Asidefromperpetuating(使……持续存在)itself,thesolepurposeoftheAmericanAcademyandInstituteofArtsandLettersisto“foster,assistandsustainaninterest”inliterature,music,andart.Thisitdoesbyenthusiasticallyhandingoutmoney.Annualcashawardsaregiventodeservingartistsinvariouscategoriesofcreativity:architecture,musicalcomposition,theater,novels,seriouspoetry,lightverse,painting,sculpture.OneawardsubsidizesapromisingAmericanwriter’svisittoRome.ThereisevenanawardforaverygoodworkoffictionthatfailedcommerciallyoncewonbytheyoungJohnUpdikeforThePoorhouseFairand,morerecently,byAliceWalkerforInLoveandTrouble. Theawardsandprizestotalabout$750,000ayear,butmostofthemrangeinsizefrom$5,000to$12,500,awelcomesumtomanyyoungpractitionerswhoseworkmaynotbringinthatmuchmoneyinayear.Oneoftheadvantagesoftheawardsisthatmanygotothestrugglingartists,ratherthantothosewhoarealreadysuccessful.MembersoftheAcademyandInstitutearenoteligible(有资格的)foranycashprizes.Anotheradvantageisthat,unliketheNationalEndowmentfortheArtsorsimilarinstitutionsthroughouttheworld,thereisnogovernmentmoneyinvolved. Awardsaremadebycommittee.EachofthethreedepartmentsLiterature(120members),Art(83),Music(47)—hasacommitteedealingwithitsownfieldCommitteemembershiprotateseveryyear,sothatnewvoicesandopinionsareconstantlyheard. ThemostfinanciallyrewardingofalltheAcademy-InstituteawardsaretheMildredandHaroldStraussLivings.HaroldStrauss,adevotededitoratAlfredA.Knopf,theNewYorkpublishinghouse,andMildredStrauss,hiswife,werewealthyandchildless.TheylefttheAcademy-Instituteauniquebequest(遗赠):forfiveconsecutiveyears,twodistinguished(andfinanciallyneedy)writerswouldreceiveenoughmoneysotheycoulddevotethemselvesentirelyto“proseliterature”（noplays,nopoetry,andnopayingjobthatmightdistract).In1983,thefirstStraussLivingsof$35,000ayearwenttoshort-storywriterRaymondCarverandnovelist-essayistCynthiaOzick.By1988,thefundhadgrownenoughsothattwowinners,novelistsDianeJohnsonandRobertStone,eachgot$50,000ayearforfiveyears. ForwhomdidtheStrausscouplewishtheirfundcouldbeprovided?

Asidefromperpetuating(使……持续存在)itself,thesolepurposeoftheAmericanAcademyandInstituteofArtsandLettersisto“foster,assistandsustainaninterest”inliterature,music,andart.Thisitdoesbyenthusiasticallyhandingoutmoney.Annualcashawardsaregiventodeservingartistsinvariouscategoriesofcreativity:architecture,musicalcomposition,theater,novels,seriouspoetry,lightverse,painting,sculpture.OneawardsubsidizesapromisingAmericanwriter’svisittoRome.ThereisevenanawardforaverygoodworkoffictionthatfailedcommerciallyoncewonbytheyoungJohnUpdikeforThePoorhouseFairand,morerecently,byAliceWalkerforInLoveandTrouble. Theawardsandprizestotalabout$750,000ayear,butmostofthemrangeinsizefrom$5,000to$12,500,awelcomesumtomanyyoungpractitionerswhoseworkmaynotbringinthatmuchmoneyinayear.Oneoftheadvantagesoftheawardsisthatmanygotothestrugglingartists,ratherthantothosewhoarealreadysuccessful.MembersoftheAcademyandInstitutearenoteligible(有资格的)foranycashprizes.Anotheradvantageisthat,unliketheNationalEndowmentfortheArtsorsimilarinstitutionsthroughouttheworld,thereisnogovernmentmoneyinvolved. Awardsaremadebycommittee.EachofthethreedepartmentsLiterature(120members),Art(83),Music(47)—hasacommitteedealingwithitsownfieldCommitteemembershiprotateseveryyear,sothatnewvoicesandopinionsareconstantlyheard. ThemostfinanciallyrewardingofalltheAcademy-InstituteawardsaretheMildredandHaroldStraussLivings.HaroldStrauss,adevotededitoratAlfredA.Knopf,theNewYorkpublishinghouse,andMildredStrauss,hiswife,werewealthyandchildless.TheylefttheAcademy-Instituteauniquebequest(遗赠):forfiveconsecutiveyears,twodistinguished(andfinanciallyneedy)writerswouldreceiveenoughmoneysotheycoulddevotethemselvesentirelyto“proseliterature”（noplays,nopoetry,andnopayingjobthatmightdistract).In1983,thefirstStraussLivingsof$35,000ayearwenttoshort-storywriterRaymondCarverandnovelist-essayistCynthiaOzick.By1988,thefundhadgrownenoughsothattwowinners,novelistsDianeJohnsonandRobertStone,eachgot$50,000ayearforfiveyears. Whatdoesthepassagemainlydiscuss?

