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Sunday, February 15, 2026

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Gwynne Dyer

Gwynne Dyer is a United Kingdom-based independent journalist who writes a column for The Hill Times.

Surviving the population crash

  • The challenge is how to make our way safely down from the old high-birth-rate regime to a new low-birth-rate future because the present pace
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 12, 2026
France's Marine Le Pen, left, the United Kingdom's Nigel Farage, Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, and United States President Donald Trump. A phalanx of right-wing populists either in power or closing in on it are painting immigration as a threat, and peddling ‘great replacement’ narratives to the angry and the ignorant. Photographs courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and Flickr

Surviving the population crash

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 12, 2026
  • The challenge is how to make our way safely down from the old high-birth-rate regime to a new low-birth-rate future because the present pace

Surviving the population crash

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 12, 2026
  • The challenge is how to make our way safely down from the old high-birth-rate regime to a new low-birth-rate future because the present pace
France's Marine Le Pen, left, the United Kingdom's Nigel Farage, Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, and United States President Donald Trump. A phalanx of right-wing populists either in power or closing in on it are painting immigration as a threat, and peddling ‘great replacement’ narratives to the angry and the ignorant. Photographs courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and Flickr

The curious case of China’s disappearing generals

  • All six members of China’s highest military body have been dismissed on suspicion of corruption, including last month the vice-chair, Zhang Youxia, one of
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 9, 2026
Xi Jinping
Xi Jinping
China’s highest military body is the Central Military Commission, with President Xi Jinping himself in the chair in his parallel role as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

The curious case of China’s disappearing generals

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 9, 2026
  • All six members of China’s highest military body have been dismissed on suspicion of corruption, including last month the vice-chair, Zhang Youxia, one of

The curious case of China’s disappearing generals

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 9, 2026
  • All six members of China’s highest military body have been dismissed on suspicion of corruption, including last month the vice-chair, Zhang Youxia, one of
Xi Jinping
China’s highest military body is the Central Military Commission, with President Xi Jinping himself in the chair in his parallel role as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

The last arms control treaty expires

  • The American president knows nothing about nuclear weapons, and doesn’t care. He is not a man who will put any effort into rebuilding a
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 5, 2026
Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin
Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin
United States President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, pictured in July 2018, are both reckless men, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Shealah Craighead

The last arms control treaty expires

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 5, 2026
  • The American president knows nothing about nuclear weapons, and doesn’t care. He is not a man who will put any effort into rebuilding a

The last arms control treaty expires

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 5, 2026
  • The American president knows nothing about nuclear weapons, and doesn’t care. He is not a man who will put any effort into rebuilding a
Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin
United States President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, pictured in July 2018, are both reckless men, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Shealah Craighead

Is Iran pretending to have nukes?

  • Iran’s former ayatollah declared the development and use of weapons of mass destruction forbidden on moral and religious grounds. We should take this decree
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 4, 2026
It’s possible that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, pictured, has followed the same stupid strategy as Saddam Hussein did in Iraq, and is approaching the same ugly consequences, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Is Iran pretending to have nukes?

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 4, 2026
  • Iran’s former ayatollah declared the development and use of weapons of mass destruction forbidden on moral and religious grounds. We should take this decree

Is Iran pretending to have nukes?

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 4, 2026
  • Iran’s former ayatollah declared the development and use of weapons of mass destruction forbidden on moral and religious grounds. We should take this decree
It’s possible that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, pictured, has followed the same stupid strategy as Saddam Hussein did in Iraq, and is approaching the same ugly consequences, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Iran an active case study on whether massacres work

  • The regime will effectively be an occupation force that rules only by terror—but such regimes can last a long time if they are ruthless
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 29, 2026
This month’s killing in Iran is on a whole different scale in the nation’s history, and the past is no guide to the future, writes Gwynne Dyer. Screenshot courtesy of BBC News

Iran an active case study on whether massacres work

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 29, 2026
  • The regime will effectively be an occupation force that rules only by terror—but such regimes can last a long time if they are ruthless

Iran an active case study on whether massacres work

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 29, 2026
  • The regime will effectively be an occupation force that rules only by terror—but such regimes can last a long time if they are ruthless
This month’s killing in Iran is on a whole different scale in the nation’s history, and the past is no guide to the future, writes Gwynne Dyer. Screenshot courtesy of BBC News

After Davos, Trump confronts an inflection point

  • Prime Minister Mark Carney’s remarkable speech at Davos said what many political and economic elites were thinking: don’t let the bullies win; fear is
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 26, 2026
U.S. President Donald Trump, right, went into last week’s World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, full of bluster, but he ultimately back-tracked on threats to Greenland, and tariff nations that support the territory, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of the World Economic Forum/Ciaran McCrickard

After Davos, Trump confronts an inflection point

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 26, 2026
  • Prime Minister Mark Carney’s remarkable speech at Davos said what many political and economic elites were thinking: don’t let the bullies win; fear is

After Davos, Trump confronts an inflection point

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 26, 2026
  • Prime Minister Mark Carney’s remarkable speech at Davos said what many political and economic elites were thinking: don’t let the bullies win; fear is
U.S. President Donald Trump, right, went into last week’s World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, full of bluster, but he ultimately back-tracked on threats to Greenland, and tariff nations that support the territory, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of the World Economic Forum/Ciaran McCrickard

One Danish soldier

  • If even one soldier dies in Greenland due to American aggression, NATO nations would be forced to step in.
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 22, 2026
United States President Donald Trump often changes his mind, and the number of times he has said he will use force on Greenland is far greater than the times he has said he won’t, writes Gwynne Dyer White House photograph by Molly Riley

One Danish soldier

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 22, 2026
  • If even one soldier dies in Greenland due to American aggression, NATO nations would be forced to step in.

