It makes one wonder why married couples must declare their unquestionable adoration for each other on Facebook. Do they not see each other every single day of their lives?

In recent years, the left-right political spectrum has been more at the centre of national (in the case of many countries) and global politics than it had been for years.

Ritualistically every year, a week is set aside in the month of January for observing as the Police Week. I use the word “ritualistically” deliberately, since except for the parade and general “durbar” with the PM, very little palpable seems to happen during the seven days

As we move into the new year it is perhaps appropriate to reflect on the significant actions and developments that occurred in 2017 in the arena of climate change, both globally and nationally, and do some crystal-ball-gazing into the future.

January 8 marks the beginning of the Police Week 2018. Like previous years, there would be solemn exhortations to enforce the law impartially and protect human rights in public interest.

Till that moment, I was under the impression that North Korea's so-called “old lunatic, mean trickster and human reject” was alone in his diatribe against anyone who did not see eye to eye with him. We were so wrong

We can reduce this kind of political setback on the economy only by channelling the political exuberance in a positive way. Whatever control the election commission brings on the size of the spending by candidates, the political nominees will spend the most anyway.

AFTER meeting the full cast of My Little Pony movie at Comic Con 2017 in San Diego, California along with getting their autographs, it is only natural that my six-year-old daughter goes to see the movie.

Hundreds of Iranians came onto the streets on December 28, 2017,in an impromptu demonstration in the city of Mashhad protesting high prices of daily necessities and rampant corruption.

At the end of 2016, I wrote an article for The Daily Star titled “The biggest underreported stories of 2016”.

There could be no two opinions on the significance of responsible law enforcement in a democratic polity.

For Bangladesh 2017 has been a mixed year of achievements and challenges. Though some macro indicators reflect the positive trends, the overall strength of the economy is weakening due to a number of developments toward the second half of the year.

Forget the 2,000 years, focus on the rightmost two digits. The world has turned 18, woo hoo! Therefore, not a surprise that 17 has been anything but boring.

It is quite natural to be reflective during the final stretch of a year, tallying its low and high points.

Bangladeshis relish drama and nothing is more drama-filled than election time. The atmosphere will be one of excitement and uncertainty this year.

Each year begins with a ray of sunshine, as did 2017, oblivious to the chaos that was inevitably unleashed onto the world when some of the world's leaders took centre stage to change the world as we know it.

The Machiavellian thesis that power is about force, intimidation and violence no longer passes muster. Instead, through social practices that promote the interests of others such as empathy, equality, collaboration, open mindedness and generosity, we acquire power.

It is now clear that Donald Trump's decision on Jerusalem is part of his “America first” slogan.

Given all of this, is it still unclear to see why the banking sector is in such disarray?

History repeats itself, though not fully, but history is the best educator. As we approach 2018, we can take lessons from the economic successes and failures of 2017.