SIPA: School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University

SIPA Faculty in the Media 2010

Faculty, alumni and students of the School of International and Public Affairs are frequently called upon by the news media to provide analysis and commentary on current events. Listed below are a few recent examples of our contributions to reporting on critical public policy issues. If the articles are available to the general public, we have provided a direct link. If not, the link will lead to the publication's home page.

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Arvind Panagariya writes "Getting It Right On Microfinance"
Economic Times, November 24, 2010
"...if the objective is to aid the poor, ultra-cheap loans and frequent loan waivers are poor instruments to achieve it. Those at the bottom are perhaps among the least enterprising and will likely fail to take advantage of such programmes. On the other hand, those adapt at gaming the system, including many non-poor, will aggressively borrow."

Hassan Abbas debates racial and religious profiling at U.S. airports
Bloomberg TV, November 24, 2010

Stuart Gottlieb on Ahmed Ghailani and civilian courts
New York Times, November 22, 2010
"This near miss is why many people of sound mind continue to question the utility of civilian trials for those at war with this country."

James Rubin writes “Farewell to the Age of the Treaty”
New York Times, November 22, 2010
“Despite months of negotiations on Capitol Hill, Senate approval of President Obama’s New Start arms control treaty is in serious jeopardy. And it raises the question: Are treaties, and in particular arms control treaties, even worth the trouble anymore?”

José Antonio Ocampo comments on the Latin American informal economy
Latin American Herald Tribune, November 21, 2010
“Where the region is particularly weak is in labor matters, due to the poor capacity for creating jobs and the incapacity to comply with existing legislation.”

Sylvia Hewlett writes “A Final Push Can Break the Glass Ceiling”
Financial Times, November 16 2010
“Those last slippery slopes of careers remain extraordinarily difficult for women. Theories abound as to why. Some see outright discrimination, while many focus on the awkward trade-offs women must make between careers and family."

Tanya Domi co-authored “‘Don't ask, don't tell’ policy is discrimination in a time warp
CNN, November 16, 2010
“The world has moved on since 1941 by exploring new frontiers in space; the United Nations established an international bill of human rights; now states and their financial markets must engage with the new realities of globalization. But some of our political and military leaders remain stuck in 1941 in their views and treatment of LGBT service members.”

Thanassis Cambanis discusses his book A Privilege to Die: Inside Hezbollah's Legions and Their Endless War Against Israel.
Charlie Rose, November 11, 2010

Jeffrey Sachs discusses Ireland's debt woes and Europe's sovereign-debt crisis
Bloomberg TV, November 15, 2010

Helios Herrera comments on the pros and cons of quantitative easing 2
O Estado, November 7, 2010 (Portuguese)

Scott Barrett discusses “geoengineering”
The Economist, November 4, 2010
Research into the possibility of engineering a better climate is progressing at an impressive rate—and meeting strong opposition.

Jeffrey Sachs comments on Detroit's future
TIME, November 11, 2010
" With its concentration and tradition of top engineering talent, Detroit can branch out into intercity rail, advanced batteries, renewable-energy systems and smart grids linked to transport. This may seem utopian, but our nation needs these technologies, and the continuation of abandonment, despair and unemployment is unthinkable."

Joseph Stiglitz comments on bubble risk in emerging markets
Bloomberg News, November 11, 2010
“I do have worries on countries like India. The strong economies that don’t yet have capital control become the focal point for all this money.”

Michael Doyle comments on President Obama's endorsement of India joining the UN Security Council
Christian Science Monitor, November 8, 2010
...there are the “extensive and demanding processes of reforming the UN club,” he said, noting that it takes not only avoiding any veto by one of the Council’s permanent members, but a two-thirds vote by the full Council and approval of the General Assembly. “That alone is a considerable bar to clear."

Arvind Panagariya comments on President Obama's trip to India
New York Times, November 4, 2010
WAMU, November 2, 2010
“There is a limited amount that the visit can achieve. As long as they give a good communiqué and send some positive signals, that’s the best we can expect.”

Arvind Panagariya writes "India's Unfinished Business"
Foreign Policy, November 4, 2010
"The United States and many other countries are betting on India not because of where it stands today, but where they see it going in the next 15 years. ... Depending on how Japan does during these years, India would then have either the third- or fourth-largest economy in the world."

Ester Fuchs discusses the midterm elections
WNYC, November 3, 2010
“When you have a fringe candidate (Carl Paladino)… at the top of the ticket, he clearly dragged down the rest of the ticket. … It was a sweep for Democrats at the top of the ticket in New York State.”

Helios Herrera discusses the U.S. midterm elections
Deutsche Welle, November 2, 2010 (Portuguese)
Helios Herrera talks about the U.S. midterm elections and future consequences for the Ameican economy.

Guillermo Calvo commented on the Federal Reserve’s efforts to aid the economy
New York Times, November 1, 2010
“The central problem in the U.S. is the breakdown of the credit channel, especially credit for small firms and for working capital. Buying long-term Treasury bonds amounts to directing credit toward a sector that has no need for it.”

Hassan Abbas comments on Pakistan’s ties to China
TIME, November 1, 2010
“Without Chinese help, there would be no Pakistani nuclear bomb.” He says Beijing’s interests in the region are expanding – “…the Chinese ambassador in Islamabad is a very active person,”

Scott Barrett comments on a campaign to eliminate malaria
Associated Press, October 29, 2010
“It's like building a monument. Everybody wants their name on it to say they were part of eliminating a disease.”

Stephen Sestanovich writes about the role of the supernatural in foreign policy
The New Republic, October 29, 2010
“The role of the supernatural in foreign policy—a freak theme no more—has gone completely mainstream. In just the last few months, I count at least four other books in this burgeoning new genre. And they’re not presented in (Daniel) Drezner’s what-if mode, either. They have real-world questions in mind. How and why does America succumb to fits of madness in its relations with other countries? Why does it so often overreach and overreact?”

Richard Robb discusses “Currency Wars in the Global Economy”
Arirang: Korea’s Global TV, October 2010
“Much of this is political theatre rather than economics to blame the Chinese. The American dollar is too weak. It has to depreciate.”

Dorian Warren discusses labor, unions and the U.S. election
NPR, October 28, 2010
Professor Warren talks about how unions spend their campaign dollars: "The vast majority of their resources will go toward the ground game, toward getting their members and other likely Democratic voters to the polls. The opposite is true of groups that lean right. Most of their money — and for instance the Chamber of Commerce — will be spending their resources on ads primarily, not so much on the ground game."

Joseph Stiglitz comments on the economy
WNYC, October 26, 2010
Professor Stiglitz offers his take as part of The Leonard Lopate Show's election series The Big Picture.

Jeffrey Sachs writes “In Athens, New Beginnings”
New York Times, October 26, 2010
“Launching a new Mediterranean Climate Change Initiative, the leaders of Greece, Turkey and their neighbors pledged to surmount the current crisis the right way: by investing together in the long-term health of the Mediterranean economy and environment.”

