The past two weeks of turmoil and drama in Sino-American affairs may well be the new normal, not an exception to an otherwise placid bilateral relationship. While Friday brought news of a possible deal allowing dissident Chen Guangcheng to leave China to study in America, that deal is no more certain than the earlier, failed deal, announced just days before

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum caused a stir last month when he labeled college campuses "indoctrination mills" that enforce a strict adherence to "politically correct left doctrine." For conservatives, Mr. Santorum might as well have called the sky blue. But from the way liberal pundits pounced on his remarks, you'd think he had said something profoundly indecent.

The Valentine's Day announcement of new scientific and technological achievements in Iran's nuclear program demonstrates the continued broadening and deepening of its capacities in this sensitive, dangerous field.

Because of massive, sustained budget deficits by several eurozone countries, some could default on their sovereign debt obligations, or the euro itself might disintegrate, profoundly affecting the EU’s political and economic future. Very little media attention, however, is focused on a very different, but even more important, EU problem, namely its “democratic deficit.”

The Justice Department’s recent announcement that an Iranian agent attempted to recruit a Mexican drug gang to assassinate the Saudi ambassador in the United States presents an opportunity for the Obama administration finally to draw the line on Iran’s growing presence in the Western Hemisphere.

The recent kidnapping of a handicapped French woman from a Kenyan resort, initially attributed to Somali pirates, was the second such kidnapping in a month. Kenyan authorities now blame al-Shabab, the Somali terrorist group affiliated with al Qaeda. Why should we treat the growing menace of Somali piracy differently from terrorism?

Venezuelans may have to wait to sift through the rubble of the Chavez regime before they get a clear explanation for Mr. Chavez's recent reckless decisions. In the meantime, regardless of whether Mr. Chavez knows he is dying sooner or hopes he is dying later, it is apparent that he doesn't give a damn about the harm he is doing to the Venezuelan people or the mess he will leave behind.

Two recent, seemingly unrelated events weigh heavily on the question of whether America will remain able to protect its national security or languish in failed policies and a federal debt crisis that has led to our credit rating being downgraded.