Christopher Woolf, PRI

Christopher Woolf

PRI

Boston, MA, United States

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Recent:
  • Unknown
Past:
  • PRI

Past articles by Christopher:

PRI

Have '17,000 criminals' really been apprehended at the US-Mexico border?

President Donald Trump said Thursday that border agents had “apprehended, last year, 17,000 criminals trying to get across the border.” But that’s only partially true. → Read More

PRI

This POW kept a secret diary that showed daily life in a concentration camp

Tony Acevedo’s life was extraordinary. He was a Mexican American child of undocumented parents. He joined the US army in WWII but was captured, and singled out as an “undesirable” by his Nazi captors, and was then sent to a concentration camp. → Read More

PRI

Economists warn Trump's policies will start a 1930s-era trade war

President Donald Trump is driving the global conversation on trade toward protectionism: the imposition of tariffs on imported goods. That may seem like a good idea on the surface, but most economists beg to differ. They point out that protectionism turned the economic chaos of the 1930s into a disaster. → Read More

PRI

The story behind the skull found in a London pub

Three years ago, historian Kim Wagner was given a skull that had been found in a pub in London. It allegedly belonged to an Indian rebel who’d been executed by the British during the great uprising of 1857. → Read More

PRI

Treason is no joke

In a speech Monday, President Donald Trump mused out loud whether or not Democrats who did not applaud him during his State of the Union Address might have been committing treason. Aides dismissed it as a joke, but treason is no laughing matter. → Read More

PRI

Remembering the ghosts of the 'Tet Offensive'

It's 50 years since the beginning of the Tet Offensive, one of the most pivotal battles of the Vietnam War. Militarily, the communist offensive was smashed. But many Americans decided the war could not be won. We hear from one Vietnamese civilian who's family was torn apart by the battle. → Read More

PRI

Is the US suffering from incoherent policies in the Middle East?

Vice President Mike Pence is on a tour of the Middle East. The US role in the region has changed under President Trump. Critics say US policies are disruptive, contradictory and incoherent. → Read More

PRI

English and French rivalry highlighted by loan of historic Bayeux Tapestry

The president of France wants the Bayeux Tapestry to be shown in England for perhaps the first time in 950 years. The ancient work of art depicts the conquest of England by Frenchmen in 1066. For some in England, that conquest still rankles. → Read More

PRI

Whatever happened to the giant US embassy in Baghdad?

Questions over the cost of the new US embassy in London got us to thinking: what ever happened to the giant US embassy in Baghdad? The complex of buildings in the heart of the Iraqi capital once employed 16,000 people. → Read More

PRI

Norwegian statesman Jan Egeland critiques Trump’s reported vulgar remarks

Reports of vulgar, offensive outbursts by the president of the United States have real-world consequences. One is the impact on America's reputation overseas and its ability to lead and influence world events — its "soft power." That's the argument from Norwegian statesman Jan Egeland. → Read More

PRI

An activist lobbying for DACA says this week has been a 'roller coaster of emotions'

Politicians in the nation's capital are debating immigration policy changes. Activists are lobbying for an urgent deal to protect those affected by the Trump administration dismantling the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA. → Read More

PRI

Canadian pub fights complaint after it gives pay-gap discount to women

A pub in London, Ontario, is fighting a complaint of gender discrimination, after it gave a food discount to female customers. The pub’s promotion was highlighting the gender gap in pay. → Read More

PRI

The risks of war with North Korea in 2018

North Korea has nuclear weapons, and missile systems to deliver them to the continental United States. North Korea says these are defensive. But the Trump administration sees them as a threat, and is reviewing "all options." What are the risks of war in northeast Asia in 2018? → Read More

PRI

What do we really know about Russia and the 2016 election?

The end of the year seems like a good time to review what we really know about Russian interference in the 2016 election. → Read More

PRI

Children with cancer among patients evacuated from besieged Syrian district

Syria has allowed a group of about 30 people to be evacuated from the besieged district of Ghouta, near the Syrian capital of Damascus. The group included children with curable forms of cancer and spurred talk of possible future evacuations. → Read More

PRI

Russia thanks CIA for tip that thwarted terror attack

Russian President Vladimir Putin called President Donald Trump on Sunday to thank the CIA for a tip, which he says thwarted a terrorist attack in the Russian city of St. Petersburg. How unusual is this kind of intelligence-sharing between rivals? → Read More

PRI

Understanding Sufi Islam in the wake of the Egypt mosque massacre

The target of the massacre in Egypt on Friday was a Sufi mosque. But just what is a Sufi? And why are they being targeted by apparent ISIS sympathizers? → Read More

PRI

The origins of the Second Amendment

The Founding Fathers clearly thought the Second Amendment protected a critical freedom. But why? → Read More

PRI

How Robert Mugabe became Zimbabwe’s leader and clung on till now

Robert Mugabe is under house arrest, after 37 years as leader of Zimbabwe. We take a quick look back at how he got to power and how he stayed there, until now. → Read More

PRI

What other countries (and history) can teach Americans about taxation

Republican lawmakers offered some details Thursday of their proposal to rewrite the US tax code. Author T.R. Reid says America has much to learn from the ways other nations use their tax systems to address inequality. → Read More