ThelessonsofstatefailureTraditionaldiplomacydealswithrisksofconflictbetweennation-states.Theserisksareofcoursestillpresent,butamorepervasivedangeristhatstateswillsimplycollapse.OfadozenorsoconflictsinAfricainrecentyears,few,ifany,haveinvolvedcross-borderaggression.Instead,bankruptandimpoverishedstateshaveimploded,thevacuumfillednotbyregimeswithnewlyconsolidatedpowerbutbybrutalviolenceengulfingcivilians.Thedisasterthenfansouttoneighboringcountries,andeventuallymuchfartherafield.Aspecial"taskforceonstatefailure"setupbyAmerica’’sCIAhasfoundthatthreevariablesaremostpredictiveofstatestabilityorinstability:theopennessoftheeconomy;democracy;andinfantmortality.Insub-SaharanAfrica,wheremuchofthepopulationlivesontheedgeofsubsistence,povertyandsloweconomicgrowth,oroutrightdecline,increasedthelikelihoodoffuturestatecollapse,therebytrappingthecountriesinaviciouscircleofpovertyandpoliticalinstability.Richcountries,ontheotherhand,tendtomaintainpoliticalstabilitywhich,inturn,promotesfurthereconomicdevelopment.Whencountrieswereclassifiedin1990bytheirstatusintheUnitedNationsHumanDevelopmentIndex(anindexofincome,literacyandhealth),high-developmentcountriesachievedrobustandstableeconomicgrowthduring1990-98,withaveragegrowthratesofaround2.3%ayearandwith35outof36countriesenjoyingrisinglivingstandards.Middle-developmentcountriesachievedaslightlylowergrowthrate,1.9%ayear,but7outof34countriesexperiencedoutrightdeclinesinlivingstandards.Thepoorestcountriesaveragednoeconomicgrowthatall,with15outof39experiencingfallinglivingstandards.Theflip-sidetothepovertytrap,however,isthatthegainsofdevelopmenttendtobesustained,oncecountriesbreakthroughtosufficientlevelsofincome,healthandliteracy.ConservativesinAmericaoftenaskwhyitmattersifanimpoverishedcountrycollapses.Theansweristhat,asidefromhumanitarianconcerns,crisesinsuchfarawayplacesoftensucktheUnitedStatesintocrisisaswell.Since1960,AmericahasbeendraggedintomilitaryconflictsinCuba,Thailand,Laos,Congo,Vietnam,theDominicanRepublic,Cambodia,Cyprus,Lebanon,Zaire,ElSalvador,Libya,Lebanon,Honduras,Nicaragua,Chad,Liberia,Bosnia,Somaliaand,morerecently,KosovoandColombia.Statefailures,orevenmilderstateinstability,havealsounderminedAmericanandglobalintereststhroughgloballytransmittedfinancialcrises,drug-trafficking,money-laundering,terrorism,thespreadofdiseasessuchasAIDSandmassrefugeeflows.Onthepositiveside,sustainedeconomicdevelopmentwouldcreatenewandpotentiallylargegainsfromtrade,aswellasmuch-neededcooperationinscienceandculture.Evenwhenaproblemiscorrectlyidentified,thereisastunningdisconnectbetweenriskandactioninAmerica’’sforeigneconomicpolicy.TheglobalAIDSepidemic,forexample,hasrecentlyandwiselybeenidentifiedasarisktothesecurityoftheUnitedStates.WhatactionhasbeentakenPresidentGeorgeBushhascalleduponAmericanstogivejust$200million,or70centseach,tothenewglobalfundtofightthedisease.Thefailuretomakeevenbasicinvestmentsinforeignpolicyhasbeenpervasive,andtheexamplesarelegion.Elevenyearsago,thelastprimeministerofunifiedYugoslavia,AnteMarkovic,launchedalast-ditchplanforeconomicstabilization.HeappealedtoEuropeandtheUnitedStatesforareductionindebt-servicingandothermodestfinancialsupport,butwasturneddownbythecreditorgovernments.Economicstabilisationwasundermined,andthishelpedSlobodanMilosovictogettheupperhand.Therest,astheysay,ishistory.InthepasttwoyearsAmericaandEuropeancountrieshavemadethesamemistakeinNigeria,animpoverishedandunstablecountryemergingfromyearsofcorruptdespotism.AlthoughNigeria’’soilearnings,netofproductioncostsandincometoforeignoilcompanies,amounttoaroundonly$90perNigerianayear,theUnitedStatesandEuropecontinuetoprevaricateoverurgentlyneededdebt-reductionbecausetheoilearningsareeasytosqueezefordebt-servicepayments.ThenewdemocraticregimeofPresidentOlesegunObasanjoisputatrisk,andLibya’’sleader,MuammarQaddafi,doesnotmissachancetoinflamemattersinNigeria’’sIslamicnorthernstates.Areaafterareaofneglectcanbecatalogued,fromthestrife-tornAndestoregionsaroundtheworldunderminedbyclimatechange.Throughallofit,theUnitedStatesbarelyliftsafinger.ItsomehowthinksthatsendingtheimpoverishedandunstablegovernmentsdownPennsylvaniaAvenuetogetloansfromtheIMFandtheWorldBankwilldothejob,butevensomestaffofthoseorganisationsnowpubliclyacknowledgethattheyhavefailed:makingloanswhengrantsareneeded,imposingexcessiveausteritybycollectingratherthancancelingdebts,andfailingtofindpartner-institutionswiththescientificexpertisetotackleunderlyingproblemsofdisease,lowfoodproduction,climaticstressandenvironmentaldegradation.