Nate Rawlings (MPA '12) co-authors "Back to Baghdad"
TIME, October 2010
Nate Rawlings, a former captain in the U.S. Army's 4th Infantry Division, revisited Baghdad last summer with TIME magazine. He co-produced a series of articles and videos about Baghdad before and after.

Richard K. Betts writes "Conflict or Cooperation: Three Visions Revisited"
Foreign Affairs, November/December 2010
"Nearly a century of titanic struggle over which ideology would be the model for organizing societies around the globe -- fascism, communism, or Western liberal democracy -- had left only the last one standing. ... What would the driving forces of world politics be after the twentieth century, the century of total war?"

Lisa Anderson named President of the American University in Cairo
Al-Masry Al-Youm, October 25, 2010
Former SIPA Dean Lisa Anderson said that she was “honored by the confidence the board of
trustees has extended to me in making this appointment, and I look forward to
working with them closely as we make AUC the center of excellence in higher
education in the Middle East.”

Joseph Stiglitz writes “Why Easier Money Won't Work”
Wall Street Journal, October 23, 2010
“The Federal Reserve, having done so much to create the problems in which the economy is now mired, having mistakenly thought that even after the housing bubble burst the problems were contained, and having underestimated the severity of the problem, now wants to make a contribution to preventing the economy from sinking into a Japanese-style malaise. How? As Chairman Ben Bernanke announced last week, through large-scale purchases of U.S. Treasurys—called quantitative easing, or QE.”

Stephen Hammer co-authored "Cities lead the way in climate–change action"
Nature, October 21, 2010
"Physical scientists, health scientists and engineers are starting to answer specific questions about how cities and the urban environment will interact in the face of climate change. Social scientists are addressing the human and economic costs, specifically for at-risk populations. And all are learning to take a more holistic approach, considering mitigation alongside adaptation and disaster planning."

Jeffrey Sachs writes "Chile's Lessons in Leadership"
New York Times, October 20, 2010
"Chile is on a generation-long upswing after an era of disaster, showing again that countries can, on occasion, learn from their tragic blunders."

Helios Herrera on the U.S. midterm elections
RedeTV, October 19, 2010
Helios Herrera discussed voter behavior and likely outcomes in the upcoming U.S. elections.

Steven Cohen discusses the Gulf oil spill six months later
CNN, October 19, 2010
Professor Cohen told CNN that there is still a conflict of interest at the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. "What's clear is that they weren't even enforcing the regulations on the books, and what's particularly striking about this incident is that the corporations that were running this [deepwater drilling] well really weren't subject to significant and serious inspections and regulations,"

Steven Cohen grades the Andrew Cuomo/Carl Paladino debate
NY Daily News, October 19, 2010
“Paladino didn't seem very comfortable, and seemed inarticulate at times… Cuomo appeared like the governor-to-be.”

Joseph Stiglitz writes “It is folly to place all our trust in the Fed”
Financial Times, October 19, 2010
“In certain circles, it has become fashionable to argue that monetary policy is a superior instrument to fiscal policy – more predictable, faster, without the adverse long-term consequences brought on by greater indebtedness. Indeed, some advocates wax so enthusiastic that they support recent drives for austerity in many European countries, arguing that if there are untoward effects they can be undone by monetary policy. Whatever the merits of this position in general, it is nonsense in current economic circumstances.”

Richard Clarida comments on inflation and the Federal Reserve
New York Times, October 18, 2010
“Expectations of disinflation or even deflation could become entrenched as they did in Japan and be very difficult, given inflation inertia, to reverse.”

Guillermo Calvo writes “The renminbi should take centre stage”
The Economist, October 18, 2010
“U.S. domestic demand is flat and unlikely to rise unless investment is driven up by the prospect of an exports surge. For this to materialise, non-US economies, especially China and the other Emerging Market economies (EMs), must increase their current account deficits.”

John Coatsworth comments on the death of Mexico scholar Friedrich Katz
Chicago Tribune, October 18, 2010
“Friedrich had a way of reading people's work — his graduate students, his colleagues — and offering the most penetrating and interesting comments. He did so with a kind of sensitivity that's rare in any field. It made him an enormously popular teacher.”

Kenneth Prewitt discusses "Can the Census Go Digital?"
Science, October 15, 2010
"...Prewitt's experience shows that using digital data is not as straightforward as it would appear. It also suggests that the Census Bureau must be very careful if it decides to rely on it in the future."

Rodolfo de la Garza writes “2010's Dangerous Oddball Candidates”
WNYC, October 15, 2010
“What can we expect if the new oddballs are elected? If you are wealthy and well-educated, the foreseeable future is likely to be bright. If you do not meet that description, you will have little to look forward to tomorrow or in the long run.”

Dorian Warren comments on studying the elite
New York Times, October 15, 2010
Professor Warrens said the increasing concentration of wealth, moving from the top 10 percent of Americans to the top 1 percent, has made this the right time to look more closely at the group. “We have to understand what’s going on at the top."

Richard Clarida comments on price-level targeting
BusinessWeek, October 15, 2010
“I am skeptical that it can work as it does in the theoretical models.” One reason is that a Fed chairman or FOMC can’t easily commit their successors to following the same policy, Clarida said at the Boston conference.

Rodolfo de la Garza writes "Forget Mañana: Making the Latino Vote Count Today"
WNYC, October 14, 2010
"Despite their large numbers ... Latinos are only slightly more likely to be electorally influential today than they were thirty years ago. Except for their key roles in Colorado in 2006 and in President Obama’s victory in Florida, they have had virtually no impact on any gubernatorial, senatorial or presidential elections from 1960-2008."

Joseph Stiglitz comments on the economy.
CNBC, October 13, 2010
Professor Stiglitz offers suggestions for a speedier road to economic recovery.

Rodolfo de la Garza on Democrats and Hispanic voters
Stateline, October 13, 2010
"...the Republicans will get at least 25 percent of the Latino vote. If they get more than 35 percent of the vote, the Republicans can carry a state. If Latinos aren’t voting 65 percent for the Democrats, then the Democrats are dead.”

Jeffrey Sachs comments on the high price of ignoring poverty.
Euronews, October 11, 2010
“The MDGs are achievable, at least in a technical sense, but we really need to accelerate, to change the trajectory. Up until now, the rich countries have talked a lot more than they’ve delivered.”

Sharyn O'Halloran comments on the economy, unemployment and the election.
Newsweek, October 8, 2010
President Obama "went for health care over jobs. It turns out the sequencing was wrong.”

Yasmine Ergas writes "From Sarah to Louise. Thank you Edwards, Thank you Steptoe"
InGenere, October 6, 2010 (Italian)
"The award of the Nobel Prize in Medicine to Robert Geoffrey Edwards, who with Patrick Stepto, developed the technology that led to the first birth produced by IVF, has prompted outpourings of gratitude and criticism. Edwards' and Steptoe's perseverance despite the skittishness of public funders has brought widespread benefits. ... IVF expands the horizons for ethical and political discourses: the best solution to the issues IVF raises is debate, not, as some critics of the Nobel Committee's decision seem to prefer, to cast anathemas."

