The Korea Herald

Living with death by drone

Oct 10, 2012

Last week, Stanford University and New York University released a major study about the use of drones in the ever-evolving but never-ending war on terror. Unfortunately, many commentators missed the report’s key message: Drones are terrorizing an entire civilian population.I was one of the researchers for the study, and spent weeks in Pakistan interviewing more than 60 people from North Waziristan. Many were survivors of strikes. Others had lost loved ones and family members. All of them live un
[Harold Brown] Syria’s turmoil poses toughest challenge yet

Oct 10, 2012

WASHINGTON, DC ― More than any of the previous events in the Arab Spring, Syria’s turmoil has presented serious difficulties for Western policymakers. Just as Syria comprises a more complex society than the other Arab countries currently in the throes of political transition, so, too, are its external relations more complex. As a result, any attempt at decisive military intervention would be not only difficult, but also extremely risky.Syria’s leading role in Lebanon, even after withdrawing its
Romney’s debate win doesn’t make it 1980 again

Oct 9, 2012

Mitt Romney’s winning performance in last week’s presidential debate has reinforced his campaign’s belief that this election parallels the one in 1980: In troubled times, Republicans inevitably defeat an unpopular Democratic president. While Romney gets to hit the reset button after President Barack Obama’s desultory display, he’d better not count on the 1980 analogy. Ronald Reagan’s victory over Jimmy Carter wasn’t inevitable; it was earned, with some help from outsiders. The environment was fa
[Daniel Fiedler] Suicide for justice

Oct 9, 2012

Last week a 61-year-old woman jumped from her fifth floor apartment to her death. Her act was, once again, the last desperate attempt by a crime victim in South Korea to obtain justice. Her sad tale started when she checked into a hospital last year and was raped by a 27-year-old man who worked at the hospital. After she reported the rape to the police the young man failed a lie detector test and the case proceeded to court. However, last month the court released the accused, reasoning that as t
Turning Iran’s currency crisis into a revolution

Oct 9, 2012

Amid the usual hyperbolic conspiracy theories, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said something incisive in a televised address last week: that the West is waging economic “war” against Iran. He’s right, and the Iranian rial’s death spiral is the first clear sign that we’re on a path to victory. The 40 percent drop by the rial against the dollar since late September is a symptom of larger woes: oil exports are at 1 million barrels a day, down from 2.2 million last year; quarterly oil revenue
From bitterness to grace: Comfort women and the Korean ‘han’

Oct 9, 2012

Koreans have many things to be proud of. South Korea rose from the ashes of civil war to become an economically advanced democracy. Its companies (e.g., Hyundai, Samsung) and celebrities (e.g., Psy) stride on the world’s stage. However, outside observers are less enamored with a widespread cultural trait, termed “han,” which describes a keen sense of sadness, victimhood and injustice. As described by Korean-American sociologist Jon Huer, han can “be inflicted on the Korean people by a foreign po
[Kim Seong-kon] Funny English signs worldwide

Oct 9, 2012

As English has become a major international language, English signboards and directions are everywhere these days. Sometimes due to the difficulty of English usages and other times due to cultural differences, however, mistakes in English signs and directions can be found all over the world. Recently, Theresa Oh, who speaks fluent English, showed me a list of funny English signs and directions that can be found worldwide. All of them were quite amusing and hilarious, exhibiting language barriers
Strong offense and weak defense in debate

Oct 8, 2012

This was a debate for the green-eyeshade crowd. If you tuned in Wednesday night to see President Barack Obama and Gov. Mitt Romney offer inspiring visions for the future, you heard more numbers than you did paeans to America.The bottom line on engagement with an American public not five weeks from Election Day: Romney was alert, energized and confident. Obama slumped his shoulders, smiled mostly to himself, and for some reason kept staring down. He was that guy at the meeting who’s surreptitious
[Robert B. Reich] Mitt Romney and his own party

Oct 8, 2012

There are two major theories about why Mitt Romney is dropping in the polls. One is that Romney is a lousy candidate, unable to connect with people or make his case. The other is that Americans are finally beginning to see how radical the GOP has become and are repudiating it.Most Republicans hold to the first view, for obvious reasons. And their long knives are already out.Conservative columnist Peggy Noonan called the Romney campaign “incompetent” and “a rolling calamity.” Republican guru Will
The delusion of limited intervention in Syria

Oct 8, 2012

With Turkey’s decision to shell targets in Syria in retaliation for a mortar attack that killed five civilians inside the Turkish border, there are new signs that Syria’s civil war could escalate into a broader conflict. As the stalemate continues on the ground, the cross-border clashes may put added pressure on the West to heed the calls of Syrian rebels and their international backers, including NATO ally Turkey, for a partial no-fly zone. While the desire to act to prevent Syria’s conflict fr
The ‘Vagina’ chronicles

Oct 8, 2012

NEW YORK ― Has there really been a sexual revolution? One of the themes that I explore in my new book, “Vagina: A New Biography,” is that the West’s supposedly sexually liberated societies, in which sexual images and content are available everywhere, have not really been all that liberating for women. Many of the reactions to my book tend to confirm that belief.Many responses were positive: the book is Publishers Weekly’s top science book of the fall. But the tone of some of the criticism ― from
[Masahiro Matsumura] Apathy and coming political earthquake in Japan

Oct 8, 2012

OSAKA ― Japan is now confronting challenges at home and abroad that are as serious as any it has had to face since World War II’s end. Yet the Japanese public is displaying remarkable apathy. The country’s two major political parties, the governing Democratic Party of Japan and the Liberal Democratic Party recently chose their leaders, yet ordinary Japanese responded with a collective shrug. But Japan’s political system is unlikely to remain a matter of popular indifference for much longer.The D
[David Ignatius] Beyond the Afghan dead end

Oct 7, 2012

WASHINGTON ― While the overlooked war in Afghanistan grinds on, a group of officials in Washington, Kabul and Islamabad are exploring a bare-bones strategy that would narrow each side’s demands to a set of minimum conditions for escaping the current diplomatic dead end. The aim is to create a pathway for the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO troops from a war that almost nobody sees as “winnable” by military force alone. The goal is a framework for political transition where each side’s demands are bo
Romney can win by doing one thing

Oct 7, 2012

PARIS ― Mitt Romney’s biggest problem in this race isn’t that he’s wealthy ― it’s that he lacks the sort of passion that can only be forged by trial and tribulation. It’s one thing to articulate the principles of free-market capitalism and limited government as the solution to the country’s current woes, but they have little effect when they can’t be strapped to an emotional rocket and delivered in surgical strikes straight through voters’ hearts.Politics will always be about connecting with peo
America’s election and the global economy

Oct 7, 2012

STANFORD ― As America’s elections approach, with President Barack Obama slightly in front of his Republican challenger, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, pollsters still rate the races for control of the presidency and the United States Senate too close to call, with the House of Representatives likely to remain in Republican hands. The differences between the candidates are considerable, and highly consequential for American economic policy and the global economy, although enactment of