One Danish soldier

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 22, 2026
  • If even one soldier dies in Greenland due to American aggression, NATO nations would be forced to step in.
United States President Donald Trump often changes his mind, and the number of times he has said he will use force on Greenland is far greater than the times he has said he won’t, writes Gwynne Dyer White House photograph by Molly Riley

Trump versus NATO, target Greenland

  • For Canada, the problem is that all the (false) American arguments to justify annexing Greenland apply equally to Canada. The strategy seems to be
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 19, 2026
Donald Trump
Donald Trump
Why is U.S. President Donald Trump so obsessed with Greenland? The best guess in NATO circles is that it’s an extension of his old mania of putting his name on every hotel he owned. In this case, it gets his name in American history books, writes Gwynne Dyer.  White House photograph by Joyce N. Boghosia

Trump versus NATO, target Greenland

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 19, 2026
  • For Canada, the problem is that all the (false) American arguments to justify annexing Greenland apply equally to Canada. The strategy seems to be

Trump versus NATO, target Greenland

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 19, 2026
  • For Canada, the problem is that all the (false) American arguments to justify annexing Greenland apply equally to Canada. The strategy seems to be
Donald Trump
Why is U.S. President Donald Trump so obsessed with Greenland? The best guess in NATO circles is that it’s an extension of his old mania of putting his name on every hotel he owned. In this case, it gets his name in American history books, writes Gwynne Dyer.  White House photograph by Joyce N. Boghosia

Why America intervening in Iran is a bad idea

  • LONDON, U.K.— Any day now, the United States will “come to the rescue” of the protesters in the streets of Iran’s cities, and American
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 15, 2026
U.S. President Donald Trump has promised too much already to do absolutely nothing about the massacre of protesters in Iran, but he should do the absolute minimum he thinks he can get away with, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Daniel Torok

Why America intervening in Iran is a bad idea

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 15, 2026
  • LONDON, U.K.— Any day now, the United States will “come to the rescue” of the protesters in the streets of Iran’s cities, and American

Why America intervening in Iran is a bad idea

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 15, 2026
  • LONDON, U.K.— Any day now, the United States will “come to the rescue” of the protesters in the streets of Iran’s cities, and American
U.S. President Donald Trump has promised too much already to do absolutely nothing about the massacre of protesters in Iran, but he should do the absolute minimum he thinks he can get away with, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Daniel Torok

How NATO members can take on Trump’s Greenland—and Canadian—obsession

  • Ottawa should offer military forces to protect Greenland from Russia and China, and ask the Europeans to send some troops to Canada for protection.
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 12, 2026
If U.S. President Donald Trump invades Greenland then NATO, the military alliance that has played a large part in preventing a nuclear war for the past 75 years, dies, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Molly Riley

How NATO members can take on Trump’s Greenland—and Canadian—obsession

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 12, 2026
  • Ottawa should offer military forces to protect Greenland from Russia and China, and ask the Europeans to send some troops to Canada for protection.

How NATO members can take on Trump’s Greenland—and Canadian—obsession

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 12, 2026
  • Ottawa should offer military forces to protect Greenland from Russia and China, and ask the Europeans to send some troops to Canada for protection.
If U.S. President Donald Trump invades Greenland then NATO, the military alliance that has played a large part in preventing a nuclear war for the past 75 years, dies, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Molly Riley

Trump’s case for a Greenland invasion is utter hogwash

  • Despite what the U.S. president says, Greenland is a region of zero strategic importance. If Washington wants to base more troops there, it has
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 8, 2026
President Donald Trump has insisted that the United States needs ‘Greenland from the standpoint of national security.' White House photograph by Molly Riley

Trump’s case for a Greenland invasion is utter hogwash

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 8, 2026
  • Despite what the U.S. president says, Greenland is a region of zero strategic importance. If Washington wants to base more troops there, it has

Trump’s case for a Greenland invasion is utter hogwash

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 8, 2026
  • Despite what the U.S. president says, Greenland is a region of zero strategic importance. If Washington wants to base more troops there, it has
President Donald Trump has insisted that the United States needs ‘Greenland from the standpoint of national security.' White House photograph by Molly Riley

Imagining a post-Ayatollah Iran

  • Of the Iranian regime’s proxies, all but one are defunct or gravely weakened. Syria has changed sides, Hamas in the Gaza Strip is defeated
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 6, 2026
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is facing protests as the country struggles under the collapse of its currency and the explosive rise in the cost of living. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Imagining a post-Ayatollah Iran

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 6, 2026
  • Of the Iranian regime’s proxies, all but one are defunct or gravely weakened. Syria has changed sides, Hamas in the Gaza Strip is defeated

Imagining a post-Ayatollah Iran

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 6, 2026
  • Of the Iranian regime’s proxies, all but one are defunct or gravely weakened. Syria has changed sides, Hamas in the Gaza Strip is defeated
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is facing protests as the country struggles under the collapse of its currency and the explosive rise in the cost of living. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Trump, Venezuela, and seriously bad decisions

  • From Napoleon in Spain two centuries ago to the U.S. army in Iraq two decades ago, military occupations by foreigners usually generate armed resistance
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 5, 2026
Donald Trump
Donald Trump
Without boots on the ground, U.S. President Donald Trump has limited leverage on the Venezuelan regime, which has not been seriously crippled by the kidnapping of Nicolás Maduro, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Daniel Torok

Trump, Venezuela, and seriously bad decisions

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 5, 2026
  • From Napoleon in Spain two centuries ago to the U.S. army in Iraq two decades ago, military occupations by foreigners usually generate armed resistance