Joseph Stiglitz comments on the Fed rate policy
Bloomberg, October 6, 2010
“Fed policy was supposed to reignite the American economy, but it’s not doing that. The flood of liquidity is going abroad and causing problems all over the world.”

Douglas Almond's study on children and the 1918 flu pandemic
New York Times, October 2, 2010
Columnist Nicholas Kristoff quotes from Professor Almond's study: "People who were in utero during the pandemic did worse, on average, on just about every socioeconomic outcome recorded.” They were 15 percent less likely to graduate from high school, 15 percent more likely to be poor, and 20 percent more likely to have heart disease in old age.

Craig Duff wins an Emmy in digital documentary category
TIME, September 30, 2010
Adjunct professor Craig Duff, who teaches in SIPA’s International Media, Advocacy, and Communications specialization, shares an Emmy for his work at TIME – three online videos called the Iconic Photo series. "The idea is to bring famous images to life in a new medium, with the same attention to reporting and storytelling that we have always been known for."

Thomas Trebat comments on Brazilian presidential candidate Dilma Rousseff
Wall Street Journal, September 30, 2010
"It will be difficult to manage a big, diverse and growing economy and all the pressures that
entails. You better have a game plan other than just intent to keep doing the
same."

Stephen Sestanovich writes "The Firing of Moscow’s Mayor Could Actually Make Russia More Democratic"
The New Republic, September 30, 2010
"Now that presidential authority over Moscow’s leadership has been re-asserted, however, someone new is responsible for the escalating confrontation between the authorities and the opposition. For better or worse, it’s Dmitri Medvedev."

Arvind Panagariya writes on strengthening India-US ties
India Times, September 29, 2010
"... recent actions by the United States have only reinforced the feeling on the part of many in India that the President assigns significantly lower priority to India-US relations than did his predecessor, President George W Bush. This is unfortunate since the US interests in the region align most closely with those of India, at least from a longer-term perspective."

Michael Doyle comments on President Obama's address to the United Nations
Christian Science Monitor, September 23, 2010
“What we’re hearing from [Obama] at the UN reflects a new style of post-hegemonic leadership... It says the US cannot carry all the burden of nurturing world order, and emphasizes the responsibility of other countries to take on their fair share.”

Jean-Marie Guéhenno discusses the complex role of UN peacekeepers
NPR, September 21, 2010
"...the experience both of Iraq and Afghanistan is beginning to bring developed countries to the understanding that military force, in complex situation, needs to driven by a political strategy. So maybe that will bring them back to peacekeeping someday."

Olle Folke comments on Swedish elections
Bloomberg, September 21, 2010
Dagens Nyheter (Swedish), September 21, 2010
SverigesRadio (Swedish), September 21, 2010
Swedes demonstrated against the anti-immigrant Democrats as the prime minister attempts to form a government that doesn't rely on them. "Reinfeldt has a 'relatively big' chance of securing a majority once all postal and foreign votes come in."

Jeffrey Sachs comments on the UN poverty goals
NPR, September 21, 2010
New York Times, September 18, 2010
“There is no plan of action to complement what will be agreed upon... There is a difference between lurching forward on good intentions and a range of unconnected initiatives versus having a high priority plan.”

William Eimicke comments on consolidating police services in Schenectady County, NY
Albany Times-Union, September 20, 2010
Professor Eimicke, director of SIPA's Picker Center for Executive Education, said a team will study options that will include merging the city police with the sheriff's department and combining city police with Rotterdam, Glenville, Scotia and Niskayuna departments. He also said controversy surrounding such moves would make entirely eliminating any police departments unlikely.

Monique Mugnier (MIA '07) writes "Racing to Find Aviators Entombed in Ice"
New York Times, September 20, 2010
"...68 years later, the Coast Guard has commissioned a private recovery team to try to locate, excavate and repatriate the three men entombed in a J2F-4 Grumman Duck biplane in a glacier here."

Stuart Gottlieb writes about President Obama's use of language regarding terrorism
The National Interest, September 19, 2010
"One of the most defining aspects of the Obama administration’s counterterrorism strategy has been its effort to change America’s rhetorical approach to the threat of terrorism, particularly Islamic terrorism... Scrubbed were George W. Bush–era terms like 'war on terrorism,' 'radical Islam,' and 'jihadist.' The White House’s 2010 National Security Strategy formally replaced the term “Islamic terrorism” with “violent extremism.' "

Mitchell Silber (MIA '05) comments on the NYPD's civilian counterterrorism team
New York Times, September 19, 2010
“We have found that conducting terrorism investigations is more art than science and requires a breadth of complementary skill sets ... Our detectives tend to have a very narrow focus. But the analysts have 360-degree visibility. They focus on the bigger picture, and they sometimes see things detectives don’t see.”

Guillermo Calvo write on the crisis and the teaching of economics
The Economist, September 18, 2010
"...we are still going through the denial period. Hence, my sense is that in the near future each school will be entrenched in its own cave and feverishly working at the fringes of its paradigm to make the approach compatible with the new stylised facts."

Stuart Gottlieb writes on Osama bin Laden and counterterrorism strategy
Washington Post, September 16, 2010
"... overreacting to terrorism certainly plays into the hands of a capable terrorist group such as al-Qaeda. But so do perceptions of weakness. The challenge for any counterterrorism strategy is to find that elusive balance in between."

Helios Herrera and Thomas Trebat discuss the U.S. economy and recovery two years after the fall of Lehman Brothers.
RedeTV (Portuguese), September 15, 2010
“I don’t believe the recent package of stimulus measures announced by the Obama administration will have much impact because they were small and, even then, Congress has to approve them.”

Gary Sick comments on the American hiker released in Iran
Christian Science Monitor, September 15, 2010
Time, September 15, 2010
CNN, September 14, 2010
"I think President Ahmadinejad really wanted to use this as a way of building up a store of goodwill just before he comes to New York."

Sheridan Prasso discusses Taiwan's trade policy
World Politics Review, September 13
"As Taiwan's manufacturing sector started moving up the value chain, Taiwan made the transition to manufacturing high-tech goods. At the same time, its population grew increasingly middle class. Wages increased and those low-level manufacturing jobs moved elsewhere -- increasingly to China. But Taiwan had been closed to direct trade with the mainland since 1949, and as a result was becoming increasingly economically isolated."

Kenneth Prewitt comments on Columbia's global center in Mumbai, India
New York Times, September 12, 2010
“We’ve created a center that’s independent of any joint degree program." Professor Prewitt continued to say the university’s experience suggests that an initial step like this one might lead to joint degree programs.

Yasmine Ergas: "Il mercato degli ovuli e quello delle pance - The market for eggs and uteruses"
InGenere, September 9, 2010 (Italian)
“The international fertilization market is full of crossroads, often tied to incompatible international laws.”

