"Qatari officials' decision to embrace the direction of change was unique among the states of the region, which resisted the popular pressures unleashed by the Arab Spring that they saw as inherently threatening."

- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace briefing

"Indeed, in Washington and European capitals, the Qatar mess is seen as an almost childish indulgence. And yet diplomacy is stalemated... The only winners so far are the lobby groups making good money by providing advice, devising strategies, and setting up opposition websites and conferences. Seldom has the term "beltway bandits" seemed more appropriate."

- Washington Institute article

"In the broadest sense, Islamist groups believe Islamic law or Islamic values should play a central role in public life. They feel Islam has things to say about how politics should be conducted, how the law should be applied, and how other people—not just themselves—should conduct themselves morally."

- Brookings primer on Islamism, Jihadism, Salafism

"So when Egypt's military responded to mass protests by ousting Morsi in July 2013, Saudi Arabia and the UAE believed that they had dodged a bullet, and saw the ensuing struggle against the Brotherhood in existential terms. They therefore generously supported then-Defense Minister Abdel Fatah al-Sisi as he brutally repressed the Brotherhood, seeing their own fates as tied to the Brotherhood's defeat."

- Atlantic article on the Muslim Brotherhood, Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia

Thaler's cameo in The Big Short (language warning)

"Richard Thaler has contributed to expanding and refining economic analysis by considering three psychological traits that systematically influence economic decisions – limited rationality, perceptions about fairness, and lack of self-control."

- Nobel Prize in Economics release

"Thaler also drew attention to the potential impact of automatic enrollment: Because inertia is an important force, employees will stay in a retirement plan if they are already enrolled, even if they would not sign up in the first place."

- Bloomberg article

"It is revealing that many of these younger technologists are weaning themselves off their own products, sending their children to elite Silicon Valley schools where iPhones, iPads and even laptops are banned. They appear to be abiding by a Biggie Smalls lyric from their own youth about the perils of dealing crack cocaine: never get high on your own supply."

- Guardian article

Go Bills!

"It is surely time for the Nobel Committee to revise its rules and procedures to take account of the changing nature of the Peace Prize. If the tradition-soaked institution of the British monarchy can take away awards from the unworthy, the progressive burghers of Norway can surely manage the same trick."

- Foreign Policy article

"One of the greatest benefits of the Nobel Peace Prize is the fact that, once a year, it promotes a lively discussion about peace throughout the world. Does peace, for example, mean a mere absence of violence or a positive state of justice and good will?"

- The Conversation article

"Just before the Euromaidan protests began, in November 2013, it was calculated that the assets for Ukraine's 50 richest individuals made up 45 percent of GDP, compared to less than 20 percent in Russia and less than 10 percent in the US."

- European Council on Foreign Relations report: Survival of the Richest: How Oligarchs Block Reform in Ukraine

"[The oligarchs] grew rich by gaining privileged access to the gas market, expropriating companies from private owners, trading with state enterprises on advantageous terms, and privatizing those same firms at pennies on the dollar."

- Foreign Policy article

"Sidorenko had another reason to be frustrated. He had 23 years of experience, but earned only €300 a month, barely enough to feed his four young children, let alone to pay the numerous small bribes – to teachers, traffic police, plumbers, tax officers – that are part of everyday life in Ukraine."

- Guardian article (mentioned)

"The window of political opportunity created by regime change and the mobilisation against external aggression in 2014-15 has not been used effectively as a springboard for reforming the dysfunctional Ukrainian economy and state. The window of opportunity now seems to be closing as Ukraine approaches a new electoral cycle in 2018-19."

- Bruegel report (mentioned)

"...on October 4, months of political conflict climaxed when President Boris Yeltsin ordered the army to shell and storm the country's legislature."

- Guardian article about 10.4.1993

--

A great, in-depth podcast on "realism" - explains a lot of foreign policy concepts, for those of you who really want to get into definitions.

"When push comes to shove, American foreign policy - like that of every major power in history - has always been based on immediate self-interest, and not always on long-term ideals."