Trump, Venezuela, and seriously bad decisions

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 5, 2026
  • From Napoleon in Spain two centuries ago to the U.S. army in Iraq two decades ago, military occupations by foreigners usually generate armed resistance
Donald Trump
Without boots on the ground, U.S. President Donald Trump has limited leverage on the Venezuelan regime, which has not been seriously crippled by the kidnapping of Nicolás Maduro, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Daniel Torok

Derzhavnost and ‘respect’

  • LONDON, U.K.—The Russian word “derzhavnost” is usually translated as “great power status,” but the real meaning is closer to the gangland concept of “respect.”
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 22, 2025
Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and U.S. President Donald Trump, pictured on Aug. 15, 2025, at the Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska. Maybe all this time we have been looking in the wrong place for an answer to the question: why does Trump always yield to Putin? Photograph courtesy of the White House/Daniel Torok

Derzhavnost and ‘respect’

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 22, 2025
  • LONDON, U.K.—The Russian word “derzhavnost” is usually translated as “great power status,” but the real meaning is closer to the gangland concept of “respect.”

Derzhavnost and ‘respect’

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 22, 2025
  • LONDON, U.K.—The Russian word “derzhavnost” is usually translated as “great power status,” but the real meaning is closer to the gangland concept of “respect.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and U.S. President Donald Trump, pictured on Aug. 15, 2025, at the Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska. Maybe all this time we have been looking in the wrong place for an answer to the question: why does Trump always yield to Putin? Photograph courtesy of the White House/Daniel Torok

Rubio’s fantasy and the risk of forever war in Venezuela

  • ‘In my opinion, the three regimes that exist in Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Cuba are enemies of humanity,’ said U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 18, 2025
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is a second-generation Cuban-American whose parents immigrated several years before Fidel Castro’s Communist regime took power. That history has shaped his politics, writes Gwynne Dyer. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Rubio’s fantasy and the risk of forever war in Venezuela

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 18, 2025
  • ‘In my opinion, the three regimes that exist in Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Cuba are enemies of humanity,’ said U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio

Rubio’s fantasy and the risk of forever war in Venezuela

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 18, 2025
  • ‘In my opinion, the three regimes that exist in Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Cuba are enemies of humanity,’ said U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is a second-generation Cuban-American whose parents immigrated several years before Fidel Castro’s Communist regime took power. That history has shaped his politics, writes Gwynne Dyer. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Geoengineering for grown-ups

  • We need to use every viable technique to hold the average global temperature down while we work frantically to end our emissions.
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 16, 2025
A majority of early-career climate scientists now see geoengineering as necessary and inevitable, while many senior ones are still in transition, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Pixabay

Geoengineering for grown-ups

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 16, 2025
  • We need to use every viable technique to hold the average global temperature down while we work frantically to end our emissions.

Geoengineering for grown-ups

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 16, 2025
  • We need to use every viable technique to hold the average global temperature down while we work frantically to end our emissions.
A majority of early-career climate scientists now see geoengineering as necessary and inevitable, while many senior ones are still in transition, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Pixabay

Trump’s many ‘peace’ deals turn sour

  • The U.S. president has tried to end warring in Gaza, the Congo, and along the Cambodian-Thailand border. He’s also tried to take credit for
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 11, 2025
Donald Trump
Donald Trump
United States President Trump’s hyperactive foreign policy record is clearly driven by his obsessive pursuit of a Nobel Peace Prize, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Daniel Torok

Trump’s many ‘peace’ deals turn sour

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 11, 2025
  • The U.S. president has tried to end warring in Gaza, the Congo, and along the Cambodian-Thailand border. He’s also tried to take credit for

Trump’s many ‘peace’ deals turn sour

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 11, 2025
  • The U.S. president has tried to end warring in Gaza, the Congo, and along the Cambodian-Thailand border. He’s also tried to take credit for
Donald Trump
United States President Trump’s hyperactive foreign policy record is clearly driven by his obsessive pursuit of a Nobel Peace Prize, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Daniel Torok

Venezuela strikes are nothing but performative murder

  • We are all back in the 19th century when the Western Hemisphere was the exclusive domain of the U.S.
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 8, 2025
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, President Donald Trump, and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Trumpworld is going to be a place in which the great powers do what they want, limited only by the strength of other great powers, while the lesser countries do what they are told, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Daniel Torok

Venezuela strikes are nothing but performative murder

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 8, 2025
  • We are all back in the 19th century when the Western Hemisphere was the exclusive domain of the U.S.

Venezuela strikes are nothing but performative murder

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 8, 2025
  • We are all back in the 19th century when the Western Hemisphere was the exclusive domain of the U.S.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, President Donald Trump, and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Trumpworld is going to be a place in which the great powers do what they want, limited only by the strength of other great powers, while the lesser countries do what they are told, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Daniel Torok

Bibi awaits the next Trump distraction to dodge legal troubles

  • The ceasefire in Gaza intensifies the Israeli prime minister’s legal problems since he can no longer demand postponements in his trial proceedings due to
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 1, 2025
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, with the country’s president, Isaac Herzog, in 2022. Netanyahu has asked Herzog to pardon him in his ongoing corruption trial. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Bibi awaits the next Trump distraction to dodge legal troubles

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 1, 2025
  • The ceasefire in Gaza intensifies the Israeli prime minister’s legal problems since he can no longer demand postponements in his trial proceedings due to

Bibi awaits the next Trump distraction to dodge legal troubles

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 1, 2025
  • The ceasefire in Gaza intensifies the Israeli prime minister’s legal problems since he can no longer demand postponements in his trial proceedings due to
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, with the country’s president, Isaac Herzog, in 2022. Netanyahu has asked Herzog to pardon him in his ongoing corruption trial. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Trump and Putin’s goal is to destroy the international rule of law

  • Powerful people are deliberately trying to destroy the rule. Putin knows the rule but ignores it, while Trump doesn’t even know it.
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 26, 2025
Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin
Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin participate in a joint press conference after their meeting at the Arctic Warrior Event Center at Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on Aug. 15, 2025. Trump and Putin are trying to destroy the international rule of law, writes columnist Gwynne Dyer Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok

Trump and Putin’s goal is to destroy the international rule of law

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 26, 2025
  • Powerful people are deliberately trying to destroy the rule. Putin knows the rule but ignores it, while Trump doesn’t even know it.