Claudia Dreifus: "Higher Education? How colleges are wasting our money and failing our kids - and what we can do about it"
American Prospect, October 11, 2010
Washington Post, September 7, 2010
The Economist, September 2, 2010
Bloomberg BusinessWeek, September 2, 2010
USA Today, August 18, 2010
New York Times, August 18, 2010
“The chief reason why costs keep rising is that education has become a minor player in higher education."

Joseph Stiglitz: "The true cost of the Iraq war: $3 trillion and beyond"
Washington Post, September 7, 2010
"...today, as the United States ends combat in Iraq, it appears that our $3 trillion estimate (which accounted for both government expenses and the war's broader impact on the U.S. economy) was, if anything, too low. For example, the cost of diagnosing, treating and compensating disabled veterans has proved higher than we expected."

Sylvia Hewlett: "Why Women Are Fleeing Wall Street"
Wall Street Journal,September 3, 2010
"... the things that distinguished women from men in 2008 was that they hated what happened to the reputation of Wall Street. Women seemed to care a lot about the status, the integrity and the mission of their company, and when that became tarnished, that was a real dealbreaker for women."

Stephen Sestanovich: “How Do Long Wars Become So Long?”
The New Republic, September 1, 2010
“This is the summer we began calling Afghanistan ‘America’s longest war.’ … But the “longest war” designation isn’t intended to resolve nitpicky historical arguments. Its real point is to get both wars—Afghanistan and Vietnam alike—firmly categorized in our minds as long, hard, unwinnable slogs.”

Joseph Stiglitz on the U.S., Europe and “Japanese-style" Discomfort,”
CNN, September 1, 2010
Professor Stiglitz says the U.S. needed more stimulus and that the country could “clearly” afford it.

John MicGiel: "Poland's Bitter Spring"
Columbia Magazine, Summer 2010

Michael Doyle on the Proposed Mosque in New York City
NDTV, August 28, 2010

Jeffrey Sachs on the Gulf Oil Spill's Impact On the U.S. Economy
MSNBC, August 26, 2010
“Basically, we’re totally adrift and this is what’s really shocking. We have been wating … for the administration to put forward a plan so that at least the American people would have some guidelines. We never gotten that plan and without it, we’re just going to have one disaster after another…”

Kenneth Prewitt on Canada and the Long-Form Census
The Globe and Mail, August 25, 2010
Professor Prewitt, commenting on his recent study, warns of the perils of Canada’s controversial move to scrap the mandatory long-form census, which was previously sent to 20 per cent of households.

Joseph Stiglitz: "Needed: A New Economic Paradigm"
Financial Times, August 19, 2010

Steven Cohen on NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Endorsement and Fund-raising Efforts
Wall Street Journal, August 17, 2010
Professor Cohen says Mr. Bloomberg wants "to be a force in national politics. ... Spreading influence around by endorsing people and providing them with resources helps keep him in the public eye and provides him with a certain amount of political currency. ... I can imagine he wouldn't mind being treasury secretary or something like that."

Daniel Rosen: "Taiwan Is Next Stop in U.S. Re-Engagement in Asia"
Wall Street Journal, August 8, 2010
Adjunct professor Daniel Rosen writes "The Obama Administration is showing a renewed vigor in deepening America’s roots in Asia. This year, it has made a commitment to get the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement through Congress, raised the priority for a Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, and decided to seek participation in the Association of Southeast Asian Nation’s East Asia Summit. ... But the U.S. has not yet taken advantage of a significant opportunity to add to this momentum by boosting economic engagement with Taiwan."

Lisa Anderson on the Surge of Student Interest In the Middle East
New York Times, August 6, 2010
Former SIPA dean Lisa Anderson, provost at the American University in Cairo, says "... you have to understand, these are not the same kids who go bike touring in France. Many are contemplating careers in the Middle East, perhaps with the Foreign Service or an N.G.O. They are very serious about this region of the world.”

Joseph Stiglitz on the Australian Fiscal Stimulus Package
Australian Broadcast News, August 6, 2010
Professor Stiglitz said "You were lucky to have, probably, the best designed stimulus package of any of the countries, advanced industrial countries, both in size and in design, timing and how it was spent - and I think it served Australia well."

Dorian Warren on Wal-Mart and the Unions
Bloomberg TV, August 2, 2010
Professor Warren discusses Wal-Mart's efforts to expand in Chicago, the company's relationship with unions and the state of organized labor in the U.S.

Richard Robb: "The Next Headache: Inflation or Deflation?"
Financial Times, August 2, 2010
Professor Robb writes "What should investors in developed countries worry about — inflation or deflation? Evidence from the past two decades suggests the answer is “neither.” Progress in monetary policy may have rid the world of price instability once and for all; like smallpox, Germany military aggression or the spread of orthodox Marxism, inflation could well turn out to be last century’s problem."

Gary Sick on American Hikers Held by Iran
Philadelphia Inquirer, July 31, 2010
Professor Sick says it's possible the hikers are being used as bargaining chips. "The hikers end up being the ones who end up paying the price for other people's actions."

Stephen Sestanovich: "Look Who Thinks America Is Cool Again"
The New Republic, July 30, 2010
Professor Sestanovich writes " It’s been a long time since foreign leaders arrived on our shores saying that America is the future—so long, in fact, that when it does happen, we don’t know what to make of it. For me this was the most interesting subtext of Russian president Dmitri Medvedev’s visit to the States last month."

Ester Fuchs on Charles Rangel and Harlem Politics
New York, August 2, 2010
Professor Fuchs, commenting on Congressman Charles Rangel and Harlem's so-called Gang of Four, says "They came out of the civil-rights era, and their elections in and of themselves were significant. Then they had to deal with the basic decline of the American city and the concentration of poverty in black and low-income neighborhoods."

Ester Fuchs on the NYC Charter Revision Committee
Crain's New York Business, July 25, 2010
Professor Fuchs, chair of the NYC Charter Revision Committee, writes "All Charter commissions are tasked with reviewing the entire Charter, but recent commissions have generally focused on a narrow set of questions. The current commission is confronting the reality of its self-imposed time constraint—it is committed to putting propositions on the November ballot. As the public's disaffection with government continues unabated, the commission would be advised to focus on
issues that promote citizen engagement and restore trust in government."

Kenneth Prewitt on the Canadian Census
New York Times, July 23, 2010
Professor Prewitt, commenting on a Canadian decision to make the long-form census voluntary, criticized the idea from a statistical standpoint. "I wouldn’t call this political interference. I would call this government stupidity.”

Richard Clarida on the "Great Moderation"
BusinessWeek, July 21, 2010
Professor Clarida says “We are in a New Normal world in which the distribution of outcomes is flatter and the tails are fatter. Investors had 25 years to get comfortable with the Great Moderation. The sooner they recognize those days are over, the better.”

Austin Long: "Going old school: U.S. Army Special Forces return to the villages"
Foreign Policy, July 21, 2010
Professor Long writes "In part as a response to the slow growth in size and competence of the Afghan National Army and Police, the past year has seen a growing international effort to create security at the village level in Afghanistan by working directly with villagers."

