PARIS ― French public reaction to American CIA Director Gen. David Petraeus’ suicide-bombing of his own career demonstrates a lack of understanding of the perceived offense in favor of a blind defense of libertinism. It was learned last week that Petraeus had an extramarital affair with his biographer, reserve Army officer Paula Broadwell (who, like Petraeus, is married with children).Let’s go back in time for some context.The French never understood why President Bill Clinton was impeached for

Ichiro Ozawa, head of the People’s Life First party, was once again found not guilty by a court.The Tokyo High Court dismissed an appeal lodged by court-appointed lawyers acting as prosecutors and upheld a lower court ruling acquitting Ozawa of violating the Political Funds Control Law over his alleged role in a suspicious land deal conducted by his fund management body, Rikuzan-kai.The high court ruling acknowledged that the 400 million yen provided by Ozawa to the fund management body to purch

What America does still matters more to the world than the actions of any other country. Now that we know who will lead the world’s greatest power and largest economy for the next four years, perhaps it is time to consider what directions are likely to be set.While some continuity should be expected from a second Obama administration, there are underlying and quite fundamental factors that might well change the American engagement with Asia.The first factor is the widespread anxiety about the co

In the retrial of Govinda Prasad Mainali, a Nepalese man convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the March 1997 robbery-murder of a 39-year-old Tokyo woman, the Tokyo High Court eventually acquitted him Nov. 7, pointing to the strong possibility that a third person was the perpetrator.Mainali is back in Nepal. He was released when the court decided on June 7 to retry him and was immediately deported for overstaying his visa. The acquittal came 15 ahd a half years after he was arrested. The

The circulation of leaflets stating “Indonesian maids now on sale” in Kuala Lumpur early this month may not incite widespread anger here, but a report of an Indonesian migrant worker gang-raped by three policemen in the Malaysian state of Penang is a far more serious matter the neighboring country needs to address.The case, although it might happen to only one of about 2 million Indonesian migrant workers (TKI) employed in Malaysia both legally and illegally, will risk straining bilateral ties b

Cry for yourself, Argentina.What a shame to see a country of such great economic promise swerving off the road to prosperity again.The latest in a history of unforced errors began in 2007. National elections ushered in populist President Cristina Fernandez, who has led her nation to the brink of disaster by refusing to play by the rules of global finance. She restricted international trade, violated contracts and pumped out phony data to disguise the soaring inflation her policies brought about.

The resignation of David Petraeus as director of central intelligence ― prompted, you may have heard, by the discovery, via an email trail, of an extramarital affair that possibly posed a security risk ― leads to a cascade of concerns. Leaving aside questions of morality, which would only lead to foolhardy and empty pronouncements, it’s fair to ask who will take the helm of the Central Intelligence Agency, which seemed to flourish under Petraeus’s leadership. What does this mean for the unending

It’s no question that Koreans work more hours than in any other country in the world. However, in terms of management efficiency they are ranked among the lowest. What could possibly be the reason for such inefficiency? Is it Confucianism ― employees looking back, embracing tradition and refusing to adapt to a changing world? Is it their military training in which all men are required to dedicate nearly two years of their lives? I believe that it is a combination of both that creates a business

When a student of mine called me to ask for some advice, I listened calmly, expecting him to inquire about his grades or request that I look over one of his essays. Instead, his dilemma was a rather unique one. He had decided to apply to Swarthmore, a top-ranked liberal arts school in America, and wanted to submit a rock album that he had been recording but that was still incomplete. Not only was his counselor against the student’s decision to apply to Swarthmore, insisting that his scores were

Japan’s leaders just can’t seem to put the 19th century behind them. It may be 2012, and the world surrounding this island nation of 126 million is changing at a blistering pace, but Japanese officialdom seems oddly stuck in the late 1800s. Back then, reformers adopted the slogan “rich nation, strong army.” This rabid nationalism culminated, of course, in World War II and a crushing defeat. Fast-forward a hundred years or so. Here is the hauntingly similar motto Shinzo Abe, very possibly Japan’s