Luke Drago

For over two decades, the United States has had a complex relationship with Venezuela and has been involved in Venezuelan politics in a variety of ways. Venezuela is an oil-based economy, making it strategically significant to the U.S. as well as Russia and China. Currently, Venezuela is ruled by an authoritarian regime, and the U.S. - recognized opposition leader is unable to exercise any power. With elections approaching, the results will determine whether or not the U.S. continues its hardline approach to sanctioning Venezuela and President Maduro, or if U.S. policy will take a less harsh approach.

In 2019, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for ending the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea. Now, in 2021, Ahmed and the Ethiopian government have come under scrutiny for the conflict in Tigray between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). After the government declared Tigray’s 2020 parliamentary elections invalid, fighting broke out. Since then, accusations of acts of genocide have come to light against the Ethiopian government under Ahmed.

The most restrictive abortion law in the country, Texas Senate Bill 8, went into effect on September 1, 2021. Unlike other legislation, the state does not regulate Senate Bill 8, leaving it to the citizens to enforce it.

Now, how necessary are price controls? How much control is too much? Is it more important to protect the consumer over the provider and risk sincere quality?‍