The Korea Herald

[VOICE] Are open primaries necessary?

Jul 9, 2012

With parties’ nomination processes in focus ...Are open primaries necessary?With the presidential election six months away, the process of how political parties choose their candidate is in the spotlight. Three Saenuri Party presidential hopefuls, rivals of favorite Park Geun-hye, last month called for the introduction of an open primary allowing all citizens to vote regardless of party affiliation. The call, from Reps. Chung Mong-joon and Lee Jae-oh and Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Moon-soo,
[Editorial] Whaling uproar

EditorialJul 9, 2012

Korean officials might not have expected their plan to restart whaling for “research purposes” to prompt such vehement international protests.The plan, announced at a meeting of the International Whaling Commission in Panama last week, triggered criticism from anti-whaling nations and global conservationist groups. They suspected it might be a pretext for commercial whaling, with Korea following the example of Japan. Through a loophole in the commission’s 1986 moratorium on whaling that permits
[Editorial] Jobs for disabled

EditorialJul 9, 2012

Korean society has traditionally been biased against physically-challenged people.The deep-rooted prejudice, which seems to originate from life in a homogenous agrarian community, has somewhat diminished in the modern era but still remains as a psychological obstacle to Koreans building a truly advanced nation.It was partly against this background that a law was enacted more than two decades ago to encourage public institutions and private companies to employ more physically-handicapped persons.
[Robert B. Reich] The true meaning of patriotism

ViewpointsJul 9, 2012

Recently I publicly debated someone who said Arizona and every other state should use whatever means necessary to keep out illegal immigrants. He wants English to be spoken in every classroom in the nation, and the Pledge of Allegiance recited every morning. And he wants to restore every dollar of the $500 billion in defense cuts scheduled to start in January. “We have to preserve and protect America,” he said. “That’s the meaning of patriotism.”For my debating partner, patriotism is about secur
U.S. needs wiggle room to escape UNESCO trap

ViewpointsJul 9, 2012

The Church of the Nativity in the Palestinian town of Bethlehem could use a few repairs, but is it in peril? The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization says so, having declared the church an endangered World Heritage site two weeks ago. Palestinians made hay arguing that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank threatened the humble church, said to mark the birthplace of Christ. A U.N. expert committee disagreed, concluding it faced no danger. The United States objected to
Devaluing the pound isn’t a solution, it’s default

ViewpointsJul 9, 2012

Greece’s inability to devalue its currency is often cited as a reason for the extreme economic pain its citizens are enduring, and many commentators say the country should return to the drachma to restore competitiveness. In the U.K., which ― unlike Greece ― isn’t part of the euro area and can devalue if it wishes, there’s growing pressure to do so. A letter recently circulated to some 3,000 influential figures proposed deliberately weakening the British pound to boost exports and hence economic
National debt: America’s top real security threat

ViewpointsJul 9, 2012

Drones, kill lists, computer viruses and administration leaks are all the rage in the current political debate. They indeed merit serious scrutiny at a time when the rules of war, and technologies available for war, are changing fast. That said, these issues are not the foreign policy centerpiece of the 2012 presidential race.Economic renewal and fiscal reform have become the preeminent issues, not only for domestic and economic policy but for foreign policy as well. As the former chairman of th
[Mohamed A. El-Erian] Will eurozone governments be willing but unable?

ViewpointsJul 9, 2012

NEWPORT BEACH ― When it comes to describing Europe’s ever-worsening crisis, metaphors abound. For some, it is five minutes to midnight; for others, Europe is a car accelerating towards the edge of a cliff. For all, a perilous existential moment is increasingly close at hand.Optimists ― fortunately, there remain a few, especially in Europe itself ― believe that when the situation becomes really critical, political leaders will turn things around and put Europe back on the path of economic growth,
[Editorial] Japan’s militarization

EditorialJul 8, 2012

Japan has recently alarmed its neighbors by taking a series of moves that suggest the world’s third-largest economy is rushing its comeback as a military powerhouse. Since the early 1990s, Japan has slowly but steadily proceeded toward militarization despite the constraints posed by its so-called peace constitution. Dubbed the “no-war” clause, Article 9 of the constitution renounces war and the right to use force as a means of resolving international disputes. It also declares that Japan will ne
[Editorial] Green light to Jeju base

EditorialJul 8, 2012

The Supreme Court has put an end to the drawn-out dispute over the construction of a naval base on Jeju Island by ruling that the Ministry of National Defense has proceeded with the project in a lawful way.The top court’s final verdict has cleared a big obstacle to the project, ensuring that the construction of the important naval base will go ahead as planned.The lawsuit was filed by residents of Gangjeong Village on the island in 2009 to stop the base construction, which they claimed would dam
Public service makes Nigerian governor a target

ViewpointsJul 8, 2012

By most accounts, Adams Oshiomhole is the most popular governor Nigeria’s Edo state has ever had. He is up for reelection next week, and the outcome could go one of three ways: Ruling-party thugs will kill him, as they have already twice tried to do ― including once last week. They will steal the election, as is the nation’s custom. Or, the least likely, Oshiomhole will be declared the winner.“They have not had a transparent election in a very long time,” Oshiomhole told me in an interview.You s
[Howard Davies] One big union raises questions

ViewpointsJul 8, 2012

PARIS ― In the last few weeks, the idea of establishing a European banking union has become the latest remedy advanced as a solution to the long-running euro crisis. But, whatever the merits of a banking union ― and there are many ― proposals to establish one raise more questions than can currently be answered.The motivations of those who advocate a banking union differ markedly. For some, particularly in southern Europe, it is seen as a means of shifting the burden of supporting their indigent
Breast-feeding won’t make your children smarter

ViewpointsJul 8, 2012

Advocates of so-called attachment parenting take an all-encompassing approach: assiduous attention to a child’s every need, including prolonged breast-feeding. But those who claim that these practices benefit children’s intelligence miss an important point. A child’s biggest advantage arises from having the family resources that make such care giving possible in the first place. In this sense, attachment parenting is a trend among families whose children need it least ― the affluent. Fortunately
The rise of the spy-next-door

ViewpointsJul 8, 2012

Improved technology is changing the spy game, merging once-disparate roles in the intelligence field and favoring an increased download of traditional spy roles to the private sector.This week, Canada’s Postmedia News cited a speech by Richard Fadden, the head of Canada’s spy agency, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, in which he acknowledged this new reality.Fadden added that analysts must be well-read across various subject matters, and be creative enough to imagine threats that have
[Brahma Chellaney] India’s American Friends and Iranian Partners

ViewpointsJul 8, 2012

NEW DELHI -- The United States recently took the Iran-sanctions monkey off India’s back: it granted India an exemption from Iran-related financial sanctions in exchange for significant cuts in Indian purchases of Iranian oil. Nevertheless, Iran continues to cast a pall over an otherwise brightening U.S.-India relationship.From India’s perspective, Iran is an important neighbor with which it can ill afford to rupture its relationship. Indeed, India already seems locked geographically in an arc of