Starved of global news the past two weeks, today’s International Herald Tribune was sweet, sweet nectar on my flight from Spain to London. I rarely read the IHT, but when I do it rarely disappoints. It is also the only crossword puzzle I can complete without cheating.

Two articles in particular are worth checking out.

First, Stanley Weiss argues that economic sanctions against Burma feel good but accomplish little:

After a decade of experience, it’s clear: economic sanctions on Myanmar may feel right, but they have helped produce the wrong results. Encouraging Western investment, trade and tourism may feel wrong, but maybe – just maybe – could produce better results.

Second, it seems that the U.S. Army is shifting its focus to nation-building:

The U.S. Army has drafted a new operations manual that elevates the mission of stabilizing war-torn nations, making it equal in importance to defeating adversaries on the battlefield.

I plan to post and comment on the manual when it’s released later this month.