Most Popular
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[Weekender] Geeks have never been so chic in Korea
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[News Focus] Mystery deepens after hundreds of cat deaths in S. Korea
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NewJeans members submit petitions over court injunction in Hybe-Ador conflict
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N. Korea says it test-fired tactical ballistic missile with new guidance technology
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S. Korea's exports of instant noodles surpass $100m for 1st time in April: data
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[KH Explains] Why Korea's so tough on short selling
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Actors involved in past controversies return first via streaming service originals
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US military commander in S. Korea during Gwangju uprising dies
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[Herald Interview] Byun Yo-han's 'unlikable' character is result of calculated acting
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‘Kim desperately wanted to denuclearize,’ Moon writes in memoirs
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[Joel Brinkley] Children often targets of Islamic extremists
Malala Yousafzai, the young Pakistani girl who Taliban miscreants shot in the head last week, has once again galvanized worldwide public opinion against Muslim extremism.The Taliban boasted about the shooting, saying this young girl’s education advocacy was a deviant symbol of “Western culture in the area.” God forbid!Now she’s an icon. But if you don’t follow this issue closely, you may be surprised to learn that Muslim extremists injure and kill innocent little girls all the time.For years now
Oct. 21, 2012
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Hunger makes a mockery of world economy
The lobby of Tokyo’s majestic Imperial Hotel was people-watching central last weekend. Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund, whisked by with 20 television cameras in tow. German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble zoomed by moments later with even greater hysteria. Next came Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan, Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa, Indian Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram and other notables on hand for the IMF’s annual meeting. Amid
Oct. 19, 2012
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[David Ignatius] A war chest for Syria’s rebels
WASHINGTON ― Left on its current course, America’s sensibly cautious policy toward Syria is unfortunately going to come to an unhappy end: The jihadist wing of the opposition will just get stronger, and gain more power to shape Syria’s future. But what’s the right alternative? How can the U.S. help the Syrian opposition while avoiding another costly military intervention in the Muslim world? I’ve been puzzling over this dilemma since traveling into Syria two weeks ago with the Free Syrian Army.
Oct. 19, 2012
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Europe must do more to save currency union
The battle to save the euro turns on one question: Can large governments, notably Italy and Spain, get their debts under control? Because they are in a monetary union, they can’t take the easy way out by devaluing their currencies to make their obligations smaller and exports cheaper relative to those of other countries. Instead, they have to make painful budget cuts and slash workers’ wages to restore their competitiveness ― moves that, in the short term, can make their debts less manageable by
Oct. 18, 2012
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[Robert B. Reich] America’s structural problem
The White House is breathing a bit easier. The president’s awful debate performance was bad enough. If it had been followed by a bad jobs report, the president’s chances for reelection might have plummeted.But the report showed September’s unemployment rate dropping to 7.8 percent ― the first time it’s been under 8 percent in 43 months.Look more closely, though, and the employment picture is murkier.According to the separate payroll survey, just 114,000 new jobs were added in September. At least
Oct. 18, 2012
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Signs of a breakdown in school environment
How should a student respond when he or she becomes the object of bullying?Philippine Psychiatric Association spokesperson Dr. Babes Arcenas, in an interview with another paper, said that those who are bullied should stand their ground the first time the act of intimidation or harassment occurs: “The first time it is done, show that you can fight back. You have to show that you are in control because if they see you crying, they will think they have power over you. You should be able to tell the
Oct. 18, 2012
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Critical thinking key to economic growth
The surprising increase of year-on-year exports in September may have eased some worries about Taiwan’s economic condition, but so far the government still does not have a concrete plan for stimulating the economy. In the past, Taiwan’s government devoted sizeable resources to one particular industry ― electronics, making it the engine for economic growth.Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited is one successful example of this strategy. This model, however, may not be suitable for so
Oct. 18, 2012
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Passing the buck on nuclear power
The government’s irresponsible attitude toward nuclear power generation is becoming clear. It seems that the government does not want to pursue concrete steps to reduce and eventually end the nation’s reliance on nuclear power despite its new long-term energy policy under which it is supposed to utilize all the available policy resources to achieve “zero operation” of nuclear power plants in the 2030s. This attitude is exemplified by its readiness to accept the resumption of the suspended constr
Oct. 18, 2012
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[Shashi Tharoor] Indian P.M.’s second wind
NEW DELHI ― In September, India’s mild-mannered prime minister, Manmohan Singh, turned 80. He also turned a page: After months of being pilloried by every pundit with a soapbox for indecision and weakness, and for presiding over “policy paralysis” while corrupt colleagues allegedly made off with the country’s silver, Singh has boldly seized the initiative. A series of reform announcements, and some frank talk to the public, have underscored his new message: “I am in charge.”The initial steps tha
Oct. 18, 2012
