This Week: Questioning the Golden Arches Theory

Plus, virtual events on fighting hunger and gender-based violence [Read this email in your browser]( [FP-This-Week-tighter] Welcome to FP This Week. Foreign Policy is kicking off December with a slate of must-attend virtual events. First, join FP and speakers like U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and celebrated Italian restaurateur Massimo Bottura for the return of the [Food+ Summit]( this year in a virtual format. Next, FP will convene women trailblazers at the front lines of the battle against gender-based violence in South Africa. We also highlight a recent essay from Paul Musgrave, an assistant professor of political science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, who evaluates the glut of glib globalization cheerleading in the period between the mid-1990s and the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Thank you for reading. --------------------------------------------------------------- STORIES OF NOTE [The Beautiful, Dumb Dream of McDonald’s Peace Theory]( By Paul Musgrave, assistant professor of political science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst In the rich, lazy, and happy 1990s, Americans imagined a world that could be just like them. Back when Bill Clinton was still U.S. president, Paul Musgrave was a college freshman taking a course on American foreign policy, using textbooks like The Lexus and the Olive Tree, a 1999 bestseller by Thomas Friedman. His thesis, according to Musgrave, proposed to explain the decline in war as a result of the expansion of global capitalism: “No two countries that both have a McDonald’s have ever fought a war against each other.” However, instances like the resurgent Nagorno-Karabakh conflict provide a reason to worry that the world is entering a new phase of more violent conflict—including major wars—and globalization will no more prevent them. Musgrave suggests it’s time to begin thinking about what the next era of world politics will look like. That means teaching real debates between complex theories, taking other countries’ cultures and interests seriously, and, most of all, being open about how the only way to make a better world is to work for it, hard. [Read Now]( --------------------------------------------------------------- UPCOMING EVENTS [FP Virtual Summit: Food+]( Wednesday and Thursday, Dec. 2-3 | 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. EST FP’s flagship summit on the future of food returns in a virtual format. With the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization estimating that more than 820 million people worldwide are suffering from chronic hunger, what actions at the country and global level can support access to healthy nutrition and promote a more sustainable global food supply? Tune in to Foreign Policy’s Food+ Summit, a high-level digital convening of world leaders, industry experts, and other stakeholders with front-line insights on the opportunities and solutions for better agricultural resilience, food security, and food policy. Building on the key conversations initiated at [last fall’s inaugural event]( Food+ features a series of high-level speakers including U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who will discuss new initiatives aimed at preventing future pandemics through multisector approaches to reduce the risk of spillover of diseases from animal populations to humans. Also joining is celebrated Italian restaurateur Massimo Bottura, who will highlight innovative projects at the intersection of food and culture as drivers for a sustainable economy. [Secure Your Spot]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [FP Virtual Dialogue: Fighting a Shadow Pandemic]( Friday, Dec. 4 | 11 a.m. EST This virtual dialogue will focus on the urgent need to combat rising violence against women across the African continent during the pandemic. The disproportionate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on women around the world have proliferated as a “shadow pandemic” during this crisis, bringing an alarming increase in domestic abuse, cyberbullying, rape, and sexual harassment. South Africa has been at the forefront of this problem. The nation has been grappling with deep-rooted issues of oppression, abuse, and violence against women, stemming from its apartheid era and patriarchal culture and now exacerbated by the pandemic. Featuring Miss Universe 2019 Zozibini Tunzi, this FP Virtual Dialogue, hosted in partnership with Brand South Africa, will bring together women trailblazers who have advocated for more gender-equal measures across policy, law enforcement, and civil society to help eradicate gender-based violence. [Register Now]( --------------------------------------------------------------- IN CASE YOU MISSED IT [Arctic Competition Power Map]( An in-depth breakdown of how melting sea ice is enabling increased commercial activity and geopolitical competition over resources. From FP Analytics, the Arctic Competition Power Map is a powerful tool for businesses and others seeking to understand how emerging great-power competition across the Arctic will help shape and influence the broader geopolitical landscape. Part I breaks down key emerging trends across the Arctic by: - Mapping access and control of key resource bases; - Breaking down the public- and private-sector actors collaborating and competing for Arctic access and influence; - Projecting the key points of geopolitical tension and the relative power positions of the actors involved; and, - Outlining the legal landscape and governance structures in place to mitigate conflict across the region. [Read More]( Get More with FP Insider: Power Maps are an exclusive benefit for [FP Insiders]( who also get access to all of FP Analytics [Special Reports]( the first-of-its-kind COVID-19 Global Response Index— as well as exclusive Insider Briefing calls that delve into the research and much more. [Join Insider today]( or [contact us](mailto:rachel.mines@foreignpolicy.com ) to explore group access to Insider for you and your team. --------------------------------------------------------------- Partner With Us Interested in learning more about FP Analytics’ cutting-edge research services, hosting your own FP Virtual Dialogue event, or building a podcast with FP Studios? Would you like to enable Foreign Policy access organization-wide to maximize your savings? Contact Andrew Sollinger at [andrew.sollinger@foreignpolicy.com](mailto:andrew.sollinger@foreignpolicy.com?subject=Inquiry%20from%20FP%20This%20Week). --------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------- FOLLOW FP ON This email was sent to {EMAIL} because you are subscribed to FP communications. Want to receive FP newsletters? [Manage]( your FP newsletter preferences. [unsubscribe]( | [privacy policy]( | [contact us]( | [advertise]( Foreign Policy magazine is a division of Graham Holdings Company. All contents © 2020 The Slate Group, LLC. All rights reserved. Foreign Policy, 1750 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Suite 200, Washington, DC 20006. [Link](