Richard Robb: "Why Not 'Pawn Off' Risk to Nonbanks?"
American Banker, July 20, 2010
Professor Robb writes " The SEC couldn't catch Bernie Madoff, and the combined resources of BP and the U.S. government needed three months to plug the Gulf oil leak. So it should come as no surprise that financial regulators frequently get it wrong when they try to figure out how much capital that complex, modern banks require."

Claudia Dreifus: Higher Education? How Colleges Are Wasting Our Money and Failing Our Kids — and What We Can Do About It
New York Times, July 15, 2010
Excerpted from a new book by adjunct professor Claudia Dreifus and Andrew Hacker. "In 1976, for every 1,000 full-time students, there were 42 professional administrative staff members, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By 2008, the most recent year available, there were 84. At the same time, the number of full-time faculty members for every 1,000 students has declined, from 65 to 55, due to the greater use of adjuncts and teaching assistants. While fewer undergraduates are being taught by full-time professors, the number of administrators keeps growing."

Kenneth Prewitt: "How To Fix Census' Broken Race Question"
USA Today, July 12, 2010
Professor Prewitt writes "The successful 2010 Census left millions of Americans puzzling over its race question. Many disliked declaring any race; others were uncertain which box fit them; some wondered why the government even asked their race. In fact, the question does not work well, and we can do better. But first, how did we get here?"

Paul Thurman on Teaching at Moscow's Skolkovo Business School
The Moscow News, July 12, 2010
Professor Paul Thurman, commenting on his experience teaching in Russia, says "Young students in Russia, just like anywhere else, like to challenge ideas. They are much more multicultural and international than I’d expected.”

Steven Cohen on NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Visit to New Hampshire
NY Daily News, July 10, 2010
Professor Cohen said "I think it's in his interest as a lame duck mayor to be appearing to run for higher office. It helps his political currency."

Joseph Stiglitz on Depression, Double-dip and Deficits
CNN, July 9, 2010
Professor Stilgitz said "It is premature to remove the support for fiscal policies, and it's almost surely premature to remove the support for the banking system. "We are not yet on the basis of a robust recovery. And particularly as the fiscal policies undermine the recovery, there is a serious risk of a double dip. And it is not a surprise to me that there is a high level of anxiety on the part of the banks."

Richard Clarida on Growth in the G10 Economies
CNBC, July 9, 2010
Professor Clarida said " We've gone through the worst financial crisis in 75 years and the consequences will be with us for a long time. ... We've got this debt overhang, we've got un-met fiscal challenge,s and you've got the central bank exit strategies and the usual policies. So we think it adds up to those mediocre returns."

Christian Pop-Eleches: Computers at Home: Educational Hope vs. Teenage Reality
New York Times, July 9, 2010
Professor Pop-Eleches co-authored a study on low-income families and computer vouchers.

Hassan Abbas on Pakistan, Radicalization and the War on Terror
Hartford Courant, July 4, 2010
Forbes, July 5, 2010
Professor Abbas says radicalization is "what goes on before the bomb goes off." ... When radicalization involves religion, Abbas said the process includes deciding "I want to go into this heaven, but I want to take you to the same heaven by hook or by crook'" — by violence, if necessary.

John Mutter: Italian Seismologists: What Should They Have Said?
Earth, July 1, 2010

Joseph Stiglitz on the Global Economy and Austerity Measures
CNN, June 29, 2010
CNBC, June 30, 2010
Professor Stigliz says "We have to get the economy going before firms are going to invest. There is an idea somehow that when the government cuts back, the private sector will get confidence and that will lead to more spending. The fact is that the households in America and many other places around the world are burdened by debt, and business is not going to spend as long as government and exports and consumers are not spending."

Sheridan Prasso: Taiwan-China trade agreement: A game changer
Fortune, June 29, 2010
Adjunct professor Sheridan Prasso writes "Taiwan finally gets to join the dynamic ring of fiery growth that has typified East Asia for the past decade. The island signed a trade agreement with China on Tuesday that ends its economic isolation and increases the chances for lasting peace in the Taiwan Strait."

Thomas Trebat on the Brazilian Soccer Team
New York Times, June 28, 2010
Professor Trebat, executive director of the Center for Brazilian Studies, discussed Brazil's success in the World Cup and its international culture. " ''When you think about Brazil, you think sun, Carnival, pretty girls and a good soccer team. The serious point about Brazil is there is something in its international culture that is reflected in football. They're not a military power, and they don't pretend to be. Yet they have a global image of being a nation that believes in peaceful resolution of conflict."

Guillermo Calvo on G20 Summits: Are They Worth Having?
The Economist, June 28, 2010
Professor Calvo writes "The G20 has succeeded in putting some life into anodyne G8 statements, and sharply increased emergency funding for the IMF when it was most needed."

Dorian Warren on Wal-Mart, Chicago and NYC
New York Times, June 25, 2010
Bloomberg
Professor Warren said " “New York has so much more density of, especially, small businesses, and I think the City Council is much more unified ideologically against Wal-Mart than the Chicago City Council is."

Hassan Abbas: Behind the Lines: Punjab's growing militant problem
Foreign Policy, June 22, 2010
Professor Hassan Abbas says " Relations between Pakistani Taliban ... and these Punjabi militants were complicated. They never merged and the nature of this collaboration remained restricted to distribution of tasks for a limited number of terrorist attacks in Punjab."

Daniel Rosen on Wall Street and China
CNN, June 21, 2010
Adjunct professor Daniel Rosen, commenting from the viewpoint of Chinese business and government leaders, says "I think the burden is now on major foreign players to answer the question: 'What are you bringing to China that we don't already have?"

Jeffrey Sachs: "It is time to plan for the world after Keynes"
Financial Times, June 8, 2010
Professor Sachs writes "Mainstream Keynesian economics is facing its last hurrah. The global fiscal stimulus championed last year by the Obama administration is coming undone, repudiated by the same Group of 20 that endorsed it last year. Now, against a backdrop of a widening sovereign debt crisis, we need to abandon short-term thinking in favour of the long-term investments needed for sustained recovery."

Jeffrey Sachs: "Obama's Crude Awakening"
NY Daily News, June 6, 2010
Professor Sachs writes "What the disaster truly makes clear ... is the inadequacy of the administration's own approach to overhauling America's energy system. Rather than pressing ahead from the start with a bold, imaginative, and specific long-term strategy - together with a plan to implement it - Obama has relied on the least appropriate of political strategies: the backroom deal."

Ester Fuchs on the NYC Office of the Public Advocate
NY Post, May 30, 2010
Professor Fuchs advocates "hard-wiring" the budget of the Public Advocate, as well as those of other independent elected officials, to be funded at levels not subject to change by the administration or the City Council. "You can't really do the job very well if every time you try to do something, you're at the mercy of the council or the executive."