Trump and Putin’s goal is to destroy the international rule of law

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 26, 2025
  • Powerful people are deliberately trying to destroy the rule. Putin knows the rule but ignores it, while Trump doesn’t even know it.
Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin participate in a joint press conference after their meeting at the Arctic Warrior Event Center at Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on Aug. 15, 2025. Trump and Putin are trying to destroy the international rule of law, writes columnist Gwynne Dyer Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok

Ukraine: once more around the loop

  • Every month brings another chance for some political, economic, or technological change that alters the current equation, and gives Ukraine a better bargaining position
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 25, 2025
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s job is to know if and when the morale of the Ukrainian army and the general public is starting to break, writes Gwynne Dyer. The Hill Times photograph by Sam Garcia

Ukraine: once more around the loop

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 25, 2025
  • Every month brings another chance for some political, economic, or technological change that alters the current equation, and gives Ukraine a better bargaining position

Ukraine: once more around the loop

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 25, 2025
  • Every month brings another chance for some political, economic, or technological change that alters the current equation, and gives Ukraine a better bargaining position
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s job is to know if and when the morale of the Ukrainian army and the general public is starting to break, writes Gwynne Dyer. The Hill Times photograph by Sam Garcia

Iran: drought, incompetence, and maybe revolution

  • A prolonged drought in Iran might accomplish what other challenges failed to do: destroy the rule of the religious extremists who seized power in
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 19, 2025
Maharloo Lake, a hypersaline wetland in the highlands of Iran. Severe drought in the country could be the trigger for an uprising that finally dispatches a regime that has overstayed its welcome, columnist Gwynne Dyer writes. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Iran: drought, incompetence, and maybe revolution

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 19, 2025
  • A prolonged drought in Iran might accomplish what other challenges failed to do: destroy the rule of the religious extremists who seized power in

Iran: drought, incompetence, and maybe revolution

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 19, 2025
  • A prolonged drought in Iran might accomplish what other challenges failed to do: destroy the rule of the religious extremists who seized power in
Maharloo Lake, a hypersaline wetland in the highlands of Iran. Severe drought in the country could be the trigger for an uprising that finally dispatches a regime that has overstayed its welcome, columnist Gwynne Dyer writes. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Trump, the BBC, and a bad edit

  • With video editing, there is an honour system which says that you can edit the shot, but you must not change the meaning.
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 12, 2025
Pro-Trump rioters occupied Capitol Hill on Jan. 6, 2021. Ahead of the protest in Washington, D.C., Donald Trump had posted it would 'be wild.' Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Trump, the BBC, and a bad edit

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 12, 2025
  • With video editing, there is an honour system which says that you can edit the shot, but you must not change the meaning.

Trump, the BBC, and a bad edit

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 12, 2025
  • With video editing, there is an honour system which says that you can edit the shot, but you must not change the meaning.
Pro-Trump rioters occupied Capitol Hill on Jan. 6, 2021. Ahead of the protest in Washington, D.C., Donald Trump had posted it would 'be wild.' Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

COP 30 unlikely to shift political will

  • Money is tight, wars are a huge distraction, and the climate has become unfashionable, so we’ll just have to wait and hope for better
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 10, 2025
Nothing very impressive is likely to come out of the UN climate conference despite the urgency of the situation, writes Gwynne Dyer. UN photograph courtesy by Kiara Worth

COP 30 unlikely to shift political will

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 10, 2025
  • Money is tight, wars are a huge distraction, and the climate has become unfashionable, so we’ll just have to wait and hope for better

COP 30 unlikely to shift political will

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 10, 2025
  • Money is tight, wars are a huge distraction, and the climate has become unfashionable, so we’ll just have to wait and hope for better
Nothing very impressive is likely to come out of the UN climate conference despite the urgency of the situation, writes Gwynne Dyer. UN photograph courtesy by Kiara Worth

Sudan: another partition?

  • The biggest city in western Sudan, swollen to half a million or more people due to minority ethnic groups fleeing genocide, fell to rebel
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 6, 2025
Displaced people arrive in South Sudan from Sudan through the Joda border crossing. Killing in Sudan has been non-stop since October. It’s the worst massacre yet in a civil war that has already killed 150,000 people and made one-third of the population refugees, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of the United Nations by Ala Kheir

Sudan: another partition?

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 6, 2025
  • The biggest city in western Sudan, swollen to half a million or more people due to minority ethnic groups fleeing genocide, fell to rebel

Sudan: another partition?

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 6, 2025
  • The biggest city in western Sudan, swollen to half a million or more people due to minority ethnic groups fleeing genocide, fell to rebel
Displaced people arrive in South Sudan from Sudan through the Joda border crossing. Killing in Sudan has been non-stop since October. It’s the worst massacre yet in a civil war that has already killed 150,000 people and made one-third of the population refugees, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of the United Nations by Ala Kheir

Trump’s game of ‘Made You Look’

  • If there are new revelations about Trump and Epstein on the way, then the U.S. leader needs useful distractions—like invading Nigeria.
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 3, 2025
Donald Trump
Donald Trump
U.S. President Donald Trump can infallibly trick the public into drawing their attention away from something else that he doesn’t want them to see, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Daniel Torok

Trump’s game of ‘Made You Look’

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 3, 2025
  • If there are new revelations about Trump and Epstein on the way, then the U.S. leader needs useful distractions—like invading Nigeria.

