The Cultural Commandments: Germany
Germany is a relatively new country, not being unified until 1871, after the Franco-Prussian war. It is still characterized by […]
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France as a model?
It was not long ago that France was regularly criticised by the more liberal economies of the world and its […]
Malaysia: An ‘open house’ tradition
Those who have visited this Southeast Asian destination in the past few weeks have been treated to the spectacle of […]
Customer Service, London style
“To inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time” This is […]
A Country that Can
The compelling and successful slogan for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign was “Yes, we can!” These words resonated strongly with the […]
Japan – why did it take them so long?
On 30 August 2009, a good part of the Japanese electorate finally decided to interrupt the Liberal Democratic Party’s half […]
The Czech Republic’s place in Europe: A work in progress
The Czech presidency of the EU ended this June on a mixed note, having confounded allies across Europe. Was it […]
Brazilians – Culture & Identity
Sometimes countries remind me of people – their national characteristics, qualities, resources and impact on others leaving impressions in much […]
A United Europe?
The recent European elections saw a significant lurch to the far right, which took many by surprise. From a cultural […]
Finnish National Pride in an Open Society
I was reminded recently of the old anecdote about Finnish national self consciousness: A German, a Frenchman, a Russian, and […]