Aldo Civico on the Colombian Presidential Election
Washington Post, May 30, 2010
Professor Civico, contrasting Colombian President Alvaro Uribe and candidate Juan Manuel Santos, said "Uribe knows pueblo life to its very depth in a way few Colombian leaders know. Santos has not spent his life talking to farmers and ranchers so this is a new role for him. And no matter how much you prepare, you can't invent charisma."

Richard Clarida on the European Debt Crisis
Bloomberg, May 24, 2010
“The fiscal consolidation that is part of this effort will be a headwind to European growth. One of the bright spots for the Europe is the weaker euro, which presumably over time will help to boost exports.”

Basil Smikle Launches Campaign for NY State Senate
NY Post, May 20, 2010
Adjunct professor and SIPA alumnus Basil Smikle (MPA '96) said school choice will be a major campaign issue. "I'm for improving achievement across the board for all children -- charters and traditional public schools."

Michael Doyle on Iranian Nuclear Sanctions
Christian Science Monitor, May 19, 2010
Professor Doyle said "The fact the P5 agree is extremely politically consequential, but it is not legally consequential. They still have to get the four extra countries somewhere and honestly they ought to be able to get them given the inequality of world politics ... but the fact is we’re not there yet.”

Sharyn O'Halloran on "Naked Short Selling"
CNN, May 19, 2010
Professor O'Halloran said "Until the short-seller has bonds to deliver, the buyer doesn't have to pay. But by showing that a sale has taken place even though the goods haven't actually been transferred, a naked short-sale artificially drives a stock's price down to a level that's not reflective of true supply and demand."

Hassan Abbas on the Times Square Bomber
The Takeaway, May 14, 2010
In an audio podcast, Professor Abbas offers insight into a practice known as hawala — a type of underground, informal banking, which some reports say helped provide Shahzad with money for his alleged bomb attempt.

Kenneth Prewitt on the Importance of Filling out the U.S. Census Form
CNN, May 14, 2010
Professor Prewitt said "There is no representative democracy without it. It's the scientific, nonpartisan, apolitical starting point of what eventually becomes a quite partisan, political process."

Monique Tuyisenge-Onyegbula (MIA '10) Works for Peace
PRI's "The World." May 13, 2010
Delaware News Journal
Tuyisenge-Onyegbula, 27 years old, has already witnessed four wars in Rwanda, Cote d’Ivoire, Iraq and Afghanistan. Her goal is to help bring peace to communities affected by violence.

Stuart Gottlieb: "Strikes by Drones: Better to Capture Than to Kill?"
New York Times, May 12, 2010
Professor Gottlieb wrote in a letter to the editor "The Obama administration needs to begin placing a greater priority on capturing and interrogating senior Taliban and Qaeda leaders, rather than executing them."

Hassan Abbas on the Pakistani Taliban and the U.S. Designation "Terrorist Organization"
Newsweek, May 11, 2010
Professor Abbas said “I’m pretty surprised that it has taken the U.S. government such a long time to do this. This is certainly one of the most lethal [terrorist] groups in South Asia and I would rank it in the top five of all international terror groups.”

Jeffrey Sachs on the "Antidote to Debt Contagion"
NPR, May 8, 2010
Professor Sachs discusses the Greek financial crisis worries of spreading financial panic to other countries. Professor Sachs talks about contagion — and its financial-world antidote, "shock treatment."

Hassan Abbas on the Radicalization of Faisal Shahzad
Foreign Policy, May 7, 2010
Professor Abbas writes "Based partly on my studies of Muslim youth in the West, I suspect that Shahzad was first influenced by various websites that encourage and propagate extremist religious views, mixing religious bigotry and dogma with conspiracy theories specifically targeting a younger generation of Muslims living in the West."

Sheridan Prasso: "American Made ...Chinese Owned"
Fortune, May 7, 2010
Adjunct professor Sheridan Prasso writes "It's true that American workers are much more expensive, of course, and the overall cost of making a widget in China remains lower, and perhaps always will. But for hundreds of Chinese companies like Yuncheng, the U.S. has become a better, less expensive place to set up shop."

Lisa Anderson on the American University in Cairo and Education in Egypt
New York Times, May 5, 2010
Lisa Anderson, former SIPA dean and provost at the American University in Cairo, said “For a lot of the kids here, the idea that you are supposed to have your own ideas is a novelty. There was nothing in their previous education that would have exposed them to these standards."

Joseph Stiglitz on Economic Insight
NY1, May 3, 2010
Professor Stiglitz comments on the financial crisis. "There was a bubble. That the bubble would eventually break, that when it broke there would be chaos in its wake. To me it was hard to understand how they could not see the problems that were coming."

William Eimicke on the Cuomo Family and the Race for NY Governor
New York Times, May 3, 2010
Professor Eimicke, commenting Andrew Cuomo's political staff and family ties, said “Mario (Cuomo) has the same wisdom as ever. Why wouldn’t you use it?”

Rodolfo de la Garza on Immigration, Arizona, and Baseball
Newsweek, April 30, 2010
Wall Street Journal, May 4, 2010
Professor de la Garza said a Major League Baseball boycott of Arizona could have a significant impact. "Imagine baseball without Latinos. Imagine if the Latino ball players don't go" to the all-star game next year. He said if sports league's get involved "that'll change the ball game."

Ousmane Kane on Ethnic Violence in Africa
France 24, April 29, 2010
Professor Kane participated in a debate entitled "50 Years of Independence - Ethnic Violence: Africa's Curse?" The discussion was televised on France 24 and centered on ethnic conflicts in Africa since 1960, the year seventeen states became independent. The panel also featured Billie O'Kadameri, RFI journalist; and Kathryn Nwajiaku-Dahou, Nuffield College, University of Oxford.
Part One | Part Two

Jeffrey Sachs: "A High-Minded Look at Electric Cars"
New York Times, April 23, 2010
Professor Sachs said "We are on the cusp of an historic worldwide transformation in transportation that starts in the world’s biggest cities,” Mr. Sachs said in an interview. “It’s important from a resource point of view and an environmental point of view.”

Sharyn O'Halloran on Senate Financial Reform
Les Échos ( French | English), April 23, 2010
Professor O'Halloran said "The notion of “too big to fail” is out of our vocabulary. Nothing should be too big to fail, whether a train company, a telecommunications operator or a bank, all equally vital to the economy. It must have the means to dismantle them."

Daniel Rosen on China's Property Boom
Wall Street Journal, April 23. 2010
Adjunct professor Daniel Rosen writes "We are likely at the beginning of a correction in upper-end, first-tier city real estate. There will be some dumping of speculative property, and there could well be a hint of panic in the air over the coming months."

Kenneth Prewitt on the 2010 Census Response Rate
USA Today, April 21, 2010
Professor Prewitt, commenting on the 71% response rate reached April 19, said, "I would consider 71% already a very serious accomplishment. ... If it does hit 72%, it's even better."

Steven Cohen on Cap and Trade
ABC News, April 19, 2010
Professor Cohen, executive director of the Earth Institute, said "The whole issue of cap and trade has become this symbolic kind of silliness. When issues get into that mindset on the Hill, it's easier not to do something than to do something. I don't know that they're going to get the attention they need and the political emphasis to get this through."