Trump’s game of ‘Made You Look’

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | November 3, 2025
  • If there are new revelations about Trump and Epstein on the way, then the U.S. leader needs useful distractions—like invading Nigeria.
Donald Trump
U.S. President Donald Trump can infallibly trick the public into drawing their attention away from something else that he doesn’t want them to see, writes Gwynne Dyer. White House photograph by Daniel Torok

An Arab nadir driven by clueless hegemons

  • We are at a point where Trump’s America and Netanyahu’s Israel have established complete domination over the Middle East. 
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | October 29, 2025
Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu
Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu still wants to get the Palestinians out of the Gaza Strip, but this may no longer require a confrontation with Donald Trump, writes Gwynne Dyer White House photograph by Daniel Torok

An Arab nadir driven by clueless hegemons

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | October 29, 2025
  • We are at a point where Trump’s America and Netanyahu’s Israel have established complete domination over the Middle East. 

An Arab nadir driven by clueless hegemons

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | October 29, 2025
  • We are at a point where Trump’s America and Netanyahu’s Israel have established complete domination over the Middle East. 
Donald Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu still wants to get the Palestinians out of the Gaza Strip, but this may no longer require a confrontation with Donald Trump, writes Gwynne Dyer White House photograph by Daniel Torok
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Putin: junkie madman?

  • LONDON, U.K.—It was my wife Tina who noticed it first, a couple of weeks ago. Her father Charl, a clever, gentle man whom we
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | March 3, 2022
Russian President Vladimir Putin's puffy face has some suggesting it's a sign he's taking steroids. Anabolic steroids are associated with increased irritability and aggression; corticosteroids are sometimes linked to mania and psychosis, writes Gwynne Dyer. UN photograph by Cia Pak

Putin: junkie madman?

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | March 3, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—It was my wife Tina who noticed it first, a couple of weeks ago. Her father Charl, a clever, gentle man whom we

Putin: junkie madman?

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | March 3, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—It was my wife Tina who noticed it first, a couple of weeks ago. Her father Charl, a clever, gentle man whom we
Russian President Vladimir Putin's puffy face has some suggesting it's a sign he's taking steroids. Anabolic steroids are associated with increased irritability and aggression; corticosteroids are sometimes linked to mania and psychosis, writes Gwynne Dyer. UN photograph by Cia Pak

The United Nations and the real world order

  • LONDON, U.K.—Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine last week, many people have expressed their shock and horror at Vladimir Putin’s violation of international law
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | March 1, 2022
Hundreds of Ukrainian Canadians and their supporters marched in Ottawa on Feb. 27, protesting Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Many people have expressed their shock and horror at Russian President Vladimir Putin’s violation of international law and the death of the 'rules-based world order,' but there’s actually no reason for surprise. Those people just never understood what the rules really were, writes Gwynne Dyer. The Hill Times photograph by Sam Garcia

The United Nations and the real world order

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | March 1, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine last week, many people have expressed their shock and horror at Vladimir Putin’s violation of international law

The United Nations and the real world order

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | March 1, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine last week, many people have expressed their shock and horror at Vladimir Putin’s violation of international law
Hundreds of Ukrainian Canadians and their supporters marched in Ottawa on Feb. 27, protesting Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Many people have expressed their shock and horror at Russian President Vladimir Putin’s violation of international law and the death of the 'rules-based world order,' but there’s actually no reason for surprise. Those people just never understood what the rules really were, writes Gwynne Dyer. The Hill Times photograph by Sam Garcia

Ukraine: 10 new realities

  • LONDON, U.K.—Now that Russian President Vladimir Putin has invaded Ukraine and foreclosed his and everybody else’s other options, certain aspects of the near future
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 24, 2022
Now that Russian President Vladimir Putin, pictured March 29, 2017, has invaded Ukraine and foreclosed his and everybody else’s other options, certain aspects of the near future have become clear. So have some aspects of the longer run. Photograph courtesy of the Kremlin

Ukraine: 10 new realities

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 24, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—Now that Russian President Vladimir Putin has invaded Ukraine and foreclosed his and everybody else’s other options, certain aspects of the near future

Ukraine: 10 new realities

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 24, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—Now that Russian President Vladimir Putin has invaded Ukraine and foreclosed his and everybody else’s other options, certain aspects of the near future
Now that Russian President Vladimir Putin, pictured March 29, 2017, has invaded Ukraine and foreclosed his and everybody else’s other options, certain aspects of the near future have become clear. So have some aspects of the longer run. Photograph courtesy of the Kremlin

Putin: the ‘madman’ gambit?

  • LONDON, U.K.—U.S. President Richard Nixon, in 1971: You can say, “I cannot control him.” Put it that way. U.S. National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger:
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 24, 2022
None of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s actions so far qualify as 'irrevocable and plainly crazy,' though they all point, in the best Machiavellian fashion, to the likelihood that he’s mad, bad, and very, very dangerous, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of the Kremlin

Putin: the ‘madman’ gambit?

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 24, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—U.S. President Richard Nixon, in 1971: You can say, “I cannot control him.” Put it that way. U.S. National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger:

Putin: the ‘madman’ gambit?

