Hoover Institution fellow Markos Kounalakis talks about how violent and weak states transform into stable ones.

On the face of it, Nigeria qualifies to be called an emerging democracy. We just celebrated 20 years of uninterrupted civil rule with transition from government to government facilitated by elections no matter how flawed. We have a functioning, albeit high maintenance, parliament in place and the wheels of justice keep grinding ever so slowly in the courts. Our citizens and media are relatively free to express opinion and disseminate information even if the thin boundary between the hatred and fiction are breached with regularity.

Taylor’s Rule is an interest rate forecasting model invented by John Taylor in the early 90s. And according to Investopedia “it’s a proposed guideline for how central banks should alter interest rates in response to changes in economic conditions.” In South Africa, the Reserve Bank’s mandate is very topical at present, which in turn sets up a discussion around interest rates. SARB’s current mandate is tailored around a targeted inflation band of 3-6%, with the repo rate currently at 6.75%. 

In commentary on Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar’s denigration of Jews, a vital dimension of her outbursts has been largely overlooked. No one is asking what prompted her anti-Semitic prejudice. Whence comes the voluble contempt for the Jewish people?