The change has been remarkable. Not long ago, Kim Jong Il was being called a “pygmy” by President George W. Bush. Yet in the last few weeks, North Korea—in an indirect “thank you” for the recent nuclear-disarmament deal—got notice that the New York Philharmonic would soon visit Pyongyang, and Bush sent a personal letter to the Dear Leader respectfully addressing him as “Mr. Chairman.” Another charter member of the “Axis of Evil,” Iran, got its holiday gift in the form of a new U.S. intelligence estimate stating that Tehran had halted its nuclear-weapons program—a report the Iranian president has brandished as vindication for his nation. And in France, President Nicolas Sarkozy became the first Western leader to host former b?te noire Muammar Kaddafi since the 1980s. The Libyan dictator was wined and dined in mid-December, offered lucrative business deals and even allowed to pitch his tent on the grounds of a government guesthouse.
What gives? As usual in the zero-sum world of international diplomacy, the good news for the rogues reflects trouble for Uncle Sam. With the U.S. Army tied up in Iraq and Americans turning virulently antiwar, Washington’s lost its favorite weapon for dealing with dangerous outliers, the threat of military force, and is now being shoved onto the diplomatic path. The West is finding that “the rogue-state problems can be kept in check by normal methods short of war and invasion,” says Gideon Rose, a terrorism expert and managing editor of Foreign Affairs magazine.
Of course, tensions can still flare. Kaddafi’s visit to France, for example, was denounced by some of Sarkozy’s own cabinet; Human Rights Minister Rama Yade called the trip “scandalous” and a “kiss of death.” Kaddafi promptly reciprocated by chiding the French for the injustice and racism with which African immigrants are treated there. But Washington, at least, is remaining upbeat; after all, the Bush administration approved the symphony trip to North Korea a few scant weeks after suspicions were raised that Pyongyang had been secretly funneling nuclear technology to Damascus. Seems the United States is determined not to let anything spoil the holidays. —Sarah Kliff
Environment: The Solar Sands? The world is full of half-baked green ideas, and one may be in the oven at the European Parliament. The idea is to harness the intense desert sun, spending €400 billion to build thousands of generators in Africa and the Middle East. A third of the energy would go to Europe via undersea cables, the rest would go to host countries like Jordan or Algeria, two nations that have shown interest. The problem, say critics, is that the steep cost of building facilities and producing solar power put the project outside the realm of financial possibility. “Stupid schemes like this are wasting money and time—and when it comes to tackling climate change, time is something that we don’t have,” says Jon Gibbins, an energy engineer at Imperial College. The cost of turning the desert solar may be far too steep. —Jessica Au
Enigmatic Figures: Translation Problems Who is Dmitry Medvedev? Recently endorsed by Russian President Vladimir Putin to become the next president, the West characterizes him as among the more liberal members of Putin’s inner circle— at least more so than the other leading contender, Sergei Ivanov, a former KGB officer close to Kremlin hawks. Though Medvedev, 42, can be expected to continue some of Putin’s economic reforms, he is also likely to be weak and under Putin’s thumb. Or that’s the conventional wisdom. Yet the West has a tough time predicting how Russian leaders will fare. In 2000, many in the West declared Putin to be an apparatchik, loyal to his patron, Boris Yeltsin, who would pursue a free-market liberal agenda. In 2001 George W. Bush declared he saw a “straightforward man” he could “trust.” In part, this tendency to overestimate the liberal credentials of new Russian rulers represents the triumph of optimism over experience. Almost all of Russia’s rulers follow a similar trajectory: they begin as energetic reformers but become reactionaries.