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 24, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—U.S. President Richard Nixon, in 1971: You can say, “I cannot control him.” Put it that way. U.S. National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger:
None of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s actions so far qualify as 'irrevocable and plainly crazy,' though they all point, in the best Machiavellian fashion, to the likelihood that he’s mad, bad, and very, very dangerous, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of the Kremlin

Chagos: a 50-year-old crime

  • LONDON, U.K.—“The object of the exercise is to get some rocks which will remain ours… There will be no Indigenous population except seagulls,” wrote
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 21, 2022
The Chagos Islands, an archipelago of 62 coral atolls in the middle of the Indian Ocean, would make an ideal bomber base from which to dominate  most of south Asia and eastern Africa, and in 1966, the Pentagon wanted it, writes Gwynne Dyer. Britain still insists it is the sovereign power on the islands (although it is the U.S. that runs them), but since the International Court of Justice ruled in 2019 that the whole expulsion of the islanders had been illegal it has been on the defensive. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Chagos: a 50-year-old crime

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 21, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—“The object of the exercise is to get some rocks which will remain ours… There will be no Indigenous population except seagulls,” wrote

Chagos: a 50-year-old crime

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 21, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—“The object of the exercise is to get some rocks which will remain ours… There will be no Indigenous population except seagulls,” wrote
The Chagos Islands, an archipelago of 62 coral atolls in the middle of the Indian Ocean, would make an ideal bomber base from which to dominate  most of south Asia and eastern Africa, and in 1966, the Pentagon wanted it, writes Gwynne Dyer. Britain still insists it is the sovereign power on the islands (although it is the U.S. that runs them), but since the International Court of Justice ruled in 2019 that the whole expulsion of the islanders had been illegal it has been on the defensive. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Afghanistan: the Taliban and the starving Afghans

  • LONDON, U.K.—Because the Taliban have been designated as “terrorists,” it is possible for the United States not only to embargo American aid and trade
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 17, 2022
Because the Taliban have been designated as 'terrorists,' it is possible for the United States not only to embargo American aid and trade to Afghanistan, but also to block or at least seriously hinder efforts by other countries to send humanitarian aid. As a result, more than half the country’s people—23 million at last count—are suddenly near starvation, writes Gwynne Dyer. Screen capture image courtesy of PBS News

Afghanistan: the Taliban and the starving Afghans

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 17, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—Because the Taliban have been designated as “terrorists,” it is possible for the United States not only to embargo American aid and trade

Afghanistan: the Taliban and the starving Afghans

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 17, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—Because the Taliban have been designated as “terrorists,” it is possible for the United States not only to embargo American aid and trade
Because the Taliban have been designated as 'terrorists,' it is possible for the United States not only to embargo American aid and trade to Afghanistan, but also to block or at least seriously hinder efforts by other countries to send humanitarian aid. As a result, more than half the country’s people—23 million at last count—are suddenly near starvation, writes Gwynne Dyer. Screen capture image courtesy of PBS News

World War 2.1?

  • LONDON, U.K.—Columnists are not supposed to write about the same subject twice in a row, and only last week I wrote my umpteenth piece
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 14, 2022
Russian President Vladimir Putin, pictured. Columnist Gywnne Dyer does not think Russia will invade Ukraine. 'I’ll apologize profusely if I’m getting this wrong, but it feels to me like some Central Intelligence Agency people spotted some minor Russian troop movements and rang the alarm for domestic political purposes or just for fun.' Photograph courtesy of Flickr

World War 2.1?

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 14, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—Columnists are not supposed to write about the same subject twice in a row, and only last week I wrote my umpteenth piece

World War 2.1?

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 14, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—Columnists are not supposed to write about the same subject twice in a row, and only last week I wrote my umpteenth piece
Russian President Vladimir Putin, pictured. Columnist Gywnne Dyer does not think Russia will invade Ukraine. 'I’ll apologize profusely if I’m getting this wrong, but it feels to me like some Central Intelligence Agency people spotted some minor Russian troop movements and rang the alarm for domestic political purposes or just for fun.' Photograph courtesy of Flickr

Ukraine: the invasion never comes

  • LONDON, U.K.—On Jan. 18, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that “our assessment has been that (a Russian invasion of Ukraine) could happen
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 9, 2022
On Jan. 18, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a Russian invasion of Ukraine 'could happen any time between mid-January and mid-February.' It’s not clear whether any of the U.S. officials really believes their dire predictions, since there are other plausible reasons why they might utter them: to whip the European NATO allies into line, or simply to restore Joe Biden’s reputation as a determined leader standing up for 'freedom' after his less than stellar performance in the Afghan debacle last August, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Flickr/U.S. State Department

Ukraine: the invasion never comes

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 9, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—On Jan. 18, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that “our assessment has been that (a Russian invasion of Ukraine) could happen

Ukraine: the invasion never comes

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 9, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—On Jan. 18, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that “our assessment has been that (a Russian invasion of Ukraine) could happen
On Jan. 18, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a Russian invasion of Ukraine 'could happen any time between mid-January and mid-February.' It’s not clear whether any of the U.S. officials really believes their dire predictions, since there are other plausible reasons why they might utter them: to whip the European NATO allies into line, or simply to restore Joe Biden’s reputation as a determined leader standing up for 'freedom' after his less than stellar performance in the Afghan debacle last August, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Flickr/U.S. State Department

The rise and decline of sociopathy

  • LONDON, U.K.—I generally leave the psychohistory to Hari Seldon, but just this once I feel sufficiently motivated to venture into the field. The immediate
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 7, 2022
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, former U.S. president Donald Trump, and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro have something in comment, writes Gwynne Dyer. They are all liars. They don’t care if you really know the truth from personal experience. It doesn’t bother them that you know they are lying. They will just say the lie again—and you might even believe them, because they say it with such conviction, he writes. Screenshot courtesy of Boris Johnson’s Facebook, photograph courtesy of the White House/Flickr, and Wikimedia Commons