- Fmr. Senator Ted Kaufman explaining support for Arab countries

"Imperial temptations and humanitarian nightmares force the United States of the late 19th Century to confront the contradictions between its revolutionary self-image and its expanding national interests."

- Hardcore History podcast, American Peril

What's happened since their independence referendums?

"El Pais has analyzed 10 of the myths that are used to support the separatists' story, and found not one of them withstands detailed scrutiny."

- El Pais article on Catalan 'falsehoods' (mentioned)

"The government's muscular response to Catalans' desire for self-determination could increase the number of independentists and heighten their passion, which, in the long run, may further erode the stability and reputation of Spain's central government."

- The Atlantic article

"Sunday's footage of violent police action against unarmed demonstrators may prove just the catalyst pro-independence groups wanted, handing Europe yet another crisis when it needed it least."

- Reuters article

"By calling for the vote over objections from Ankara, Tehran, and Baghdad, [Iraqi Kurds] appeared to be betting the region's neighbors would be unwilling or unable to muster sustained sanctions or a blockade... [The Iraqi Kurds'] gamble might pay off in the end, but it is still just that - a gamble."

- The Atlantic article

"...after Erdogan said that Iraqi Kurds would go hungry if Ankara halted the cross-border flow of trucks and oil, it has said that any measures it took would not target civilians and instead focus on those who organized the referendum."

- Reuters article

"A woman's right to drive may seem trivial to the rest of the world. But to Saudi Arabia, juggling economic change while oil prices are weak, along with diplomatic problems in Yemen and with Qatar, it may herald national transformation. Or it may be the straw that broke the camel's back."

- Washington Institute article

"What the country needs is heavy investment in vocational education, which the vast majority of Saudis reject and consider beneath them."

- Middle East Forum paper on 'why Vision 2030 will fail'

"Since the onset of the Arab uprisings in 2011, if not before, doubts about the political stability of Saudi Arabia have been raised with almost metronomic frequency... Yet for all the confident assertions that it is just a matter of time before the kingdom succumbs to internal unrest... Saudi Arabia has remained one of the most stable countries in the region."

- Council on Foreign Relations article

"As its population continues to endure severe poverty, Turkmenistan has spent a reported US$5bn... on infrastructure to host this niche sporting event."

- The Guardian article

"If the economic situation were more favorable, the games would probably have very little influence on the lives of Turkmenistan's people. As it turns out, it is impossible for Turkmenistan's people to ignore the upcoming sporting event; they're helping pay for it."

- Radio Free Europe article

"The Games will bring the international media spotlight to Turkmenistan, where for years the government has imprisoned, threatened, harassed, or driven into exile journalists who engage in independent reporting, or who provide information about Turkmenistan to foreign news outlets..."

- Human Rights Watch article

Propaganda vids of Gurbanguly Berdimuhamidov

"Shooting" + "throwing knives"

Gym sessions

"Singing" and "playing guitar"

"Singing" and "playing guitar" at oil + gas workers

Doing sports

DJ-ing hard

Falling off a horse (probably not used as propaganda)

"Does China have a better model for managing politics in the 21st century?"

Democracy and the China model podcast (SoundCloud link)

"While the IMF increased its forecast for Chinese expansion in 2017 from 6.2% to 6.7%, it stressed that this was the result of the authorities in Beijing putting a higher priority on hitting a growth target than on the quality of the economic output."

- The Guardian article

"It is unclear if this mounting concern will materialize in the form of a slowdown or crisis, but either possibility could be devastating for both China and the rest of the global economy..."

- CSIS brief

Disaster relief + economic structuring once FEMA leaves.

"Federal aid is being mobilized, but that won't restore the pre-storm state, which was already fiscally insolvent."

- Bloomberg opinion piece

"The treatment of Puerto Rico in the United States federal tax code helped create the island's current fiscal situation, and the failure of Puerto Rico's government to reform its tax code exacerbated matters further."

- Tax Foundation brief

"...to recover from its recession and debt crisis, Puerto Rico needs reforms to boost its business climate, improve the quality of service, and change its relationship with the federal government so that the island is in some respects treated more like a state."

- Council on Foreign Relations interview

(Apologies if voice sounds weird - microphone was acting up!)