Child sex trafficking is not just another societal problem waiting for legislative tinkering or bureaucratic reform. It is a moral outrage—a fundamental rupture in the ethical fabric of our world. The measure of our humanity will be taken not by how we treat the powerful, the wealthy, or the competent, but by how fiercely we protect those who cannot protect themselves.
Today’s podcast guest is Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Fellow for the Middle East at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. Previously, he worked as senior Gulf analyst at the Gulf Center for Strategic Studies and as codirector of the Kuwait Program on Development, Governance and Globalization in the Gulf States at the London School of Economics.
In this episode, we discuss the still-ongoing war on Iran, the impact the war has had on the Gulf States, Trump’s ability or failure to negotiate an end to the conflict, and whether or not we may see further escalation of the conflict.
Listen now; link in bio.
In my latest podcast episode, I speak with Jennifer Brick Murtazashvili, Founding Director of the Center for Governance and Markets and Professor at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Public and International Affairs, about the impacts on women that this current Taliban regime has had in Afghanistan. Listen to this and more in my latest episode; link in bio.
Today’s podcast guest is Jennifer Brick Murtazashvili, Founding Director of the Center for Governance and Markets and a Professor at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Public and International Affairs. She is a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a Distinguished Fellow of Peace and International Cooperation at the Institute for Humane Studies.
In this episode, we discuss the situation in Afghanistan under the Taliban, particularly the difference between the Taliban 1.0 that ruled in the 1990s prior to the US invasion, and the current Taliban 2.0, the Taliban’s relations with Afghanistan’s neighboring countries, women’s rights in Afghanistan currently, and the prospective for insurgency against the Taliban.
Listen now; link in bio.
Nearly two years after the fall of Bashar al-Assad, Syria is struggling with a fundamental question: can a country devastated by decades of dictatorship build a future based on justice rather than repeat the abuses of its past? Hundreds of thousands were killed or disappeared under the Assad regime, yet accountability remains painfully limited. Meanwhile, revenge killings, including attacks against minorities, have raised new fears about Syria’s direction. The death of young health worker Muhammad Ghamira after reportedly suffering injuries in police custody has further intensified those concerns, prompted protests, and demanded that the new authorities not reproduce the repression Syrians fought to escape. Syria’s transition cannot succeed through impunity or collective revenge. Justice must protect every Syrian, regardless of ethnicity, religion, or political affiliation.
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Artificial intelligence is advancing at extraordinary speed, but the safeguards meant to protect humanity are struggling to keep pace. UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk warned that advanced AI could pose an “existential risk to humanity,” calling for urgent, enforceable protections. He also raised concerns about the enormous power concentrated in a small number of technology companies and their leaders. This warning cannot be ignored. AI has tremendous potential to improve lives, but innovation without accountability can threaten privacy, employment, democratic institutions, security, and fundamental human rights. Governments and technology companies must set clear red lines, establish independent oversight, and create meaningful safety standards before the technology moves beyond our ability to control it. Human progress should remain in human hands.
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If the designers and makers of parachutes told you there was a 10 -20% likelihood that you’d plunge fatally to earth, … would you be sky diving?
Child sex trafficking is not just another societal problem waiting for legislative tinkering or bureaucratic reform. It is a moral outrage—a fundamental rupture in the ethical fabric of our world. The measure of our humanity will be taken not by how we treat the powerful, the wealthy, or the competent, but by how fiercely we protect those who cannot protect themselves.
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Twenty-five years after 9/11, the Taliban is once again ruling Afghanistan—this time armed with billions of dollars’ worth of American-funded military equipment. CBS News reports that Taliban fighters patrol Kabul in U.S.-supplied armored vehicles, wearing American tactical gear and carrying American weapons. Pentagon figures indicate that roughly $7 billion in military equipment fell into Taliban hands after Afghan forces collapsed in 2021. The consequences go far beyond a failed withdrawal. The Taliban has built an increasingly repressive state while stripping Afghan women and girls of fundamental freedoms, including access to education and employment. This outcome demands accountability and serious reflection. After two decades of war and enormous human sacrifice, Afghans—especially women and girls—have been left under an authoritarian regime equipped with weapons originally intended to help protect them.
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