The rise and decline of sociopathy

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 7, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—I generally leave the psychohistory to Hari Seldon, but just this once I feel sufficiently motivated to venture into the field. The immediate

The rise and decline of sociopathy

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 7, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—I generally leave the psychohistory to Hari Seldon, but just this once I feel sufficiently motivated to venture into the field. The immediate
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, former U.S. president Donald Trump, and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro have something in comment, writes Gwynne Dyer. They are all liars. They don’t care if you really know the truth from personal experience. It doesn’t bother them that you know they are lying. They will just say the lie again—and you might even believe them, because they say it with such conviction, he writes. Screenshot courtesy of Boris Johnson’s Facebook, photograph courtesy of the White House/Flickr, and Wikimedia Commons

North Korea: the sting in the tail

  • LONDON, U.K.—“They want to have a deterrence system that is like a scorpion’s tail,” said Prof. Kim Dong Yup, a former South Korean naval
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 2, 2022
Kim Jong-un has a military confrontation with South Korea that will never go away, as they are both part of the same divided nation. Caricature courtesy of Commons Wikimedia

North Korea: the sting in the tail

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 2, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—“They want to have a deterrence system that is like a scorpion’s tail,” said Prof. Kim Dong Yup, a former South Korean naval

North Korea: the sting in the tail

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | February 2, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—“They want to have a deterrence system that is like a scorpion’s tail,” said Prof. Kim Dong Yup, a former South Korean naval
Kim Jong-un has a military confrontation with South Korea that will never go away, as they are both part of the same divided nation. Caricature courtesy of Commons Wikimedia

Boris Johnson: the long goodbye

  • LONDON, U.K.—The plot couldn’t be more familiar: criminal mastermind gets away with endless daring escapades, and is brought down in the end by some
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 27, 2022
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has slid effortlessly through endless scrapes and scandals that would have finished off a lesser scoundrel, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Boris Johnson: the long goodbye

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 27, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—The plot couldn’t be more familiar: criminal mastermind gets away with endless daring escapades, and is brought down in the end by some

Boris Johnson: the long goodbye

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 27, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—The plot couldn’t be more familiar: criminal mastermind gets away with endless daring escapades, and is brought down in the end by some
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has slid effortlessly through endless scrapes and scandals that would have finished off a lesser scoundrel, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Fertility rates at astonishing levels in shrinking Asia

  • LONDON, U.K.—In the politics of population, the magic number is 2.1. That is “replacement level:” if a country’s fertility rate (the average number of
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 25, 2022
Populations in Europe are stable or gently falling, and in the Americas almost every country has a growth rate of less than one per cent. The only world regions still growing fast are the Middle East and Africa, where population growth rates are between 1.5 per cent and three per cent, writes Gwynne Dyer.

Fertility rates at astonishing levels in shrinking Asia

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 25, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—In the politics of population, the magic number is 2.1. That is “replacement level:” if a country’s fertility rate (the average number of

Fertility rates at astonishing levels in shrinking Asia

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 25, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—In the politics of population, the magic number is 2.1. That is “replacement level:” if a country’s fertility rate (the average number of
Populations in Europe are stable or gently falling, and in the Americas almost every country has a growth rate of less than one per cent. The only world regions still growing fast are the Middle East and Africa, where population growth rates are between 1.5 per cent and three per cent, writes Gwynne Dyer.

Berlusconi wants to be Italy’s next president, and he might win

  • LONDON, U.K.—It was looking like a good year for democracy. Donald Trump is gone in the United States, at least for the moment, and
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 19, 2022
Silvio Berlusconi, pictured in 2003, more or less withdrew from public view after open-heart surgery in 2016, but here he is again, still eager for power, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Berlusconi wants to be Italy’s next president, and he might win

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 19, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—It was looking like a good year for democracy. Donald Trump is gone in the United States, at least for the moment, and

Berlusconi wants to be Italy’s next president, and he might win

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 19, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—It was looking like a good year for democracy. Donald Trump is gone in the United States, at least for the moment, and
Silvio Berlusconi, pictured in 2003, more or less withdrew from public view after open-heart surgery in 2016, but here he is again, still eager for power, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Nuclear power: the missing piece of the puzzle

  • LONDON, U.K.—At the stroke of midnight last Friday, half of Germany’s remaining nuclear power stations closed down. The remaining three plants (of an original
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 4, 2022
There are currently 441 commercial nuclear reactors in the world, supplying about 10 per cent of the world’s electricity. There could have been three or four times as much nuclear power by now if the Green movement had not exploited a couple of accidents in the 1970s and '80s to cripple it, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Unsplash

Nuclear power: the missing piece of the puzzle

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 4, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—At the stroke of midnight last Friday, half of Germany’s remaining nuclear power stations closed down. The remaining three plants (of an original

Nuclear power: the missing piece of the puzzle

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | January 4, 2022
  • LONDON, U.K.—At the stroke of midnight last Friday, half of Germany’s remaining nuclear power stations closed down. The remaining three plants (of an original
There are currently 441 commercial nuclear reactors in the world, supplying about 10 per cent of the world’s electricity. There could have been three or four times as much nuclear power by now if the Green movement had not exploited a couple of accidents in the 1970s and '80s to cripple it, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Unsplash

China: no more Mr. Nice Guy

  • LONDON, U.K.—More than 200 Hong Kong police raided and shut down one of the last pro-democracy news websites in Hong Kong on Dec. 29,
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 29, 2021
More than 200 Hong Kong police raided and shut down one of the last pro-democracy news websites in Hong Kong on Dec. 29, in the latest sign that the Beijing regime will no longer tolerate dissent of any kind. It was total overkill—a couple of cops with a court order would have sufficed—but they were ‘sending a message’ to other ‘malcontents.' Screengrab courtesy of CNN/Reuters

