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A mismatched policy
When I first arrived in Palau, I was surprised to hear that gout—a form of inflammatory arthritis whose culprit is uric acid, and whose...
Pacific Reflections
Admin
- Jul 10
‘A rotten foundation’
Will Justice Gorsuch give the territories a Brown moment? In 1954, the nine justices of the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously agreed in...
Admin
- Jun 5
Bases and opportunity: The real threat in the Solomon Islands
Somewhere in my house, buried in a box of junk, is a phone to repair. This particular phone is the one I used when I lived in Chuuk. It...
Admin
- Mar 5
The politics of sunken republics
I was a hardcore environmentalist when I started college. I’ve since become more pragmatic. I view environmentalism as the web of...
Admin
- Feb 11
Climate change refugees or seekers of better economic opportunities?
It’s virtually impossible to live in the islands without hearing the word “diaspora” among foreigners. Diaspora itself is a biblical...
Admin
- Jan 8
New Caledonia: A future in limbo
What do submarines and Tesla batteries have in common? France’s role in the Pacific, of course. Last September, Australia canceled a $66...
Admin
- Dec 2, 2021
Climate change negotiation and orchestration
The Conference of the Parties… calls upon parties to accelerate the development, deployment and dissemination of technologies, and the...
Admin
- Nov 7, 2021
Hidden riches in paradise
October 2021 was a big deal for taxes, and not because the extended filing deadline for those required to file a U.S. tax return fell on...
Admin
- Oct 6, 2021
The curious case of Tiki racism
“Tiki: [Māori] A large wooden or small ornamental greenstone image of an ancestor or any human figure.” --Oxford English Dictionary One...
Admin
- Sep 7, 2021
When ‘free association’ becomes a loose phrase
Every few years for the past 15 years or so, a certain obsession grips Pacific Island civil society, which is to say, the media, the...
By Gabriel McCoard
- Aug 12, 2021
Biden defends the sacred right to vote, but skips over the US territories
The recent opinion in Fitisemanu v. United States, in which a federal appeals court ruled that American Samoans are not U.S. citizens,...
By Gabriel McCoard
- Jul 5, 2021
A new life for the Insular Cases
American Samoa’s joy is Guam’s defeat — along with that of other island territories We have grave misgivings about forcing the American...
By Gabriel McCoard
- Jun 6, 2021
Guam’s lack of a vote in Congress is related to oranges from Puerto Rico
On the evening of Feb. 15, 1898, an explosion ripped through the USS Maine, a U.S. Naval Battleship anchored at the harbor in Havana,...
By Gabriel McCoard
- May 4, 2021
China versus China: Where does Micronesia fit in?
U.S. ambassador to Palau John Hennessey-Niland, alongside Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. visited Taiwan, officially known as the...
By Gabriel McCoard
- Apr 2, 2021
Stupid Guam quotes
Among my random possessions is an antique globe. It’s one of my favorite things. Parts of it are battered and illegible. There’s a dimple...
By Gabriel McCoard
- Mar 4, 2021
Whither the Pacific Islands Forum: Is there an alternative to regionalism?
The event itself happened quickly enough. Members of the Pacific Islands Forum elected Henry Puna, former Prime Minister of the Cook...
By Gabriel McCoard
- Feb 2, 2021
A modest proposal
Covid-19 has wrought more than its share of havoc on everyone. I don’t bother combing my hair unless I have a video conference, which is...
By Gabriel McCoard
- Jan 7, 2021
A preview of what’s to come
I once had a professor who shared a story about working on Capitol Hill for a prominent U.S. senator who stressed the importance of...
By Gabriel McCoard
- Dec 7, 2020
Glimmers of hope amid economic chaos
Palau has long had certain advantages, and advantages beget benefits. Palau is closer to Asia. Non-stop flights eliminate the need for a U.S
By Gabriel McCoard
- Dec 13, 2018
Whither the status quo?
New Caledonia and the curious tale of sovereignty “Members of the United Nations which have or assume responsibilities for the...