The Korea Herald

[Daniel Fiedler] Forgiveness, regret and justice

ViewpointsOct 11, 2011

The culture of South Korea places a high value on honor, or face. When someone expresses regret or asks forgiveness they are seen as repudiating their inappropriate behavior and choosing proper conduct. This choice to behave in a proper manner reduces their dishonor and saves face. Admission of wron
As austere England grumbles, Scotland is all smiles

ViewpointsOct 11, 2011

The TV weather map shows the U.K. wreathed in autumnal sunshine. Records have been broken. The trees are turning golden, and there are girls in bikinis in the park. There is, though, just one small cloud right up in the northwest of Scotland, and that’s the one I’m sitting under. Outside, the sky ha
Affirmative action back to U.S. Supreme Court

ViewpointsOct 11, 2011

Is getting turned down by the University of Texas’ flagship campus in Austin a deprivation of individual rights so profound that it offends the Constitution?If so, there are umpteen disappointed applicants who’ll be wanting a piece of those reparations.But the Supreme Court might not be so dismissiv
[Kim Seong-kon] Dubious claims and the fall of U.S.

ViewpointsOct 11, 2011

If a foreigner wrote a book criticizing Korean society or presumptuously announcing the downfall of Korea after living in South Korea for only several years, we would immediately condemn the author as an ignorant, impudent racist. Moreover, if the book was praised by the press of the author’s countr
Readers’ voice

Oct 10, 2011

On mandatory quotas...It seems wrong to make a bill. However it is obvious many women have trouble getting promoted and feel prejudice in Korean society. Women have even more obstacles in many ways than men in South Korea.― Kim Hyeong-goo, Seoul via FacebookAbsolutely! Equal rights for all! There ar
Should we force firms to hire more women?

Oct 10, 2011

With so few Korean women executives ...Should we force firms to hire more women?The business of genderSouth Korea has one of the lowest employment rates for women in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The country is seventh-last with a female employment rate of 52.2, while th
[Editorial] New chief justice’s ideas

EditorialOct 10, 2011

New Chief Justice Yang Seung-tae has a very good idea about removing the worst blot in Korea’s legal system, the favoritism between incumbent judges and prosecutors and their retired ex-colleagues who practice law. Yang, who took office late September, told a TV interview that the best way to cut th
[Editorial] Overseas Hangeul promotion

EditorialOct 10, 2011

When it was reported that the local government of a remote Indonesian city decided to use Hangeul, the Korean alphabet, as its official writing system in 2009, many wondered how the decision would be practically implemented, while feeling pride in the overseas recognition of the excellence of the Ko
[Peter Goldmark] Don’t try to dismantle the American government

ViewpointsOct 10, 2011

There was a moment in one of the Republican debates last month when candidate Ron Paul said: “9/11 came about because there was too much government.” That statement is flat-out delusional ― yet not one of the other candidates challenged the Texas congressman’s point.I want to challenge Paul and othe
[Ahmed Zewail] As polls loom, Egypt must unify

ViewpointsOct 10, 2011

CAIRO ― “Where is Egypt going?” a driver named Mohamed asked me recently. It is the question on everyone’s mind as the Arab Spring of popular revolution is giving way to the new season of free elections this autumn.At this unique moment in history, there are two critical challenges that face this na
[Meghan Daum] The Knox moral ― there’s no place like home

ViewpointsOct 10, 2011

I didn’t have a huge investment in the fate of Amanda Knox, the 24-year-old American whose conviction for killing her roommate four years ago in Italy was overturned Monday. I was generally too put off and confused by the media circus surrounding the case to try to figure out the whole story. Still,
Occupy Wall Street: The new populists?

ViewpointsOct 10, 2011

They call themselves the 99 Percenters. “We are occupying Wall Street,” they say, encamped by the hundreds in a park dubbed Liberty Square in Lower Manhattan’s financial district, and now seconded by satellite groups at L.A.’s City Hall, in San Francisco and in Chicago, Boston, St. Louis and dozens
[Jeffrey D. Sachs] Economic globalization and the role of governments

ViewpointsOct 10, 2011

NEW YORK -- We live in an era in which the most important forces affecting every economy are global, not local. What happens “abroad” -- in China, India, and elsewhere -- powerfully affects even an economy as large as the United States. Economic globalization has, of course, produced some large
[Editorial] Global patent war

EditorialOct 9, 2011

Competition for patents is intensifying among global technology companies as growing technological convergence has blurred the boundaries that once separated them. This race for patents was recently well illustrated by Apple Inc. and Google Inc. In June, Apple purchased some 6,000 telecom patents he
[Editorial] Punishment for sex crimes

EditorialOct 9, 2011

The government has toughened punishment for sex crimes against people with disabilities. The measures, announced Friday, came following public outcry over the mild punishments given to teachers at a special school for the hearing-impaired in Gwangju, who raped and sexually assaulted their students.T