Boundlessly Idealistic, Universal Declaration Of Human Rights Is Still Resisted; NPR, December 10, 2018

Tom Gjelten, NPR; Boundlessly Idealistic, Universal Declaration Of Human Rights Is Still Resisted

"Given the rivalries and violence that divide the global community today, it is hard to imagine that on December 10, 1948, the nations of the world approved, almost unanimously, a detailed list of fundamental rights that every human on the planet should enjoy.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the most sweeping such statement ever endorsed on a worldwide basis, opened by asserting, "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights." It proceeded with 30 articles summarizing the things to which everyone would be entitled in a world of genuine peace and justice.

In the immediate aftermath of two horrifying world wars, not a single member state of the newly created United Nations dared oppose the Declaration, though several abstained on the final vote. That so many of the rights remain unachieved on its 70th anniversary testifies to the boundless idealism of the document's drafters."

Turkey’s Crackdown on Critics of Erdogan Snares Dutch Journalist; New York Times, 4/24/16

Tim Arango, New York Times; Turkey’s Crackdown on Critics of Erdogan Snares Dutch Journalist:

"[Ebru Umar, a Dutch journalist] is the latest on a growing list of journalists, academics, cartoonists and others — nearly 2,000 cases have been filed in Turkish courts — who have faced the Turkish justice system for insulting Mr. Erdogan. The crime carries a sentence of four years in prison. Ms. Umar was detained just as European leaders, including Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, and Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, were wrapping up a visit to Turkey to highlight progress in its pact with the European Union over the migrant crisis.

Turkey’s clampdown on the news media has increasingly become intertwined with Europe’s attempts to cooperate with Turkey on the migrant issue. European leaders, especially Ms. Merkel, are facing criticism that they are betraying European values in a bid to win over Mr. Erdogan."

Data Protection Laws, an Ocean Apart; New York Times, 2/2/13

Natasha Singer, New York Times; Data Protection Laws, an Ocean Apart: "OVER the years, the United States and Europe have taken different approaches toward protecting people’s personal information. Now the two sides are struggling to bridge that divide. On this side of the Atlantic, Congress has enacted a patchwork quilt of privacy laws that separately limit the use of Americans’ medical records, credit reports, video rental records and so on. On the other side, the European Union has instituted more of a blanket regulatory system; it has a common directive that gives its citizens certain fundamental rights — like the right to obtain copies of records held about them by companies and institutions — that Americans now lack."