The daily Ouest France looks back on US President Barack Obama's short term in office to explain his poor showing in opinion polls, finding many promises but few deeds: "A month after taking office, Barack Obama stressed in a speech that was broadcast across the country the gravity of the economic, ecological and social challenges that his government was facing. This crisis was to be the lever for widespread reforms. ... One of the roots for Obama's victory lies in his position against the war in Iraq, and his shift of focus to Afghanistan as centre of the fight against terrorism. Now at the start of November he admitted he is considering the request by General McChrystal to send new troops. It's no coincidence that this plan has received high media coverage - no doubt thanks to McChrystal - and set off a critical wave. Today the question is: can Obama remain Obama?" (24/11/2009)

» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » U.S.
All available articles from » Dick Howard

From healthcare reform to policy on Afghanistan, US President Barack Obama has become the hostage of his own promises, writes the conservative daily Die Presse: "Where are the jobs, where is the new energy law, where is the peace in the Middle East? The echo of frustrated voices rings out from every quarter. Obama can no longer please anyone. Regardless of what he does, he is hounded by his own promises. The liberals are calling for the gradual withdrawal from Afghanistan and the closure of Guantánamo prison camp, the Europeans are stepping up pressure for a climate protection agreement, the Republicans are calling for more determined policy on Iran and North Korea, and civil rights activists want clearer language vis-à-vis China." (24/11/2009)

» to the homepage (external link, Die Presse)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » U.S.
All available articles from » Thomas Vieregge

In his role as Messiah Barack Obama has been defeated by the Great Wall of China, writes the writer and journalist Guido Ceronetti in the liberal daily La Stampa: "It's horrible to have to say it, but the trip to Asia has shown that the Messiah can fail ... and has failed. ... This is the image we are seeing of Washington's new power: its head has been struck off and dangles from the Great Wall. ... We have seen an America without imagination, stabbed by its own banks and firmly bound and gagged by its debts to China. We have been witness to the confusion of the failed Messiah, who bows to compromises and doesn't even have the freedom to embrace the fearless messenger from Tibet, the eternal exiled wanderer. We have once more heard the smooth words of this elegant gentleman who is sitting on an impressive nuclear arsenal and has an unjustified Nobel Peace Prize, but who can neither bring peace nor wage war." (24/11/2009)

» full article (external link, Italian)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » U.S., » China
All available articles from » Guido Ceronetti

Witnesses will start giving evidence in the public inquiry into the Iraq War in London today. The daily The Irish Times sees the politicians coming under fire: "The British military, it appears, believes in the strategic doctrine of getting retaliation in first. In PR as in war. The leaking to the Sunday Telegraph, presumably by senior army sources, of hundreds of pages of secret 'lessons-learnt' analysis and testimony of officers on their Iraq experience was a warning shot across the bows of a public inquiry into the war which is led by Sir John Chilcot and opens today. The army's message was clear: the inquiry should focus primarily on´politics, the political leaders and their deficiencies. The ill-equipped soldiers on the front line were let down by political obfuscation on the purpose of the war, delayed, and poor or non-existent planning for both the invasion in March 2003 and its aftermath, and by shortages of key equipment." (24/11/2009)

» full article (external link, English)
More from the press review on the subject » Security Policy / Crises / War, » United Kingdom, » Iraq

Brazil's president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has received his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on the latter's South American visit and urged him to enter dialogue on Iran's nuclear programme. The left-liberal daily El País comments on Brazil's new role in foreign policy: "Brazil has decided to take on the new role it is entitled to and which entails developing its own policy on the most important global conflicts, in particular the Middle East and Iran's nuclear programme. This was a risky step for President Lula, who has already received Israeli President Shimon Peres and the president of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas. … The way things look now Ahmadinejad's visit to Brazil will result in a zero-sum game. Either Lula is left exposed for having weakened the international front against the Iranian nuclear programme without achieving anything, or Iran will have to make concessions to Lula which it has been at pains to avoid by any means up to now." (24/11/2009)

» full article (external link, Spanish)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Iran, » Brazil

Latvia's party system is very different to those of other countries, the online paper Cita Diena writes, and sees its large Russian minority as one of the reasons: "Practically ever since our independence was restored we have grown accustomed to evaluating the ideology of our parties according mainly to ethnic criteria. The Latvians voted primarily for the 'right' while the 'left' recruited its supporters among the Russians. This division has a logical basis. The national question is always a burning issue in Latvia and mobilises voters, but above all there are no clear differences between the parties as regards economic issues. Naturally there was conflict over the privatisation of large companies, but to this day the parties and their sponsors have pursued primarily their own concrete material interests, which is why you can't really talk about ideological differences here." (24/11/2009)

» full article (external link, Latvian)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Integration, » Minorities, » History, » Economic Policy, » Latvia
All available articles from » Pauls Raudseps

According to Bulgaria's new head of government Boyko Borisov, up to 90 percent of the people who currently work for the Bulgarian foreign ministry should either be pensioned off or resign their posts abroad because they worked for the secret services under the socialist dictatorship. The daily Sega delivers an ironic criticism of the proposal: "Bulgaria can get along quite nicely without its ambassadors because it doesn't have a foreign policy to speak of anyway. In all matters that go beyond the European Union, including the Balkans policy, the rule is 'Whatever Washington says'. Regarding the EU we hardly need a foreign policy ... . Moreover once the Lisbon Treaty comes into effect the process of establishing a European foreign service destined to be the nucleus of an EU foreign ministry will begin. In this context it should be at the discretion of each state to renounce its rights and allow other states to represent it. That's what will happen anyway if we dismiss all our ambassadors. [Those rights] will simply be appropriated by others." (24/11/2009)

