Brian HicksUpdated August 27, 2007
The current economic debate really boils down to one essential question: "Will there be a recession?" To me, the question has about as much vitality as debating whether Roger Clemens will be...
Brian HicksUpdated October 26, 2005
Today, the Chinese petroleum industry achieved a hefty victory in its drive to procure enough oil to keep China burgeoning for decades to come. Chinese company CNPC has taken over Canadian-based...
Brian HicksUpdated October 31, 2005
Transportation is now more than just a means for one individual. The growing market in developing countries will be huge in the years to come.
Brian HicksUpdated December 6, 2005
It's hard to learn Chinese script. Reading and writing the language of Confucius, Sun Yat-Sen, and close to 2 billion Chinese worldwide is quite difficult for westerners raised with alphabetic...
Brian HicksUpdated December 16, 2005
Some of you readers may have been wondering something since you started reading The Waking Dragon - why doesn't Sam talk about China as "the world's workbench" or recommend China plays that...
Brian HicksUpdated January 3, 2006
Anyone who has visited China knows the scene: row upon row of American and other foreign films, their artwork laser-printed nicely on cardstock with a flimsy plastic sleeve inside holding a...
Brian HicksUpdated January 17, 2006
The earth did not shake, but the deer and other animals raised their heads simultaneously, sensing something amiss. Later, the ground rocked with all the tectonic fury that had been stored up, and...
Brian HicksUpdated February 3, 2006
The days of Donna Reed are long since finished. We all know that by now. What is more surprising is television's modern predilection towards not the studio but the viewer. The history of television...
Brian HicksUpdated May 26, 2006
I abhor lag. Having surmounted jetlag, I now have to deal with latitude lag up here at 57°N in Riga. Only five hours of true nighttime means little sleep for your correspondent, but plenty of...
Brian HicksUpdated June 6, 2006
Winston Churchill would not recognize this side of the Iron Curtain. The buildings of Tallinn are tall and proliferating, and the cab drivers are as savvy as they are sneaky. An abundance of...
Brian HicksUpdated June 20, 2006
Its been a good couple of weeks in the World Cup so far. I have been rooting for the underdogs, as you might imagine from an emerging market bull like me. Unfortunately, the traditional powers...
Brian HicksUpdated May 24, 2007
This Tuesday, western news outlets reported the beginning of gasoline rationing in Iran with terse certainty. But the view from Iran is much more complicated, and shows the disarray of oil refining...