Most Popular
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Yoon apologizes for first lady Dior bag scandal, calls push for special probe ‘political’
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South Korea open to Indonesian proposal to cut KF-21 payments
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Korea forecast to overtake Taiwan in chip production by 2032: report
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Girl hanging on bridge, police trying to rescue her both fall off; rescued immediately
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[K-pop’s dilemma] Can K-pop break free from ‘fandom’ model?
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YouTuber fatally stabbed on livestream by another YouTuber in Busan
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Yoon rebuffs opposition's call for special probe into wife
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Arrest warrant issued for medical student for allegedly killing girlfriend after breakup
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S. Korea to let doctors with foreign licenses practice
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Stray Kids hit with racism in Met Gala photo line
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Women’s bodies ― from Eden to a garden
From age 16 to age 20, a woman’s body is a temple. From 21 to 45, it’s an amusement park. From 45 on, it’s a terrarium.I know this because every morning I now take a capsule with 4.6 billion strains of supposedly beneficial flora to help establish the equilibrium in my digestive tract. There are only 7 billion people on the planet. Every morning I’m swallowing half my own universe.And I’m not the only one. Every person I meet who is even in the least bit neurotic about his or her ― it’s usually
Jan. 31, 2012
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[Daniel Fiedler] Korea needs grand jury system
This month another new slate of judges will be appointed to serve in the South Korean courts. One of the most striking aspects of this process is the large number of youthful faces among the new appointees. Many of the new judges will be less than 30 years old as they are appointed to one of the most powerful positions in Korean society. In this position they have the power to free or imprison their fellow citizens, to separate parents and children or to make or break the businesses and liveliho
Jan. 31, 2012
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U.S. leaders, not Colbert, made the mockery
Mark Twain once remarked, “Humor is the great thing, the saving thing. The minute it crops up, all our irritations and resentments slip away, and a sunny spirit takes their place.”No dose of humor could leave us feeling sunny about a slimy Republican campaign that’s awash in unprecedented cash, thanks to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that has rendered the process farcical. But Twain rightfully suggests it’s mentally healthy to laugh at life’s idiocies, that humor can tamp down irritations if we vi
Jan. 31, 2012
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‘Fool in the Shower’ to give Fed a good scalding
Long and variable lags. That’s all I could think of when I read the Federal Reserve statement and learned that economic conditions “are likely to warrant exceptionally low levels for the federal funds rate at least through late 2014.” My first instinct was to mark the date on my household calendar, but I couldn’t find one that goes out that far! What the Fed is saying, in essence, is that as the economy improves, it’s appropriate to provide as much stimulus, or support, as it did in late 2008, w
Jan. 31, 2012
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[Kim Seong-kon] Plays on words demonstrate the value of literature
Often witty headlines in the media or twisted book titles amuse us with their double meanings and parodies. For example, we can laugh about the funny book title, “Even God is Single, So Stop Giving Me a Hard Time.” Apparently, the witty title implores your family members and relatives not to urge you to marry or ask questions about why you remain single.Another humorous book title, “Since You Are Leaving Anyway, Take out the Trash,” reflects a woman’s spiteful emotions when her boyfriend or husb
Jan. 31, 2012
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The Arab Spring’s one-year balance sheet
CAIRO ― Last year’s events in Egypt and Tunisia drew the curtain on a tottering old order and delivered much of the Arab world into a long-awaited new era. But what that new era will look like remains very much an open question, given the many challenges that the region’s countries still face.The old order that has begun to vanish extends beyond the former regimes. The region’s entire value system ― a political culture forged by autocracy ― is being transformed. Arab men and women have shed the
Jan. 30, 2012
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[David Ignatius] Seeds of change for globalization
DAVOS, Switzerland ― The organizers of the World Economic Forum were self-critical enough to organize panels this year on such dark topics as “Is Capitalism Failing?” and “Global Risks 2012: The Seeds of Dystopia.” And these were just the latest in a series of annual ruminations here on the troubles of the globalization movement the conference symbolizes. It’s hard to be a convincing Spenglerian amid so much good food and drink, not to mention money. But let’s ponder one aspect of what might be
Jan. 30, 2012
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No joy in Egypt after one year of revolt
As Egypt marked the first anniversary of the Jan. 25 civilian revolt that eventually toppled the 30-year rule of Hosni Mubarak, there was no agreement -- on how to celebrate or even whether rejoicing is in order.The current military rulers -- the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, or SCAF -- wanted to hold parades and aerial jet exhibitions to exult in the revolution, of which their main part was to ease Mubarak out of power. Youth groups and democracy activists who originally engineered the u
Jan. 30, 2012
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[Shahid Javed Burki] Politics continues to demilitarize in the Muslim world
ISLAMABAD -- Can Muslim governments free themselves from their countries’ powerful militaries and establish civilian control comparable to that found in liberal democracies? This question is now paramount in countries as disparate as Egypt, Pakistan, and Turkey.To predict how this struggle will play out, it helps to understand the region’s past. Since Islam’s founding in the seventh century, it has maintained a tradition of deep military engagement in politics and governance. Indeed, Islam’s inc
Jan. 30, 2012
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[Meghan Daum] Newt Gingrich‘s debt to Bill Clinton
So it’s official. No one really cares that Newt Gingrich is an egotistical, vainglorious scoundrel, at least where women are concerned. Sure, his ex-wife went on TV two days before the South Carolina primary and re-dished a bunch of dirt about their marriage, but based on Jan. 14‘s outcome, it seems GOP voters got over the whole family values thing a long time ago.At the very least, it seems that unapologetic combativeness is proving a more effective campaign strategy than bragging about the lon
Jan. 30, 2012
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Afghanistan must confront its terrorism of women
KABUL ― Recently, the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) office in Kudoz province reported the rescue of a young woman who had been imprisoned in her in-laws’ dungeon for seven months. Fifteen-year-old Sahar Gul was forced to marry an older man who serves in the Afghan army. She was then kept in the dungeon by her husband’s family and brutally tortured for months, because she refused to work as a prostitute.Over the past 10 years, the AIHRC has received more than 19,000 complaint
Jan. 29, 2012
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[Jeffrey Frankel] Will emerging markets fall in 2012?
