The Korea Herald

[Clive Crook] Relevance of Canada in Britain-EU relations

Jul 7, 2014

As I explained in a previous post, I’ve reluctantly concluded that the U.K. needs to consider its options for becoming a non-European Union country. I put it that way ― consider the options ― because this isn’t a matter of stay or go. Depending on how it’s done, leaving the EU spans a range of outcomes running from “terrible” all the way up to “better than remaining a member.”These different forms of separation need to be discussed. This should happen long before the referendum that Prime Minist
Mumbai rails against fare hikes ― and wins

Jul 7, 2014

Mumbai is an economic universe unto itself, at once India’s richest thriftiest city; in some senses, it is also India’s most financially sophisticated, in others its most obdurate. Over the last two weeks, it has presented a fascinating case study for students of behavioral economics to contemplate.The occasion: Fares on the city’s creaking and overworked suburban rail system ― often called the lifeline of the city, recording an astounding 7.5 million journeys a day ― were set to be raised steep
IRS emails ‘lost’ ― and so is the outrage

Jul 7, 2014

How does a nation lose its way?Some of us think that just one man alone could radically change a country, if he’s powerful enough.It was an idea of years ago, this great man theory, offered by a Scotsman in the mid-1800s, in the time of idiot kings and dying monarchies. The Scot’s name was Thomas Carlyle, and he believed that history could be read in the biographies of great men.By great, he didn’t mean virtuous. He meant ruthless.But Carlyle was wrong. Great men (and women) can’t change a natio
[David Ignatius] Iran overplays its hand

Jul 6, 2014

WASHINGTON ― With the sudden rise of the terrorist Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, a little-noted aspect is that Gen. Qassem Suleimani, the supposed strategic genius of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, has blundered disastrously. By overreaching in Iraq and Syria and triggering a violent counterreaction, Iran now faces dangerous instability on its border for years to come.Most commentary on the Iraq situation has focused on American errors and potential dangers to U.S. interests, and ther
Prophet of Basel battles Yellen, Draghi, easy money

Jul 6, 2014

It is painful to see how out of sync Jaime Caruana is. The general manager of the Basel-based Bank for International Settlements, Caruana wants to remove the punch bowl from a party that other monetary policymakers claim hasn’t gotten started. Less than a week ago, Caruana called for an end to ultra-low interest rates, saying they were no longer helping to stimulate demand. The increased risk-taking fostered by lax monetary policies, he added, might not “turn into productive investment.” In the
[Yoon Young-kwan] Vast military revolution across East Asia

Jul 6, 2014

A vast revolution in military affairs is taking place across East Asia. The latest signs are Chinese President Xi Jinping’s purge of General Xu Caihou, an ex-Politburo member and former vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission, on charges of corruption, and Japan’s “reinterpretation” of Article 9 of its constitution to permit the country to provide military aid to its allies.Despite the rising regional tensions that inspired these moves, China’s relations with its neighbors and the Unite
Fed is not just U.S., but the world’s central bank

Jul 6, 2014

BERKELEY, California ― The U.S. Federal Reserve these days is broadly happy with its monetary policy. But, since mid-2007, its policy has been insufficiently expansionary. The policy most likely to succeed right now would be analogous to that implemented by the Fed in 1979 and 1933, Great Britain in 1931, and Shinzo Abe today.Those of us who fear that the Fed’s approach has greatly deepened the U.S. economy’s malaise and is turning America’s cyclical unemployment into permanent long-term structu
Building stuff is better than nothing

Jul 6, 2014

John Cochrane, the University of Chicago Booth Business School finance professor and blogger, has an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal about fiscal stimulus. Cochrane thinks stimulus isn’t the answer, and cites his own research to show that the economic models used to justify stimulus spending are on shaky ground. Instead, he thinks that erratic government policy, taxes, regulation, and ham-handed attempts at redistribution are to blame.I’m sure a lot of bloggers will jump in to counter Cochrane’
Will Japan’s democracy survive Abe?

Jul 4, 2014

Sunday shoppers in Tokyo could be forgiven for wondering if they had been transported to Tibet or Myanmar as a man climbed atop a pedestrian crosswalk, voiced his reason to the crowd via megaphone and set himself ablaze.Self-immolation as political protest is almost unheard of in developed nations. The middle-aged man, identified only by the family name Yamashiro, said igniting himself was the only way to show Prime Minister Shinzo Abe his anger at a plan that some see as violating the spirit Ja
[Robert Reich] Hillary’s hardest choice

Jul 4, 2014

What’s the reason for the tempest in the teapot of Hillary and Bill Clinton’s personal finances?It can’t be about how much money they have. Wealth has never disqualified someone from high office. Several of the nation’s greatest presidents, who came to office with vast fortunes ― John F. Kennedy, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and his fifth cousin, Teddy ― notably improved the lives of ordinary Americans.The tempest can’t be about Hillary Clinton’s veracity. It may have been a stretch for her to say she
[Chon Shi-yong] Uphold personnel screening bar

Jul 3, 2014

The successive fall of two nominees for prime minister and the ongoing controversy over some of President Park Geun-hye’s other Cabinet nominees demonstrate that Korea’s public service now requires very high ethical standards. Candidates for senior government posts who are subject to parliamentary screening first go through tough public and media scrutiny over their personal and professional qualifications. The scrutiny is so stringent that even the candidates’ private lives are all but laid bar
Pakistan’s ill-conceived war at home

Jul 3, 2014

SINGAPORE ― Last month, after years of indecision, Pakistan’s military launched a full-scale military operation in the North Waziristan Tribal Agency aimed at eliminating terrorist bases and ending the region’s lawlessness. In particular, the army wants to clear out foreign fighters who are using the territory as a base for various jihads around the Muslim world. But, by triggering yet another refugee crisis, the operation risks spreading the terrorist threat to other parts of Pakistan, includin
No kid gloves for corruption

Jul 3, 2014

The expulsion of Xu Caihou from the party, which was announced on Monday, has once again vindicated the majority of people’s belief that the anti-graft fight led by the new leadership will not treat corrupt elements with kid gloves no matter how high a position they hold or once held.Xu, once vice-chairman of the military commission of the Party Central Committee and the People’s Republic of China and also a former member of the Political Bureau of the Central Party Committee, is one of the high
Thai junta demonstrates few insights on reforms

Jul 3, 2014

It was perhaps inevitable that Thai junta chief Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha would become a favored leader among Thais after seeing the work he has overseen in the first month since seizing power.Prayuth seems to know what people want and need. His orders to crack down on mafia and gambling, seize war weapons, and promptly pay around 90 billion baht ($2.77 billion) in funds owed to farmers from the rice-pledging scheme were warmly welcomed by the public, according to opinion polls.Two recent polls fou
Two modern saints on blue-collar work

Jul 3, 2014

I have time and again written about the need for a change in mentality among Filipino parents and their children, that the occupations of farmers, carpenters, electricians, mechanics, plumbers, and other blue-collar workers who engage in a great deal of manual effort should attract many of our high school graduates.This is especially true now that the K-12 curriculum can be tweaked so that the last two years of senior high school can be transformed into preparations for vocational or technical j