Balance of Power’s Weekend Reads
Balance of Power’s Weekend Reads
It was a week with headlines dominated by tariff wars, immigration and border tensions. Here’s your roundup of some of Bloomberg’s best political stories from the past seven days, and a few others, as well.
Howard Buffett Says Drug Epidemic, Border Issues Have Converged
Katherine Chiglinsky and Noah Buhayar talk to the son of one of the world’s richest men who has been running the sheriff’s department in his rural Illinois county for several months. It’s led him to a revelation about the relationship between two big challenges for America: border security and a drug epidemic.
World War Still Haunts Putin as Population Decline Taxes Economy
Anna Andrianova and Jake Rudnitsky visit President Vladimir Putin’s boyhood home, not far from one of the world’s largest mass graves that holds the remains of a half-million victims of the Nazi siege of Leningrad during World War II, and examine why Russia’s longest-serving leader since Josef Stalin is haunted by history’s bloodiest conflict.
Corbyn Remains Untouchable as Anti-Semitism Row Engulfs Labour
Thomas Penny shows why Jeremy Corbyn appears as secure as ever at the helm of the Labour Party, even as he courts more controversy rather than playing it safe.
Spreading Nigerian Violence Draws Military to Policing Role
Dulue Mbachu and Yinka Ibukun look out how deepening crises ranging from Islamist militant attacks to unrest in the oil-producing Niger River delta have sparked a surge in the deployment of soldiers -- and prompted President Muhammadu Buhari to approve $1 billion in weapons purchases.
Last week, Bloomberg News told the story of three American families without health insurance. We also asked readers to share their stories as we spend the next year following people who are “risking it.” The response was overwhelming -- read a few of them here.
Want to read more about the U.S.-China tariffs dispute? Check out this Quicktake on trade wars and this piece on the reactions of investors -- “it’s becoming childish,” one said.
Once Snubbed by FBI, Europol Is Now Google of Counter-Terrorism
Suzi Ring and Franz Wild profile the executive director of Europol who’s transformed an often-overlooked European law-enforcement agency into a transnational clearing house for information on terrorism, trafficking, laundering and hacking.
Belgian Port on the Front Line Has Brexit Britain in Its Sights
Dara Doyle reports from Antwerp’s sprawling port, where the ripples from Brexit are already apparent.
Firms Are Reporting Their Gender Pay Gaps Even After The Deadline
Companies with 250 or more staff in the U.K. are disclosing their gender pay gap. Lucy Meakin and Hayley Warren crunch the numbers for this interactive data viz. Want to find out how a particular company compares to others? Just enter the name.
Look out for elections tomorrow in Hungary, where the godfather of European populism faces a reckoning, and possible protests in Brazil, where former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva could still sway politics despite being handed an arrest warrant.
And finally… Japan is in the middle of a tourism boom. Political instability across much of the world has given it the appeal of a safe haven, and before the 2020 Olympics, the country has been rolling out the red carpet for visitors. Click here for Nikki Ekstein’s take on four towns to discover -- before everyone else does.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Karl Maier at kmaier2@bloomberg.net.
©2018 Bloomberg L.P.