The speech began with an opener by USC’s President C.L. Max Nikias, after which the dean of the Marshall School of Business served as moderator for the discussion with the former President. The talk touched on a variety of topics, such as the globalization of society and the role technology plays—both positive and negative—in a world that’s become increasingly interdependent. Clinton lauded the Internet as a tool facilitating people’s easy access to information: now, a simple Google search can give us answers to research questions that would have required hours of research in textbooks and encyclopedias just 30 years ago. But this access, Clinton warned, is a double-edged sword: for example, members of ISIS can recruit new members to its ranks more easily now, using the Internet, than they could before its invention.
Clinton also spoke about how important it is to create and maintain systems, in the US but especially in poor nations, where their absence amplifies the effects of crises: outbreaks of disease are worse, and the damage caused by natural disasters greater, than would occur if better systems were in place within these countries. Dean Ellis then prompted Clinton to say what he thought the US’s role should be in situations where it might be called to intervene, citing “political hotspots” like Ukraine and Syria. Clinton replied that, while the US should promote democracy wherever it can, it must carefully evaluate the unique situation in each nation it’s considering intervening in, and use appropriate discretion before acting.
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