Hassan Abbas on the Pakistani Sheikh Who Declared War on Terrorists
Foreign Policy, April 14, 2010
Professor Abbas said "Qadri has been very bold in saying that these terrorists are awaited in hell. He is clearly provocative, in a positive sense, and this courageous act is also noteworthy."

Joseph Stiglitz on the Federal Bailouts
New York Times, April 12, 2010
Professor Stiglitz, commenting on whether the baiilouts are working, said he still isn’t willing to declare victory, and he probably never will. “I think this is disingenuous and a real attempt to distract people. ... Did we get back anything commensurate with the risk? Clearly the answer is no."

John H. Coatsworth on Latin America
Charlie Rose, April 9, 2010
Dean Coatsworth participated in a discussion on Latin America with Greg Grandin, Associate Professor of Latin American history at New York University, Kevin Casas-Zamora, Former Vice President of Costa Rica and Michael Shifter, Incoming President of Inter-American Dialogue.

Steven Cohen on Weather Vs. Climate Change
New York Daily News, April 4, 2010
Professor Cohen writes “Weather is not climate, and we're not feeling the direct results of climate change in these recent weather phenomena. But the truth is that scientists, at least those of us here at Columbia’s Earth Institute, predict more such events and with greater frequency as the planet continues to heat up.”

Michael Doyle on China and Iran Sanctions
Christian Science Monitor, April 1, 2010
Professor Doyle, commenting on China’s indication it will consider a new UN resolution on Iran sanctions, said “The question now is, what does China want for this?” Noting that President Hu Jintao will be in Washington later this month for President Obama’s nuclear security summit, he says, “the Chinese know that [the US-China visit] will be a much wider discussion than just Iran.”

Aldo Civico on the Release of Colombian Hostages
Bloomberg, March 29, 2010
Professor Civico, director of the Center for International Conflict Resolution, says the rebels, whose ranks have thinned by half to about 8,000 since 2002, are seeking to draw attention to their 46-year-old insurgency after suffering crippling setbacks in 2008. “The FARC are looking to recover political space. They’re desperate.”

Jeffrey Sachs on the Developing World, Technology and Global Warming
WNYC Radio, March 24, 2010
Professor Sachs, commenting on the impact of cell phone technology, said "What I'm seeing in Africa ... in very poor and very remote areas, there is now wireless broadband available ... and this is changing the life of poor people in ways I wouldn't have imagined five years ago. Essentially, isolation is over."

Steven Cohen on “A Weekend of Ugly Discourse”
Associated Press, March 22, 2010
Professor Cohen, commenting on the invective generated by the health care debate, said
“'This stuff is always out there. It's just that now, we can't get away from it. That's what's new. With the Web's insatiable appetite for conflict, everything becomes magnified, even if it's often an expression of a fringe minority.”

Daniel Rosen: How Much Can China Really Diversify Its Reserves?
Wall Street Journal, March 17, 2010
Adjunct professor Daniel Rosen write “The question of Beijing’s ability to diversify its $2.4 trillion foreign exchange holdings is not only relevant for the market demand for Treasurys and alternative securities but also for assessing China’s leverage over the U.S. This issue will be prominent over the coming weeks, as the U.S. decides whether to designate China a currency manipulator.”

Kenneth Prewitt on the Census’ Advance Letters
USA Today, March 17, 2010
Professor Prewitt says advance letters first went out in 2000, based on research conducted after the 1990 census. He says he has no doubt that the letter campaign boosted participation rates, calling it "a very good investment."

James Rubin on the Middle East Peace Process
WorldFocus, March 12, 2010
Adjunct professor James Rubin said “To have Vice-President Biden’s trip, which was really designed to embrace the Israeli government and embrace Israel, marred this way is pretty unfortunate, and may cause some changes in Israeli politics. At least that’s what they’re hoping in Washington.”

Manning Marable on President Obama and the Congressional Black Caucus
National Public Radio, March 12, 2010
Professor Marable said “It's not that America is suddenly post-racial. But there's just no such thing as a black president. Obama's base is multiracial and multiclass and a reflection of the reality of America.”

Joseph Stiglitz on Financial Reform
USA Today, March 11, 2010
Professor Stiglitz said “So far, the administration and the congressional responses are both inadequate. Most (derivative deals) are being written by the big banks. That means underwritten by the U.S. taxpayer.”

Austin Long on the Iraqi Election
Minnesota Public Radio, March 8, 2010
Professor Long analyzes the March 7 elections in Iraq  election, and what it means for security in the region. Commenting on the lower turnout, Professor Long said "I think a lot of Iraqis are frustrated with democracy ... They just feel like the current state of Iraqi democracy is not achieving what they want."

Joseph Stiglitz on the Greek Austerity Program
Wall Street Journal, March 4, 2010
Professor Stiglitz said without measures to stimulate the economy, such as development funds and other means to increase liquidity, the deficit reduction could slow growth. “If you have less success [stimulating the economy through other means], then I start getting worried.”

Joseph Stiglitz Mulls the Next Crisis
Barron’s, March 2, 2010
Professor Stiglitz says “The current scenario is one where the economy is weak in terms of employment; foreclosures are continuing apace, and are expected to be higher this year than last; and bank failures are continuing and are also expected to be higher this year than last. Growth is not strong enough to create enough jobs for the new entrants to the labor force, and not enough to lead to a marked reduction in unemployment.”

Joseph Stiglitz on His New Book Freefall
Charlie Rose, March 2, 2010
Professor Stiglitz said “We’ve been brought back from the brink, but we’re not out of the woods.”

Sue Sheridan on the Coalition for Fair Transmission Policy
Associated Press, March 1, 2010
Adjunct professor Sue Sheridan said “The geographic breadth of these (electric) companies illustrates the nationwide significance of the debate on transmission policy, and each company’s recognition of its local consumers’ need to keep energy costs as low as possible.”

Alldo Civico on the President Elections in Colombia
Bloomberg, March 1, 2010
Professor Civico, director of the Center for International Conflict Resolution, says “(Juan Manuel) Santos may be vulnerable to criticism over some of the Uribe government’s perceived problems. (Opposition Senator Gustavo) Petro may focus on accusations that the government collaborated with paramilitary groups in its effort to destroy the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, the country’s biggest guerrilla group.”

Kenneth Prewitt on the U.S. Census
CNN, February 26, 2010
Discussing the role of the census in determining federal fund allocation and boundaries of electoral, Professor Prewitt said “There is no representative democracy without it. It's the scientific, nonpartisan, apolitical starting point of what eventually becomes a quite partisan, political process.”

Hassan Abbas on the Arrest of Extremist Abdolmalek Rigi
Time, February 25, 2010
Professor Abbas said “The one consensus among experts on this matter is that Rigi was not his own man. He must have been getting aid from somewhere,”

Joseph Stiglitz on Credit Card Regulations
WABC-TV-New York, February 22, 2010
Professor Stiglitz says “Every time you go in the store and even use a debit card, not a credit card, but a debit card, your merchant gets charged. And of course, the merchant has to pass on the cost to you. In the case of grocery stores where the margins are very thin, the credit cards are taking a substantial portion of their profits; they're up in arms over this.”

