The remarkably ironic pronouncement from Sandy Weill that the U.S. should resurrect some form of the Glass-Steagall Act ― which he worked assiduously to tear asunder in the 1990s as he created Citigroup Inc. ― has touched off another debate about how to control the worst instincts on Wall Street. There is no question that bankers, traders and executives need help reining themselves in. After all, it was their collective actions that brought us the financial crisis in 2007 and ― as if nothing had

In the years immediately following the collapse of the Soviet Union, one would frequently hear worried musings about the sudden role of the United States, left alone on the world stage as the “World’s Only Superpower.” Some referred contemptuously to the American “hyper-power.”Now, in an unexpected turn of events, Washington’s harshest critics are asking the United States to take an even greater role in world affairs, but to do it for the sake of protecting human rights across the globe.Whoever

Corporate governance in Korea is characterized by the circular structure of cross holdings among affiliates of a large business group. Take the Hyundai Motor Group for example. Hyundai Motor owns stock in Kia Motors, which owns stock in Hyundai Mobis. The cross-holding structure comes full circle with Hyundai Mobis owning stock in Hyundai Motor.This circular structure of cross holdings among chaebol affiliates is the target of an attack from the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition Democ

Korea Electric Power Corp. is walking a tightrope, as its electricity reserves frequently fall to dangerous levels these days. It cannot rule out the possibility of a blackout, as demand for power remains unexpectedly high as the nation is gripped by a scorching heat wave.With the summer holiday season entering full swing at the end of July, KEPCO had expected power demand to subside. But a protracted period of scorching days and tropical nights continues to push up power demand, resurrecting th

When I delivered my maiden speech on the Senate floor on April 14, 1969, the anniversary of the day I was wounded in World War II, it was customary to speak about something in which you had a deep interest, and something about which you could offer some leadership. I chose to speak about a minority group, as I said then, the existence of which affects every person in our society, and the very fiber of our nation.It was an exceptional group I joined during World War II, which no one joins by pers

All Doris Boxley wanted was a chicken sandwich.But that was difficult to get because of the lines around Chick-fil-A restaurants all over the country on Wednesday, especially in Chicago, where the Freedom of Chicken movement began about a week ago.And all Doris, 53, of Flint, Mich., wanted was one of the franchise’s classic sandwiches, since there are no Chick-fil-A’s near her home.Doris doesn’t care about the sexual politics of chicken. She wasn’t interested in the chicken sandwich as thought c

Last week, NASA announced that 97 percent of Greenland’s vast ice sheet had undergone at least some surface melting this summer, compared with a normal melt area of about 50 percent. The 2012 figure, said the headline on the space agency’s press release, was “unprecedented.”That’s a powerful word in any context, but it’s especially so when you’re talking about the politically charged topic of climate change. If the melting was unprecedented, it would reinforce the idea that scientists are right

Korea and Vietnam announced Monday the launching of negotiations on a free trade deal between the two countries. The announcement by their trade ministers in Hanoi followed six rounds of preliminary talks since June 2010.Formal negotiations are scheduled to begin in September, with a final conclusion likely to be reached within the first half of next year, according to trade officials here.We hope negotiations will proceed smoothly to ensure the early signing of the agreement, which would bring

Armed with higher education, more certificates and better English skills, they should be expected to land jobs more easily and live more happily than their parents. In reality, however, they have more difficulty finding work, delay marriage and can scarcely dream of owning their own home.A recent research by Statistics Korea paints an ironical contrast between the lives of the baby boomer generation born in 1955-63 and their children’s generation born in 1979-92, which is termed by demographers

The opening ceremony of the London Olympics showed us the Internet’s history by honoring Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, and featuring a display of his live Twitter post: “This is for everyone.” Unfortunately, the games as a whole are providing a less inspiring vision of the Internet’s future, at least in the U.S. People in at least 64 territories around the world are able to watch free live streaming video of every event; 3,500 hours on 10 separate real-time channels are be

Those who travel to North Korea regularly might have noticed that the last couple of years have brought significant improvement in the country’s economic situation. Newly built high-rise apartments, modern cars on the roads and improved infrastructure come as a surprise to visitors. It begs the question, where does Pyongyang get the money from?The ambitious rocket and nuclear programs, which North Korea continues to pursue despite international condemnation, are expensive and harmful to its econ