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[Song Mi-ryung] Future of rural areas starts with place-making
Since Jan. 24, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs has put in place a system of a “temporary lodging facility for farming-based rural sojourn” to respond to the population decline in South Korea's rural areas. The facilities are temporary lodging facilities with a gross floor area of 33 square meters or less — not including ancillary facilities such as parking spaces and septic tanks, etc. — built on rural farmland for city dwellers to spend time at for weekend farming or farming
April 23, 2025 -
[Grace Kao] Americans consider leaving the US
About a month ago, I learned that three colleagues were leaving Yale for the University of Toronto. Philosophy professor Jason Stanley, history professors Timothy Snyder and Marci Shore are not only senior scholars at Yale, all three study fascism. Stanley appeared in many media outlets — The Guardian, PBS, The Atlantic, etc. — explicitly noting that America’s slide into authoritarianism and fascism is a major impetus for his departure. Are their departures a sign of an impending mass exodus of
April 22, 2025 -
[Editorial] Brace for pressure
South Korea will hold "two plus two" trade consultations with the US in Washington on Thursday. Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok and Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun will lead the Seoul negotiation team, while US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer will be in charge of the US side. The possibility of US President Donald Trump choosing to get directly involved in the talks cannot be excluded. Last week, the US first held tariff talks with Japan at the White House,
April 22, 2025 -
[Editorial] Politics of justice
When South Korea's former president, Yoon Suk Yeol, was ousted on April 4 by the Constitutional Court, millions watched the live broadcast of the court’s ruling — read by acting Chief Justice Moon Hyung-bae. The verdict was not only logically rigorous but also deeply resonant: Yoon had violated his presidential duties by declaring martial law on Dec. 3, a move the court deemed an unconstitutional overreach that posed a serious threat to democracy. With that, Yoon was permanently removed from off
April 21, 2025 -
[Lee Kyong-hee] Next president and seat of power
The most important elements in real estate are said to be location, location and location. Where someone works and lives projects status. Moreover, the presidential mansion stands for the head of state’s power and authority as well as the country’s history and tradition. By June 4, a day after the early presidential election, we should know who will replace ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol. The election will turn the page on a sordid tenure. The early favorites of the snap election already are pos
April 21, 2025 -
[Patricia Lopez] Trump open to deporting US citizens
The White House made it clear during a visit from Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador, that it plans to let Kilmar Abrego Garcia rot in the brutal prison to which — as the administration has admitted in court — he was deported by mistake. The spectacle in the Oval Office on Monday was chilling. President Donald Trump warmly greeted Bukele and called him a “great friend.” Bukele, who brands himself as the “coolest dictator” in the world, won smiles from Trump as the two men agreed that the
April 21, 2025 -
Sleepless in April
For a week every April, like clockwork, my sleeping habits are thrown into complete disarray. It’s not jet lag, a deadline or a marathon drama binge. No, it’s the Masters golf tournament. Each year, I find myself staying up into the early hours, eyes glued to the television, watching the iconic fairways of Augusta National unfold in cinematic glory. While the days are a blur of yawns and caffeine, as soon as the nighttime broadcast kicks in, something clicks. Suddenly, I’m wide awake, fully aler
April 18, 2025 -
[Robert J. Fouser] Lee Jae-myung in the lead
After a long wait, the South Korean Constitutional Court removed Yoon Suk Yeol from the presidency in a unanimous decision on April 4. The decision triggered a snap election set for June 3. In the two weeks since, potential candidates have made their intentions clear, and the outlines of the race have formed. As things stand now, Rep. Lee Jae-myung, the former leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is expected to receive the party’s nomination. After Yoon’s removal, the conservative People Pow
April 18, 2025 -
[Editorial] Holding the line
As widely anticipated, the Bank of Korea held its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2.75 percent Thursday, taking a cautious pause amid economic volatility and an atmosphere of uncertainty sparked by the Trump administration’s erratic tariff maneuvers. In its official statement, the central bank said it was maintaining the current rate to allow space for assessing shifting domestic and global conditions. Central to its calculus were Washington’s capricious trade actions, Seoul’s planned fisca
April 18, 2025 -
[Kim Seong-kon] What to learn from 'Escape From Saigon, 1975'
Recently, I read an important book titled “Escape From Saigon, 1975.” It's a memoir written by retired Korean Navy commander Lee Moon-hak and Chung Ho-young, a former journalist at Kookbang Ilbo, or Defense Daily. Reading this mesmerizing book was like watching a riveting war movie about an adventurous military rescue operation. “Escape From Saigon, 1975” is about the Korean Navy’s evacuation of Korean civilians residing in Vietnam just before Saigon fell to North Vietnamese forces. In the missi
April 17, 2025 -
[Wang Son-taek] Making America graceless again
I like America. I received my master’s degree in the US and worked three years as a Washington correspondent for YTN, a cable TV news channel in Korea. During that time, I can say that I saw the country up close — its people, institutions and ideas. But more than just familiarity, I was impressed by what America stood for: liberal democracy, diversity, freedom and economic opportunity. For decades, the United States was not just a superpower but a world leader. Its soft power was rooted in princ
April 17, 2025