In Focus: Unemployment

Reuters/Robert Galbraith - A man looks at employment opportunities in San Francisco
Gary Burtless, February 05, 2010
The Bureau of Labor Statistics employment report for January contains mixed signals about the job market’s emergence from the recession. The household survey showed a sizeable drop in unemployment. Gary Burtless believes that the fall in unemployment cannot be explained by a rise in the number of discouraged workers or any further decline in the labor force participation rate.
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Unemployment, U.S. Economy
Spotlight: Terrorism

Reuters/Khaled Abdullah Ali Al Mahdi - Armed men travel on a vehicle on a road near the Saudi border in the western Yemen.
Bruce Riedel, February 04, 2010
In recent Hill testimony, directors of U.S. intelligence agencies stated a new terrorist attack against the United States is possible in the next six months. In response to this forecast, Bruce Riedel explains why the Obama administration should increase pressure on al Qaeda's core in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Yemen.
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Middle East, Terrorism, National Security
SPOTLIGHT: Africa

Reuters/Faisal Omar - Gunmen from Hizbul Islam head for Somalia's southern port of Kismayu.
Mwangi S. Kimenyi, February 03, 2010
Because of its fragile nature and the fact that it is small and poor, Somalia has been grossly underestimated in its capacity to destabilize its surrounding region and to engage in extremely costly activities to the international community. At present, there are no well-coordinated international efforts to rebuild this state. Yet this country—or better yet, its various factions—possesses the potential to inflict major global damage, and could be the next hotbed for international terrorism.
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Africa, Developing Countries, Development, Global Poverty, Governance