The Economist - USA (2021-02-20)

The EconomistFebruary 20th 2021 3

1 Contents continues overleaf

Contents

The world this week

6 A summary of political

and business news

Leaders

9 Decarbonising America

A better future

10 Italy

Another chance

10 Capital-raising

Spactacular

11 India’s jobs market

Many hands, light work

12 Fighting jihadists

Macron’s African mission

Letters

14 On nuclear weapons, J.B.

Priestley, China, covid-19,

protests, Moore’s law,

sheds

Briefing

16 Decarbonising America

The switch

United States

21 The freeze in Texas

22 Impeachment 2.

23 Rush Limbaugh

23 Cuomo’s unravelling

24 Recycling Baltimore

25 What neo-Nazis read

26 LexingtonJohn Kerry,

eco-warrior

The Americas

27 AMLO disappoints

28 A tempest about tampons

29 BelloThe failures of

Carlos Menem

Asia

30 India’s labour market

31 A new government for

New Caledonia

32 The Philippines confines

its children

32 Myanmar

33 Banyan Malaysia’s sultans

China

34 The vaccine roll-out

35 Craving good subtitles

36 ChaguanPondering war

over Taiwan

Middle East & Africa

37 France’s war in the Sahel

38 The ICC’s new prosecutor

39 Zanzibar’s tree trade

39 The struggles of Angola

40 An Iranian agitator stirs

41 The princess and the probe

Chaguan America is

losing its ability to deter

a Chinese attack on

Taiwan. Allies are in

denial, page 36

On the cover

This is America’s moment for
an ambitious attempt to deal
with climate change: leader,
page 9and briefing, page 16.
The freeze in Texas exposes
America’s failing infrastructure,
page 21. John Kerry is a good
pick for what may prove to be
a chastening task: Lexington,
page 26. Governments and
business must work together,
says Bill Gates, page 68.
Cutting carbon in Britain,
page 46

• Macron’s African mission
  France wants to avoid a “forever
  war” in the Sahel. That will take
  patience, and allies: leader,
  page 12. After years of fighting, is
  it time to start talking? Page 37


• Does the craze make sense?
  SPACs are a mania—and a useful
  way to take firms public,page 10.
  Blank-cheque firms are gobbling
  up capital and companies,
  page 59and page 60


• The problem with puberty
  blockersPrescriptions for these
  drugs are on the rise. There is
  little solid evidence about their
  effects,page 65

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