They also use requisitioned land as collateral for bank loans, adding to the potential woes of a banking system in which risk is poorly understood.

ECONOMIST: But only for a select few

The report identified inherent problems and missteps in the compensation system as the U.S. returns a growing number of its upgraded facilities on foreign land to the host countries.

NPR: Report: US Footing Greater Bill For Overseas Bases

As a former head of the constitutional court and as the main architect of the new democratic system in Hungary after 1990, this bird knew the lie of the land like no other.

BBC: Are Hungary's reforms a step too far?

Given the parlous state of urban China's social-security system, peasants would continue to regard land as a vital safety net, to be relinquished only in extreme circumstances.

ECONOMIST: But only for a select few