21st century

An assessment of fiscal blunders in foreign lands, which details how these global economic repercussions were felt on American soil. Financial bubbles grew and burst, not only in the U.S. but in countries all over the world. The tsunami of cheap credit that rolled across the planet between 2002 and 2008 was more than a simple financial phenomenon: it was temptation, offering entire societies the chance to reveal aspects of their characters they could not normally afford to indulge. Icelanders wanted to stop fishing and become investment bankers. The Greeks wanted to turn their country into a pi?ata stuffed with cash and allow as many citizens as possible to take a whack at it. The Germans wanted to be even more German; the Irish wanted to stop being Irish. And the United States simply wanted more of everything it already had.

Chronicles the decisions, deceptions, and delusions of the eighteen months after 9/11 as many countries' leaders raced to protect their citizens in the wake of 9/11.

Written by former Under Secretary of Homeland Security, Michael Brown, this book tells his side of the response to Hurricane Katrina, one of the greatest natural disasters to occur in the United States. Without making excuses for himself, Brown describes in detail the federal response to the disaster. What Brown and others in government did not anticipate, was the fact that New Orleans' levees could be breached, waffling leadership, interfering media, and self-serving politicians seeking to score points with the government.

This riveting narrative examines the world of the Somalian pirates: how they live, the forces that have created piracy in Somalia, how they spend the ransom money, and how they deal with their hostages.

What started out as patrols to control the commercial plundering of coastal Somalia has now grown into a highly organised and lucrative business. Somalia has grown to depend on what pirates bring in and entire villages are sustained in this fashion. Once thought to be consigned to history, pirates of many nationalities roam the South China Sea, the Caribbean, the Malacca Straits and waters off South America. The attacks are increasing in number and violence as the ransom money paid is used to buy state-of-the-art boats, automatic weapons, and rocket-propelled grenades.

An examination of key episodes in Chinese foreign policy from the classical era to today.