Luxembourgish Christian Democrat Jean-Claude Juncker will be the next head of the European Commission. At best it's a small step towards democratic accountability.
Category: Political issues
How not to address political corruption
Thirty years on, public funding of Australian election campaigns has recorded a striking lack of success at stopping corruption. As should have been expected all along.
Blood and iron in Ukraine
Progress towards a resolution in eastern Ukraine has been made not by negotiation but by military action. Sad as it may be, that's how the world often works.
Notes on a new Senate
With any luck, Australia's latest contingent of new senators will be the last to be elected with automatic ticket voting. The debate shows minor parties to be just as much captives to self-interest as anyone.
Kurds move closer still to statehood
With continued chaos in Iraq, the country's Kurds find that independence may now be within their grasp.
Howard Baker, RIP
Howard Baker, who died on Thursday aged 88, led the first Republican Senate majority for a generation. His leadership style would be unwelcome among today's Republicans.
Britain vs Europe, yet again
David Cameron is fighting against the likely nominee for the presidency of the European Commission – not just because he thinks it's the wrong choice (although he does), but because he has a different view about the process.
A flawed election in Mauritania
Mauritania's president is re-elected overwhelmingly in an election boycotted by the major opposition forces. It's an improvement on naked dictatorship, but well short of real democracy.
Indexing democracy
The Economist publishes its latest Democracy Index, raising some interesting questions about just what it's trying to measure.
Who’s afraid of Greece’s Nazis?
Warnings about the rise of Golden Dawn are worth hearing, but probably overstated.
The World is Not Enough 