Ester Fuchs on the New York Governor’s Race
Reuters, February 19, 2010
Professor Fuchs “called the Democratic defeat in Massachusetts a wake-up call that proved that weak candidates lost elections. As a result, many Democrats were now unwilling to stick with Paterson and risk losing the governorship in November. ‘People are not willing to stand by and support him (Paterson) if it's going to bring them down’ she said.”

Joseph Stiglitz, Till Von Wachter, Irene Finel-Honigman, Shang-Jin Wei and David Epstein on the Economy
Bloomberg Radio, February 17, 2010
Columbia and SIPA professors discuss the economy, jobs, and China with host Kathleen Hays on Bloomberg Radio’s “The Hays Advantage.”

Joseph Stiglitz on the Stimulus and Job Creation
Bloomberg TV, February 17, 2010
Professor Stiglitz talks about the need for additional U.S. stimulus targeting job creation. Stiglitz also discusses the role U.S. banks had in the global financial crisis, Wall Street compensation and Greece's debt problems.

Gary Sick on the Fight for Iran
CNN, February 12, 2010
Professor Sick said “As the regime has cracked down harder and harder, they’re getting better at it. Repression does work. And they are now much more organized with in terms of keeping things quiet and keeping the opposition down than they were before.”

Rodolfo de la Garza on U.S. Remittances and the Mexican Economy
WorldFocus, February 16, 2010
Professor de la Garza said “(Remittances) reduce familial costs, thereby reducing poverty. What it does is enable the state to effectively put out less money for the poor, because the poor are making money off of remittances.”

Hassan Abbas on Afghanistan and Pakistan
Charlie Rose, February 16, 2010
Professor Abbas said “I think this is an arranged surrender. This is not an arrest. … So I think this is part of the larger peace process – negotiations going on with the Taliban.”

Joseph Stiglitz on Greece’s Budget Plans
Wall Street Journal, February 3, 2010
Professor Stiglitz says “I would give a strong cautionary note against deficit fetishism. If you have less success [stimulating the economy through other means], then I start getting worried.”

Jeffrey Sachs on the Rebuilding of Haiti
USA Today, February 2, 2010
National Public Radio
Professor Sachs says “Haiti's rebuilding should be orchestrated by a single powerful entity.” He's calling for a $3 billion reconstruction fund, including $1 billion from the USA, run through a multinational agency with a governing board including Haitians.

Jeffrey Sachs on the White House’s Global Health Funding Proposal
Wall Street Journal, February 1, 2010
Professor Sachs says “This is a very big disappointment. It's pretty much a standstill with maybe tiny changes here and there.”

Joseph Stiglitz on “Freefall: America, Free Markets and the Sinking of the World Economy,”
New York Times Magazine, January 31, 2010
Professor Stiglitz says “…back in the spring of 2008, people like Bernanke were saying we’re over the worst. Regulators didn’t want to admit that they had made really bad regulatory decisions. They didn’t want to admit that they had allowed a housing bubble to grow.”

Dorian Warren on the State of the Union Address
NY1, January 27, 2010
Professor Warren analyzed President Obama’s State of the Union address, saying "He kept his cool. He struck the right theme throughout the speech. He took responsibility for some of the mistakes the administration made the first year. ... He gave what amounts to a really grown-up speech."

Jeffrey Sachs on his Strategy to Rebuild Haiti
The Economist, January 25, 2010
Professor Sachs says “What I'd like is for US and other donor money to be put into a multi-donor trust fund (MDTF). My specific recommendation is that the MDTF should be located at the Inter-American Development bank. … In essence the IADB is a development-finance institution that works well, has a long-term commitment to Haiti, has a lot of expertise, and is competent in handling money and organising projects with the proper monitoring, auditing and evaluation.”

Hassan Abbas on President Obama’s Policies Toward Afghanistan and Pakistan
World Focus, January 25, 2010
Professor Abbas said “Some of the elements which can become part of a successful story and a successful policy are being put in place.”

Joseph Stiglitz on a Second Stimulus for Job Creation
Forbes, January 20, 2010
Bloomberg TV
Professor Stiglitz says the economy could dip back into recession unless the banks ease the terms of mortgages. Unless there is a stimulus "unemployment will rise in 2010, not decline."

Jeffrey Sachs on Rebuilding Haiti
Washington Post, January 17, 2010
National Public Radio, January 21, 2010
Professor Sachs writes "The (Haitian) government's inability to cope has been obvious, but those of us who have been around Haiti for many years also know about the lofty international promises that follow each disaster -- and how ineffectual the response has been each time."

John Mutter on the Earthquake in Haiti and Building Construction
CNN, January 18, 2010
Professor Mutter said "...poor construction left unknown thousands of people trapped in buildings that pancaked when the earth moved last week." Stricter building codes and honest enforcement are necessary, but "people will never be able to build strong, expensive structures if they don't have a strong economy."

Read his blog entry here.

Robert Jervis on the Biggest Challenge for American Intelligence
Boston Globe, January 17, 2010
Professor Jervis writes " The problems with our intelligence system aren’t primarily problems with information. They are problems with how we think."

Richard Robb on the Global Financial Crisis
Chosun, January 15, 2010
Professor Robb was featured in Chosun, Korea’s largest newspaper, discussing the causes of the global financial crisis and possible solutions. (In Korean)

James Rubin on Yemen and the Fight Against Terrorism
WorldFocus, January 8, 2010
Professor Rubin said "Yemen is a difficult challenge for a number of reasons. I think people might imagine it as a combination of some of the failed state qualities of Afghanistan and the difficult acceptance Saudi Arabia went through before it accepted it was in a war with al-Qaeda."

Gary Sick on “All the President’s Leaks” on Iran
Foreign Policy, January 3, 2010
Professor Sick writes “Mr. President, you have taken what appeared to be a losing hand and, with a few well-placed leaks, transformed it into a victory over Iran. You have converted a lose-lose proposition of crippling sanctions vs. appeasement into an Iranian nuclear collapse. The imminent threat of Iran has become an indefinite delay of its breakout capability.”

Joseph Stiglitz on the “Major Flaws” in Economic Ideas
Bloomberg News, January 2, 2010
Professor Stiglitz says the financial crisis exposed “major flaws” in prevailing ideas, including the ideas that economic participants behave rationally and that financial markets are competitive and efficient.

Stuart Gottlieb on Preventing Terrorist Attacks
New York Times, January 1, 2010
Professor Stuart Gottlieb writes in a letter to the editor “… after years of high-profile intelligence reforms and reorganizations, and tens of billions of taxpayer dollars spent on new counterterrorism and homeland security initiatives, the public has a right to be concerned that the many glaring dots in the case of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the suspected would-be Christmas Day bomber, were not connected.”

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