie Council Audio Podcast

"What you stopped seeing after World War I was great power conflict involving chemical weapons, and what you started seeing was asymmetric conflicts or regional conflicts that involved chemical weapons. That actually disturbed me even more because what I started realizing was that as time went on the weaker you were, the more likely that another state would use chemical weapons against you or your people."

"The failure of globalism [an ideology of bringing people closer together] is very different than the failure of globalization," says Ian Bremmer. "I don't think globalization has failed. It has led to a lot more wealth. It has taken a lot of people out of poverty." But in many Western countries the losers have not been taken care of, so the backlash is hardly surprising. What about the Chinese approach? Is it more successful?

"What distinguished Addams from other peace advocates was her strong emphasis on the crucial role of marginalized people, such as women, immigrants, and workers, in the peacemaking process," says Seiko Mimaki. Her views are highly relevant today, when people see themselves as abandoned by global elites. Unlike that of Woodrow Wilson, her vision of cosmopolitanism "pursued freedom and opportunity for everyone, not just for a privileged few."

Harvard's Yascha Mounk argues that liberalism and democracy are coming apart, creating new forms of illiberal democracy (democracy without rights) and undemocratic liberalism (rights without democracy). Populist leaders are flourishing; indeed, Hungary is on the verge of descending into dictatorship, with shamefully little criticism from the Europe or the U.S. What are the causes of this phenomenon? What can we do about it?

Next time on Global Ethics Forum, Nexus Institute founder Rob Riemen delivers a stark warning about the rise of fascism in the United States and Europe. In this excerpt, Riemen discusses the features of fascism in the 21st century and why it needs to be called out.

Although it has been written about for centuries, post-traumatic stress was not officially recognized as a medical condition until the 1980s. However World War I "was really a turning point in terms of acknowledging and starting to identify and treat what we call today post-traumatic stress," says Tanisha Fazal of the University of Minnesota, whose project on treating PTS will make the connection between World War I and current times.

Are there such things as timeless principles of grand strategy? If so, are they always the same across epochs and cultures? What can we learn from reading the classics, such as Thucydides, Sun Tzu, and Clausewitz? "The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing," according to Isaiah Berlin. Which type makes better strategists, or do you need to be a bit of both? John Lewis Gaddis has some wise and thoughtful answers.

Next time on Global Ethics Forum, Institute for Policy Studies’ Chuck Collins discusses extreme inequality in America. In this excerpt, Collins tells journalist Magalie Laguerre-Wilkinson what the one percent needs to do to build a more equitable society.

"World War I was the beginning of what we now consider to be one of the cornerstones of the ways in which we engage in war," says Major Caruso. "At that time air power was relatively new, it was a nascent technology, but now most countries have some form of air force. There are recent conflicts that have been fought almost entirely via air power." He goes on to discuss the evolution of international humanitarian law with respect to air power.

With rich and varied coral reefs, Indonesia and the Philippines are critically important for marine biodiversity, says Brett Jenks of Rare, a conservation organization. Overfishing could result in millions losing their livelihoods and leads to degradation of coastal habitats, making them less resilient to climate change. But there is hope. In marine reserves started as pilot projects, fish populations are increasing by as much as 390 percent.

Next time on Global Ethics Forum, the UN's Philip Alston discusses poverty in the United States and the dark side of American exceptionalism. In this excerpt, Alston tells journalist Stephanie Sy about a shocking example of extreme poverty in Alabama and why it persists in 21st century America.

China experts Cunningham and Wasserstrom start by talking about the small, mainly campus-based #MeToo campaign in China--to avoid internet censorship young people often use emojis of a rice bowl and a rabbit, which sound the same as "me too" in Chinese, but now the censors have figured that out--and go on to consider more general issues of censorship, repression, and the ups and downs of gender equality in China.

The revelations about the misuse of Facebook data have started a pushback against the top five big tech companies: Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google. How do approaches to privacy and data use differ in the U.S., Europe, and China? What kind of transparency should we demand? How will AI affect workers? All this and more in a lively and informative discussion with author and "Financial Times" columnist Rana Foroohar.

Katherine Akey is researching "gueules cassées," soldiers who suffered facially disfiguring injuries on WWI battlefields, focusing on those who were treated at the American Hospital in Paris. Though many of their stories have been lost, haunting photographs of these servicemen remain. Akey's research will delve into complicated questions about caring for the wounded, the ethics of war photography, and how Americans learn about World War I.

Populist leader President Duterte has killed thousands in his "war on drugs," idolizes Putin, and openly uses fake news and excessive nationalism to consolidate his power. And it's working: he has an 82 percent popularity rating right now. What happened to the nation's liberal democratic heritage? Author and historian Lisandro Claudio discusses the situation and how he is using Youtube videos, articles, and a new book to fight back.

"Indonesian civil societies and academics are very good at collecting cases of discrimination," says Sandra Hamid, author of "Normalizing Intolerance." "But what we don't have is the ethnography of the everyday life of discrimination, things that are not necessarily discrimination with a capital D; this is like your daily experience." Today we see myriad examples of the gradual normalization of belittling and isolating non-Muslims.

Some unpleasant truths for liberals, from William Galston: The rise of anti-pluralist populist movements is caused by a combination of economic factors and migration; we need to take these concerns seriously, instead of feeling morally superior. In the U.S., this will require reintegrating our economy so that small towns and rural areas thrive again; breaking through government gridlock; and purging the "poison" of our immigration policies.

Are there differences in political, social, and economic attitudes among Indonesians--and Indonesian Muslims in particular--based on their levels of religious piety? Intriguingly, Tom Pepinsky and his fellow researchers found that the answer is no; piety is not the deciding factor. Pepinsky also examines Indonesia's approach toward minority rights, which he defines as tolerance for group rights but not for individual rights.

Next time on Global Ethics Forum, Council on Foreign Relations Senior Fellow Elizabeth Economy discusses China’s complicated relationship with environmentalism. In this excerpt, Economy tells Stephanie Sy how Chinese leadership’s approach toward climate change has evolved in the last few decades.

Today we can accurately measure happiness and we know much more about its causes, says Professor Layard. It turns out that getting richer is often not enough for real happiness. So now, instead of just looking at GDP, many policymakers around the world are focusing on how to raise the level of people's satisfaction with their lives, including their mental and physical health, for example.