Shinzo Abe's government has won a clear majority in Japan's upper house. That should be good for stable government, but stable government isn't everything.
Talking about talking about peace
John Kerry announces, rather warily, the start of a new round of Israel-Palestine negotiations. Getting to this point has been hard; getting the current Israeli government to actually make peace will be much harder.
Chile loses a contender
Depression forces the withdrawal of the centre-right's candidate for the Chilean presidency. His replacement will face an uphill task.
Fundamentalism on trial in Bangladesh
A controversial verdict from Bangladesh's war crimes tribunal has led to violent protests. The background is a complex mixture of war, religion and politics.
Chomsky on Syria
Words of wisdom on Syria from veteran anti-war intellectual Noam Chomsky.
Luxembourg loses a prime minister
Luxembourg's Jean-Claude Juncker becomes the second EU prime minister for the year to resign over a spy scandal. Early elections could threaten the centre-right's traditional predominance.
The Egyptian road back to democracy
Egypt has the makings of a civilian government again, but it's going to be hard work to reassure the Islamists that they will be allowed to play an important role.
Westminster government for beginners
Our system of government operates under a set of largely unwritten conventions. But they're well established and they work surprisingly well, which is why the governor-general has not tried to second-guess the ALP caucus.
Rick Perry looks towards bigger things
Texas governor Rick Perry announces he will retire at the end of his current term. Is he again looking towards the presidency? And could he be the right choice for the Republicans this time?
Political advertising revisited
Watch a relatively effective piece of government advertising. Think about how much worse it gets than that. Then wonder why political parties can't pay for their own advocacy.
