August 2013

blog

Al Qaeda, Hezbollah on the Verge of Sectarian War in Lebanon

Tensions between rival militant groups al Qaeda and Hezbollah have reached a fever pitch following bombings at two mosques in Lebanon, making a bloody sectarian conflict an increasingly real possibility.

q&a

RAND Experts Q&A on Syria

There are increasing reports suggesting that President Obama will soon take military action against the Syrian government, perhaps targeting its chemical weapons facilities. Several RAND experts spoke with us about the latest developments.

commentary

Data Points: Why Delay of the Employer Mandate May Not Actually Mean That Much

The bottom line is that the employer mandate does not provide a large inducement for firms to change their health insurance offerings, but it does raise a substantial amount of money to pay for the ACA's coverage provisions over time.

Carter C. Price @CarterCPrice, Evan Saltzman

commentary

Using the Power of Communities to Beat Depression

Under-resourced communities of color have limited access to programs that could improve recognition and treatment of depression. RAND and UCLA investigators applied an engagement model to determine how to better serve these communities.

Kenneth B. Wells, Loretta Jones

commentary

Surprise! Now What?

Who is best prepared for responding to surprise: a Navy SEAL, an NFL coach, or a Fortune 500 CEO? The answer is that all three professions have something to teach us: The NFL coach is an expert in pre-planning; the SEAL is great under pressure; and a good CEO has become an expert in responding to strategic threats.

Dave Baiocchi, D. Steven Fox

commentary

What's Next for the Muslim Brotherhood?

Some believe the Muslim Brotherhood should stay in the political game, adopting the role of loyal opposition. The Brotherhood would remain a minority party, but it could continue to hold offices, provide social assistance that the government does not, and demonstrate its continuing strength at the polls.

Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins

commentary

U.S., China and an Unthinkable War

Although the China-U.S. agenda is jammed with pressing issues, time must be found to improve procedures and channels to defuse crises and avert military miscalculation. Political leaders should not wait for a crisis before scrutinizing war-fighting plans and insisting on ones that strengthen, not weaken, stability.

David C. Gompert, Terrence K. Kelly

commentary

Big Tobacco vs. Tobacco Regulation and Control: An Even Match?

Anti-tobacco policies that have clear scientific support will strengthen the FDA's regulatory position. While the evidence base is solid in this area, it needs to be much stronger and broader if the TCA is going to have any lasting success against the industry.

William G. Shadel

commentary

Making Colleges More Affordable

President Obama has released a plan to make colleges more affordable for the middle class. The plan calls for linking federal student aid to college performance, capping student loans at 10% of income, and incentivizing innovative instructional approaches to cut costs and improve quality.

Rafiq Dossani

commentary

What Would al Qaeda's PowerPoints Say?

Over the last 12 years, the campaign against al Qaeda has dominated U.S. policy. From this perspective, al Qaeda has been a beneficiary of the Arab uprisings in general and of recent events in Egypt and Syria in particular. The longer the turmoil continues, the greater al Qaeda's possible gains, writes Brian Michael Jenkins.

Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins

commentary

A Measured Red-Line Response

It was a year ago that President Obama declared the use of chemical weapons by the Assad government to be a red line that would bring a swift and sure U.S. response. Not acting threatens the credibility not just of Obama's red-line threat, but of all U.S. threats going forward, writes Julie Taylor.

Julie E. Taylor

commentary

Protecting Young People from Harm: The Role of Age-Restricted Sales

Local authorities in the UK can benefit from a new toolkit developed by RAND Europe to measure the impacts and outcomes of local regulations designed to restrict sales of products harmful to children.

Emily Scraggs

blog

Dalia Dassa Kaye: Don't Cut Economic Aid to Egypt

It's pretty clear that the U.S. administration is frustrated with the way Egypt is going, says Dalia Dassa Kaye. There are few good choices. What is unfortunate is the development of cutting economic assistance to Egypt. That is sending exactly the wrong message to the Egyptian people and the broader region.

commentary

Calling for a Time-Out in the Army Intelligence Software Debate

The Army's Distributed Common Ground System (DCGS) program has been getting much attention from Congress, and its future was the subject of a heated exchange between the Army's Chief of Staff General Raymond Odierno and Representative Duncan Hunter in May.

Christopher G. Pernin, Isaac R. Porche III

commentary

Is Turkey Rethinking the Syrian Kurd Issue?

An autonomous Kurdish region that remains an integral part of Syria, even one dominated by the PYD (the Democratic Union, the largest and best organized Kurdish opposition party), would be far less dangerous than one dominated by forces affiliated with al Qaeda.

F. Stephen Larrabee