China: no more Mr. Nice Guy

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 29, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—More than 200 Hong Kong police raided and shut down one of the last pro-democracy news websites in Hong Kong on Dec. 29,

China: no more Mr. Nice Guy

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 29, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—More than 200 Hong Kong police raided and shut down one of the last pro-democracy news websites in Hong Kong on Dec. 29,
More than 200 Hong Kong police raided and shut down one of the last pro-democracy news websites in Hong Kong on Dec. 29, in the latest sign that the Beijing regime will no longer tolerate dissent of any kind. It was total overkill—a couple of cops with a court order would have sufficed—but they were ‘sending a message’ to other ‘malcontents.' Screengrab courtesy of CNN/Reuters

In politics, it’s all about having the right enemy

  • LONDON, U.K.—The right enemy can be a major asset in politics, as Chilean voters have just demonstrated once again. All the opinion polls had
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 27, 2021
In Chile, the left-wing candidate, Gabriel Boric, won the Dec. 19 presidential election after it came out that the father of far-right candidate was a Nazi. Flickr photograph courtesy of Mediabanco Agencia

In politics, it’s all about having the right enemy

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 27, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—The right enemy can be a major asset in politics, as Chilean voters have just demonstrated once again. All the opinion polls had

In politics, it’s all about having the right enemy

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 27, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—The right enemy can be a major asset in politics, as Chilean voters have just demonstrated once again. All the opinion polls had
In Chile, the left-wing candidate, Gabriel Boric, won the Dec. 19 presidential election after it came out that the father of far-right candidate was a Nazi. Flickr photograph courtesy of Mediabanco Agencia

Humouring Putin

  • LONDON, U.K.—The geopolitical question of the moment is: how important is it to humour Russian Leader Vladimir Putin? The answer is: not very. Throw
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 20, 2021
The geopolitical question of the moment is: how important is it to humour Russian Leader Vladimir Putin? The answer is: not very. Throw him a fish or two, because he’s running a bluff and you don’t want to humiliate him, but there’s no need to placate him with major concessions, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Flickr

Humouring Putin

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 20, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—The geopolitical question of the moment is: how important is it to humour Russian Leader Vladimir Putin? The answer is: not very. Throw

Humouring Putin

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 20, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—The geopolitical question of the moment is: how important is it to humour Russian Leader Vladimir Putin? The answer is: not very. Throw
The geopolitical question of the moment is: how important is it to humour Russian Leader Vladimir Putin? The answer is: not very. Throw him a fish or two, because he’s running a bluff and you don’t want to humiliate him, but there’s no need to placate him with major concessions, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Flickr

Democrats in Chile right to be worried in presidential runoff

  • LONDON, U.K.—British journalist Claud Cockburn once claimed that he won a contest among the sub-editors on The London Times to write the dullest headline
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 16, 2021
The great surprise in the first round of the Chilean presidential election last month was that an extreme-right politician called José Antonio Kast, pictured in 2017, got the most votes. Kast could actually do some harm if he became president—but it’s less likely than it looks, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Democrats in Chile right to be worried in presidential runoff

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 16, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—British journalist Claud Cockburn once claimed that he won a contest among the sub-editors on The London Times to write the dullest headline

Democrats in Chile right to be worried in presidential runoff

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 16, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—British journalist Claud Cockburn once claimed that he won a contest among the sub-editors on The London Times to write the dullest headline
The great surprise in the first round of the Chilean presidential election last month was that an extreme-right politician called José Antonio Kast, pictured in 2017, got the most votes. Kast could actually do some harm if he became president—but it’s less likely than it looks, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

‘New normal’ may be far faster expansion of renewable energy than expected

  • LONDON, U.K.—The “new normal,” said International Energy Agency spokesperson Heymi Bahar last May, may be a far faster expansion of renewable energy than expected,
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 13, 2021
There has been a step-change in the growth of wind and solar power, which jumped by 45 per cent worldwide in 2020—and despite the pandemic, this year’s growth will be even higher. Even more important, hardly any other source of energy is growing at all, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

‘New normal’ may be far faster expansion of renewable energy than expected

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 13, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—The “new normal,” said International Energy Agency spokesperson Heymi Bahar last May, may be a far faster expansion of renewable energy than expected,

‘New normal’ may be far faster expansion of renewable energy than expected

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 13, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—The “new normal,” said International Energy Agency spokesperson Heymi Bahar last May, may be a far faster expansion of renewable energy than expected,
There has been a step-change in the growth of wind and solar power, which jumped by 45 per cent worldwide in 2020—and despite the pandemic, this year’s growth will be even higher. Even more important, hardly any other source of energy is growing at all, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Russia not headed for Ukraine invasion

  • LONDON, U.K.—I must admit that I Googled the plot of the 1997 film Wag the Dog before starting to write this. It’s a dark
Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 9, 2021
Symbolism and historical stereotypes are what this is all about, and the dominant stereotype in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s mind is the fact that practically everybody on the "A" list of would-be world conquerors has invaded Russia, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of the World Economic Forum

Russia not headed for Ukraine invasion

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 9, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—I must admit that I Googled the plot of the 1997 film Wag the Dog before starting to write this. It’s a dark

Russia not headed for Ukraine invasion

Opinion | BY GWYNNE DYER | December 9, 2021
  • LONDON, U.K.—I must admit that I Googled the plot of the 1997 film Wag the Dog before starting to write this. It’s a dark
Symbolism and historical stereotypes are what this is all about, and the dominant stereotype in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s mind is the fact that practically everybody on the "A" list of would-be world conquerors has invaded Russia, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of the World Economic Forum

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