Putin dismantled Russian democracy. Yeltsin nurtured crony capitalism. Even Mikhail Gorbachev, by the end of his career, was jailing dissidents. And Medvedev? Kremlin-connected analyst Stanislav Belkovsky says his main qualification is that he can be trusted by Putin. But power in Russia seems to corrupt more absolutely than anywhere else —which explains why Russian history, like Western perceptions, seems doomed to repeat itself. —Owen Matthews
The German stock market is proving resilient despite signs of a weakening in the nation’s economy. Analysts credit the country’s strong industrial and auto sector. How the DAX outdoes other major markets:
20 year-to-date percentage increase of the DAX 30 (Germany)
5 year-to-date percentage increase of the S&P 500 (United States)
2 year-to-date percentage increase of the FTSE 100 (London)
1 year-to-date percentage increase of the CAC 40 (France)
Videogames: Fighting the Virtual Good Fight Deemed a failure for the Allies, Operation Market Garden is proving a success in the virtual world, featuring in at least 12 current videogames. War has always been a big seller for the $10 billion videogame industry, but recently one particular conflict has been capturing the imaginations of gamers: World War II. More than 100 titles are now dedicated to the struggle between the Axis and Allies, over 70 of which have been made in the past five years. The Medal of Honor and Call of Duty series have sold a combined 23 million copies, and make up two of the four best-selling first-person shooter games ever. Perhaps this shouldn’t be surprising, since videogames tend to deal in absolutes. “More than any other conflict in history, World War II is an example of good conquering evil,” says Col. John Antal, a retired Army Ranger who consults for Gearbox Software on its Brothers in Arms series. So, might videogames become the primary source on World War II info for kids? “I’m convinced that’s happening,” says Prof. David Staley, head of the American Association for History and Computing. Most academics say first-person shooters, even historically accurate ones, give a simplistic version of the war without touching on why it began or how it was won. Even so, isn’t there more to be learned saving the world from Nazis than from space invaders? —Matthew Philips
Law: Juicy Online Libel The internet is good at shaming. On countless Web sites, people post rants about ex-lovers and rude customers. Now a site aimed at U.S. university students is causing some to question the legality of online rumor mills. Juicy Campus is rapidly growing by soliciting gossip under the premise that posters will remain anonymous. But what began as humor has started sounding downright defamatory. The posts have devolved from tales of secret crushes to racist tirades and stories about drug use and sex, often with the alleged culprit explicitly identified by first and last name.
Despite the outrage over JuicyCampus (whose founder declined to comment) authorities can’t stop it. It’s protected by a U.S. law that immunizes Web hosts from liability for the musings of others—as long as the hosts aren’t modifying content. The rationale for that decision is to protect big companies from the actions of every user. But for victims of false written claims that could harm their reputations, that leaves little recourse. “Courts tend to have very antiquated understandings of privacy,” says Daniel Solove, an expert in cyberlaw. “Until that changes, we’re going to see this kind of thing keep happening.” At present, there’s only one sure way to rein in a site like JuicyCampus: persuade everyone at a school to stop using it. But you don’t need a degree to figure out that won’t happen. —Jessica Bennett
Gadgets: Home Shock Protection For about $300, anyone in the United States (except convicted felons) can now own a Taser C2 stun gun. The pint-size zapper is designed especially for women, and comes in silver, black pearl, blue and pink.
Most of Taser’s publicity has come from lethal incidents involving the police. Since 2001, about 290 people worldwide have died after being Tasered. The United Nations called Tasers “torture devices” when a Polish man, Robert Dziekanski, died after being Tasered at a Canadian airport. That didn’t stop Taser from selling 6,900 C2 units during its first few months on the market this year. By contrast, the much bulkier original personal-protection version sold only 125,000 units in a decade.
“We have customers who don’t want to look like Dirty Harry,” says Tom Smith, chairman and cofounder of the $1 billion Taser International. He says the U.N. assertion is “absurd” and that his company runs a background check on all buyers, who can be traced if they misuse the device.
Still, some are not convinced. “The potential for abuse is enormous,” says Robert Gruder of Stinger Systems, which also makes police stun guns.
For now, hope you don’t bump into a Taser carrier on the wrong day. —Ashley R. Harris