BERN ― Emerging markets have performed amazingly well over the last seven years. In many cases, they have far outperformed the advanced industrialized countries in terms of economic growth, debt-to-GDP ratios, countercyclical fiscal policy, and assessments by ratings agencies and financial markets.As 2012 begins, however, investors are wondering if emerging markets may be due for a correction, triggered by a new wave of “risk off” behavior. Will China experience a hard landing? Will a decline in
Jan. 29, 2012
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Steve Jobs on benefits of competition in education
There seem to be as many political solutions to education problems in South Korea as there are people thinking about them. Thus, there is endless controversy about which policies should be implemented. A major reason for the controversy is the biggest difference between political and market-based polices: In politics, a situation that captures public attention is seen a problem or crisis; in the market, such situations are seen as opportunities.Some of the world’s greatest, boldest and most aggr
Jan. 29, 2012
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Why Singapore has the cleanest government that its citizens can buy
Singapore’s prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong, isn’t often taken publicly to task. But when you make S$3.1 million ($2.4 million) annually to run a country, people tend to expect results. When they don’t get them, the aggrieved masses turn to that lowest-of-common-denominator gripes: Hey, how much are we paying this guy? Lots compared with, say, Barack Obama, who as U.S. president gets $400,000 a year. Lee’s compensation will fall 36 percent, and that of Singapore’s president will drop 51 percent,
Jan. 29, 2012
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[Mohamed A. El-Erian] Egypt’s unfinished revolution will eventually succeed
NEWPORT BEACH ― A year ago, Egyptians of all ages and religions took to the streets and, in just 18 days of relatively peaceful protests, removed a regime that had ruled over them with an iron fist for 30 years. Empowered by an impressive yet leaderless movement ― largely of young people ― the country’s citizens overcame decades of fear to reclaim a voice in their future.While much has been achieved since those euphoric times, Egypt’s revolution today is, unfortunately, incomplete and imperfect
Jan. 29, 2012
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Challenges for Indonesia on way to ‘AAA’ rating
It’s a rare economic story that involves Facebook Inc., God and credit ratings. Leave it to Indonesia to serve up a saga that speaks volumes about the obstacles facing Southeast Asia’s biggest economy. Although Indonesia doesn’t often make global headlines, one event last week should have received more ink: Moody’s Investors Service returned the country to investment grade for the first time since the Asian financial crisis. It was an overdue recognition of how far Indonesia has progressed in th
Jan. 27, 2012
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[David Ignatius] Campaign for ‘American renewal’
WASHINGTON ― The foreign-policy theme that should dominate this year’s presidential campaign is “American renewal.” Each candidate claims to have a strategy for halting the nation’s decline, but their versions often amount to “more of the same” ― which ain’t gonna work. For a bracing discussion of what a revival of U.S. power would actually require over the next few decades, I recommend a new book called “Strategic Vision,” by Zbigniew Brzezinski, the former national security adviser to Presiden
Jan. 27, 2012
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‘Invented threat’
As disturbing as the controversy over why Salman Rushdie was misled into believing that his life, and the literature festival, would be endangered if he turned up at Jaipur is the manner in which the home ministry opted out of taking the lead role in a security-related situation. It may be technically correct that law and order is a state subject, but when the larger issue of the nation’s global prestige is at stake, and when more than one state government is involved (Maharashtra and Rajasthan
Jan. 27, 2012
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China, Russia, U.S. face off beneath the waves
An underwater tug-of-war is intensifying among countries such as China, Russia and the United States in the seas around Japan.Vietnamese Defence Minister Phung Quang Thanh, who comes from Vietnam’s army, requested an inspection of a Maritime Self-Defence Force submarine when he visited Japan in October.He visited the Makishio, a main submarine of the MSDF Submarine Flotilla 1, in the city of Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture. Made in Japan, the state-of-the-art submarine boasts a displacement capacity
Jan. 27, 2012
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Major powers battle for influence in Asia
“Where there is sugar, there are ants,” is perhaps the appropriate phrase to visualize the ongoing and increasing struggle among the major powers over influence in Asia ― the continent with the world’s fastest growth and abundant natural resources. Along with these colliding interests, comes the race to exercise control and to tap the continent’s resources and huge potential.The struggle among nations, particularly superpowers like the United States and the rapidly emerging power China, to gain
Jan. 27, 2012