Iran

The article I found about Iran was an interesting one. Apparently the current president of Iran thinks that Iran still has a long way to go in regards to women's rights. He says that women should have the same opportunities, legal protection, and social rights that men do. In addition, he said that there's nothing in Islam that states that men have to be stronger and women weaker. However, the Supreme Leader of Iran disagrees with him, saying that women should have justice but not necessarily equality.

It should be noted that from what I understand, Islam itself isn't any more sexist than Christianity. Still, it's an issue of interpretation, and many Islamic countries follow interpretations that deny certain rights to women. It's an issue that comes up a lot, and so I figured that this article was relevant in that regard.

Brazil

This article is about how the armed forces have been sent into one of Rio's favelas for peacekeeping reasons. I remember the textbook talking about places like this, and how they tend to have lots of problems with crime. The text seemed fairly cynical, talking about how authorities don't care much about the people living there, and how attempts to deal with crime tend to be violent, messy, and ultimately unsuccessful.

The article mentions that some critics are saying that the only reason the government wants this area cleaned up is because of the tourism that the World Cup will bring. However, responses by residents are mixed. Some people are upset, but others are just glad they're not hearing gunshots every night.

Mexico

This article I found has to do with a group of vigilantes that have taken it upon themselves to fight back against a specific drug cartel. They were initially well-received, since that particular cartel was causing a lot of trouble in the area, but apparently the vigilantes were starting to cause problems of their own. In addition, the Mexican government believes that they have a better handle on the situation than they used to, and that the vigilantes are no longer needed.

This just goes to show what a complicated issue Mexico's drug cartels are. They cause a lot of problems, but the way people react to those problems can be an issue in of itself.

This is a translation of an article from a Japanese travel website, containing ten tips for travelers visiting America. Some of the observations are critical (apparently the author doesn't like American food), but others are more positive (apparently drivers here are much better than they are there). Overall, it's an interesting glimpse at how certain parts of our culture look from an outside perspective.

I'm posting this at the last minute, so the article I found doesn't really have to do with government. Still, I think it could be relevant. After all,

I had a bit of trouble finding a relevant article, but the one I chose can be found here.

This article has to do with several high-profile Germans being charged with tax evasion, including the mayor of Berlin and the treasurer of the country's conservative party. Apparently, a few years ago, the authorities got ahold of some CDs with a bunch of data regarding financial records, and there's been a lot more attention given to things like tax evasion since then. The article mentions that a lot of ordinary citizens decided to be honest about their finances in order to avoid being caught.

Apparently, some of this has to do with the perception of such crimes changing. It's becoming less socially acceptable.

I can't really figure out what the people who were charged had to do, but it looks like they just had to pay the money they owed. Given how wealthy these people are, that doesn't seem like much more than a slap on the wrist.

I didn't really know much about politics in the UK or how they work, so I found this chapter to be very informative. One bit I found interesting was how the system has changed and streamlined itself over time. It's gradually become more democratic over the centuries. Something that's mentioned in the chapter that should be noted is that Britain was never an absolute monarchy to begin with. There were several in the rest of Europe, but British lords and nobles managed to keep a lot more power than their equivalents in other countries. Granted, if I remember correctly, it took quite a bit longer for ordinary people to start having influence...but it did happen eventually.

I also noticed the part about the separation between the monarchy and the functional government. The textbook mentioned that this can be a good thing, because it means that the symbolic part of the country's leadership isn't affected by people's political opinions. Even if they have issues with the prime minister or the party in power, people will have a separate opinion of the Queen - one that tends towards the positive. In contrast, if the American President does something dumb, people lose faith in both him and the rest of the government.

The article I found relates to the British school system, and how many business owners believe that students are not adequately prepared for the real world when they leave school.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2546053/Firms-slam-illiterate-school-leavers-putting-Britains-economic-recovery-risk.html

This reminded me of the textbook's criticisms of the school system - that it's fragmented, unequal, and not as effective as it could be. Judging from this article, I think they might be right about that.