NEWS + ANALYSIS
ERIC D. DIXON

NEWS + ANALYSIS

SLOVAKIA’S CATALYST FOR CHANGE

March 17, 2017 | by Eric D. Dixon

Modern Slovakia is like night and day compared to its years under communist rule, before the 1989 Velvet Revolution hastened the end of communist control, ultimately dissolving the Soviet Union in 1991. The nation has forged its own path since its Velvet Divorce separated Slovakia from the Czech Republic only two years after that. Today, more and more Slovakia is embracing market exchange and international trade, and has achieved a stable currency, all of which contribute to the country’s economic growth. INESS is committed to serving as a catalyst for reform, advancing its vision of a freer, more prosperous Slovak Republic at every opportunity.

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GROWING IDEAS LIKE POTATOES ON MARS

March 1, 2016 | by Eric D. Dixon

One of the most exciting movies of 2015 was The Martian, nominated for best picture at this year’s 88th Academy Awards. Based on the popular Andy Weir novel, The Martian is about an astronaut stranded on the Red Planet after a windstorm drives his crewmates away. The XKCD webcomic devoted an installment to The Martian in June, summing up the plot as "the scene in Apollo 13 where the guy says 'We have to figure out how to connect this thing to this thing using this table full of parts or the astronauts will all die" — but lasting for the entire movie instead of just a single scene. It’s basically an extended story about everybody “sciencing” all the problems.

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VISUALLY STUNNING ‘BOY & THE WORLD’ MISSES WIDER ECONOMIC TRUTHS

February 25, 2016 | by Eric D. Dixon

Many people think of animated movies as primarily children’s entertainment, but as long as the medium has existed there have been filmmakers who use the techniques of animation to address adult audiences with complex themes and topics. A recent movie from Brazil, Boy & the World, has swept numerous awards at film festivals during the past year and is a serious contender for an Oscar as one of the nominees for best animated feature at the forthcoming 88th Academy Awards on Feb. 28. The film offers stunning and imaginative visual styles that juxtapose a child’s view of the world’s beauty alongside loss and danger. It’s a vivid and heartfelt story, but its limited perspective leaves important lessons untold.

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BERLIN WALL’S COLLAPSE SHOWS HOW BARRIERS TO FREEDOM CAN BE DISMANTLED

November 3, 2015 | by Eric D. Dixon

For nearly three decades, the Berlin Wall stood as one of the world’s most forbidding symbols of oppression. After years of losing a steady stream of defectors to the West, in 1961 the communist-controlled government of East Germany constructed a heavily guarded barrier that divided an entire city — all in order to prevent their own citizens from escaping to freedom.

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‘INDIA AWAKES’ EXPLAINS A COUNTRY’S RISE FROM POVERTY TO PROSPERITY

September 1, 2015 | by Eric D. Dixon

What makes the difference between poverty and prosperity? For individuals and families, there could be an endless number of variables, such as health, intelligence, education, initiative, perseverance, community, or opportunity. At least some circumstances vary widely in every case. When almost an entire society begins to rise from poverty and approach prosperity, though, it’s important to understand how and why it happens. India Awakes, a new documentary airing on public television stations throughout the United States, hosted by Swedish author and economist Johan Norberg, tells the story of how a country mired in poverty for hundreds of years has seen a dramatic change of course in the space of only a couple of decades.

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