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Netanyahu foolish to take sides in U.S. election
Benjamin Netanyahu is so eager to see Mitt Romney elected president that he’s making a fool of himself.For the last couple of weeks, the Israeli prime minister has been the featured player in a Republican-sponsored TV ad playing in Florida. It shows excerpts from Netanyahu’s United Nations speech last month in which he tacitly attacks President Obama for his failure to set a clear red line for Iran’s nuclear program.“The world tells Israel: ‘Wait, there’s still time,’” he says. “And I say, wait
Oct. 17, 2012
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[Lee Jae-min] Calm needed in Costco fiasco
If people can buy a year’s supply of products from Costco from a single visit, the U.S. retail giant must have seen a year’s supply of inspectors in just one day. Last Wednesday and this past Sunday, the Seoul city government sent dozens of inspectors to Costco Wholesale’s warehouses in Seoul to conduct thorough investigations into virtually all activities of the retailer in Seoul.Wednesday’s inspection is said to have detected as many as 41 violations of a plethora of city regulations: a constr
Oct. 17, 2012
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The lessons of the war between China, India
NEW DELHI ― This month marks the 50th anniversary of China’s military attack on India, the only foreign war that communist-ruled China has won. Yet that war failed to resolve the disputes between the world’s two most populous countries, and its legacy continues to weigh down the bilateral relationship. While their economic heft is drawing increasing international attention, their underlying strategic rivalry over issues ranging from land and water to geopolitical influence in other regions usual
Oct. 17, 2012
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Myth of meritocracy underlies U.S. election
Let me tell you about the worst thing I ever did to my son. When he was 4, I took him to a small basement apartment in a Manhattan brownstone. I then paid a man to give my son an intelligence test.The test was an attempt to deliver my son from the chaos of “normal” public school in my adopted hometown of Harlem into a gifted-and-talented program on the tony Upper West Side. My son performed pretty abominably. This did not shake me, as I was not very confident in how well I would have done had I
Oct. 17, 2012
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[Kim Myong-sik] Useless election arguments over maritime border
The line runs westward from the Han River estuary immediately above Ganghwa Island, goes a little down to the south and then creeps to the west to the tip of Yeonpyeong Island. From there the line moves northwest all the way to the cluster of three islands, Socheong, Daecheong and Baengnyeong. Between Yeonpyeong and Socheong, the line precariously runs close to the North Korean coast, leaving only a few kilometers (miles) of space to the land. This is the Northern Limit Line or NLL for short.Peo
Oct. 17, 2012
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Debate highlights critical-thought problem
PARIS ― America has collective attention deficit disorder, and in one way it’s a bigger threat than terrorism, cybersecurity dangers and the never-ending Middle East drama: Those other problems at least have the potential to be solved.We witnessed this phenomenon last week during the first presidential debate. Washington pundits and policy wonks tried to sift through the rhetorical sandstorm for logical solid ground amid such concepts as Mitt Romney’s revenue-neutral tax cuts and Barack Obama’s
Oct. 16, 2012
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[David Ignatius] In Egypt, waiting for results
MENOUFIA, Egypt ― You can see what the Egyptian revolution has achieved, 20 months on, by visiting this rural area of the Nile Delta that was the birthplace of the deposed dictator, Hosni Mubarak: Everything is different outwardly, but beneath the surface, almost nothing has changed yet. The revolution’s impact is most obvious in the fact that the Muslim Brotherhood won the parliamentary elections here, even in this former regime stronghold. And people seem free to say what they think, including
Oct. 16, 2012
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[Lim Hyang-ok] Anipang enthralls women, men, young and old
If you take the subway, you will notice that people are either dozing off ― quite an art form in Korea! ― or looking at their smartphones. Women, men, young and old are looking at their smartphones and nowadays playing smartphone games.And not just any game. The game de rigueur is Anipang. Anipang is a compound word ― “ani” comes from the first syllable of animal and “pang” is the onomatopoeic sound for an explosion. It’s a very simple game. All you have to do is align, either vertically or hori
Oct. 16, 2012
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When politics turns to theater
The first debate between incumbent U.S. President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney was widely judged to have gone in the latter’s favor. He came across as more focused, personable and yes, presidential, than the unusually tepid performance by Obama. No sooner had pundits declared the clash between the two vice-presidential candidates last week a draw, and minds were already focusing on the next big showdown between their respective bosses on Tuesday. Thus has the U.S. presi
Oct. 16, 2012
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Pakistan’s Malala Yousafzai: Everyone’s daughter in the fight for girls’ education
As she fights for her life in hospital, Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani girl shot by the Taliban for demanding that she and other girls go to school, is rightly becoming the icon for 32 million girls worldwide who are out of primary school.Today, the girl from the Swat valley of Pakistan, who was forced to flee her village when the Taliban forced the closure of her school, should be adopted by the world. As she fights the Taliban, who labeled her campaign for girls’ education an “obscenity,” her
Oct. 16, 2012
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[Kim Seong-kon] In this age of trans-nationalism
When I look around, I find many extremes in our society. For example, our progressive and conservative historians confront each other as if they were archenemies. Our writers, artists and teachers, too, are divided by two mutually exclusive ideological groups. And our left-wing and right-wing politicians hopelessly antagonize each other as well. It is either friend or foe. In fact, such extremes can be found in every nook and cranny of our society these days. A few days ago, I went to Seoul Fina
Oct. 16, 2012