Germany votes in two weeks time on the fate of Angela Merkel's government. The result will depend in part on a quirk of the country's otherwise very democratic electoral system – a system which, incidentally, would have produced a rather different result last weekend in Australia.
Author: Charles Richardson
Compare and contrast: Iraq and Syria
Syria is very different from Iraq, primarily because there's a war already in progress. That doesn't mean military intervention is the right move, but it makes it a more difficult question.
Running up the white flag on drug prohibition
The United States takes another step away from prohibition of marijuana, but the Republicans are dragging their feet.
Iran and the resonance of the past
Sixty years on from a coup that poisoned Iranian-US relations, the CIA has come clean about its role. It may be a small step forward in a difficult process of reconciliation.
Please don’t feed the beast
Unnecessary military spending is a cancer on democracy, but it takes a case like Egypt to show the real damage that it can do.
Just a war of words over Gibraltar
Spain and Britain have been at loggerheads this week over Gibraltar, Britain's last territory on the European mainland. But there's no prospect of a rerun of the Falklands War.
How to think about the Senate
Australia has a Senate largely modelled after that of the United States, but understanding its elections is a very different business.
Election roundup – loose ends edition
This week, updates from Mali, Czechia, Iran and Venezuela.
An ominous but hopeful anniversary
Burma commemorates the failed revolution of 1988 in a new spirit of openness.
Housekeeping note
Blogging won't be quite as prolific for the next few weeks.
The World is Not Enough 