» full article (external link, Bulgarian)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Bulgaria
All available articles from » Svetoslav Tersiev

The corruption index for 2009 presented by Transparency International places Greece, together with Bulgaria and Romania, at the bottom of the ranking within the EU. Criminology professor Giannis Panousis analyses in the daily Eleftherotypia the ties between power and corruption: "Because corruption is mostly viewed as a 'trivial offence' and represents a 'white-collar crime' it is regarded by some as only a minor form of cheating. … So it's an error rather than a crime. This is why we must seek out those responsible rather than the culprits. For some, corruption is nothing more than a lapse of the powerful, or in other words a form of behaviour that is more a matter of political ethics than criminality. So corruption becomes the tool of an 'unlawful democracy' beyond the official system. In this way the political mechanism which usually affects the corruption of the group, the clique, the faction and the party 'humanises' [normalises] the role and support given by all those who are in need and don't know how to deal with the typical state procedures." (23/11/2009)

» full article (external link, Greek)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Crime and Law, » Greece
All available articles from » Giannis Panousis

The economic crisis has changed the West's view of China and its economic system, writes the liberal daily La Vanguardia: "While in the past decades the greatest phase of economic progress in the history of China has ensured that socialism (China still sees itself as socialist) is no longer synonymous with poverty, the economic crisis has put market fundamentalist capitalism to the test. In addition to its ideological aspect the 'made in Wallstreet' crisis also had a political aspect (the inability of the system to predict and prevent it) and a moral one (the boundless greed for profits without any regard for negative consequences). Since the countries of the West have given the state a greater role in the economy as a result of the crisis, China sees its model of a 'mixed economy' as having been corroborated." (24/11/2009)

» more information (external link, Spanish)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Fiscal Policy, » Economic Policy, » U.S., » China
All available articles from » Eugenio Bregolat

The current student protests in Germany are highlighting the insufficiencies of the Bachelor-Master system introduced with the Bologna process, writes the conservative daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung: "The time has come to take a sobre look at what has become of an academic culture based on  argumentation and widespread doubt, and whose main focus was to inspire independent reflection and long-term cognitive processes. It has become an academic wasteland in which empty formulas, power interests and the base legitimation of procedures have repressed true scientific debate. ... The students feel that decisions are being taken about them but not with them, and they sense that their studies, which place abilities and skills over responsible, critical and independent thought, are anything but individual." (24/11/2009)

» more information (external link, German)
More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Education, » Germany
All available articles from » Heike Schmoll

Unesco has lost its influence and has little prospect for the future, writes the Portuguese ambassador to Unesco Manuel Maria Carrilho. In the daily Le Monde Carrilho calls for far-reaching reforms: "Who today waits to hear what Unesco has to say? Faced with the profound, unprecedented, systemic and global crisis in today's world, is anyone still interested in Unesco's message? ... Does anyone seek inspiration in its vision? No. Despite its innumerable - and certainly commendable - programmes, this is anything but the case. The world's most important institution for culture, education, science, communication and human rights is losing its influence with each day that passes. ... Today Unesco finds itself at an unavoidable crossroads: either it continues to shut itself up in its own bureacracy and gradually loses touch with the world, or it reinvents itself, remembering its best moments and orienting itself on the needs of a time and a world that have changed considerably in recent years." (23/11/2009)

» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » International Relations, » Global
All available articles from » Manuel Maria Carrilho

The Czech Republic takes first place for youth alcohol consumption in Europe. The liberal weekly Respekt is alarmed, and complains that society doesn't do enough to combat the problem: "Traditionally Czechs have always taken a lenient attitude towards alcohol. They see it as a social drug with acceptable consequences. ... Psychologists agree that the most important influence on youth drinking comes from the immediate circle of family and friends. But the social environment also plays a key role. Advertising for alcohol is not limited in any way on radio and television. A motion that it should be allowed only after 8 pm failed in parliament. ... And raising the alcohol tax as recommended by an EU action plan seems just like a pipe dream here in the Czech Republic." (23/11/2009)

» full article (external link, Czech)
More from the press review on the subject » Public Culture, » Health and Medicine, » Czech Republic
All available articles from » Kateřina Čopjaková

Up to a half a million Finns suffer from chronic sleep disorders. According to recent estimates the cost for medical treatment is as much as 22 million euros per year. The daily Kaleva analyses the effect of sleeplessness on Finnish society: "Insomnia has a huge effect on people's emotional and intellectual functioning, and significantly heightens the risk of cardiac and circulatory diseases. Studies show that sleeping problems also lead to higher rates of traffic problems than alcohol. ... For the most part the spiral of sleeplessness can be broken by taking pills, but many people then become dependent on their medication. Treatment needs to be given a new focus. It's possible to learn how to relax and get to sleep without medication. ... Insomnia and sleep disorders have such a strong impact on public life that they must be considered a major social problem. The negative consequences of sleeplessness are so widespread that much more vigilance is required in the fight against them." (24/11/2009)

» full article (external link, Finnish)
More from the press review on the subject » Health Policy, » Health and Medicine, » Finland