Thailand has been playing by the rules and getting little benefit from obeying economic orthodoxy. A reshuffle among top policymakers after a string of departures, just as the nation emerges from coronavirus hibernation, is an opportunity to be bolder. The conservative nature of military-backed rule suggests tinkering is the more likely outcome than an embrace of bigger change. Stagnating even before the pandemic hit, Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy will shrink 8.1 percent this

Fashion stylist Han Hye-yeon and singer Kang Min-kyung recently came under a storm of criticism for their failure to reveal that what they promote on their YouTube channels are actually product placements, or PPL. At a time when leading YouTube stars rake in tons of money through promotional events sponsored by high-profile advertisers, some reckon the outpouring of public anger against Han and Kang might have gone too far. However, a closer look at what really happened reveals the flaw in t

The public gives President Donald Trump very low marks for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic and race relations. But as recently as the end of June, the public was still giving him slightly positive marks for his handling of the economy. That edge may now be eroding, but Trump’s numbers on economic policy are still much better than on other important issues. It’s obvious why Trump gets decent ratings on the economy -- before the coronavirus outbreak in March, he had presided

Until recently, China was unmistakably trying to be a hegemon in the image of the United States, increasingly complementing its growing hard power with soft power. But China seems to have missed its opportunity to build a serious rival to, or even supplant, the existing world economic order fashioned by the US following World War II. All the elements of success seemed to be falling into place for China. It launched the Belt and Road Initiative, a transnational infrastructure investment program

In May 2018, President Donald Trump announced his decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal because it was “defective at its core.” But if Tehran were willing to negotiate a better agreement, he would be “ready, willing and able” to join them. Last week, Iran announced that it was ready for a new deal. Unfortunately, that deal would be with China, rather than the United States. And instead of curtailing Iran’s nuclear capabilities, the new agreement would est

In the famous fairy tale “Red Riding Hood,” a girl goes on an errand to bring food to her sickly grandmother who lives in the woods. Aware of this, the Big Bad Wolf rushes ahead to her grandmother’s house, devours the grandmother and dons her clothes, then waits for the girl whose nickname is Red Riding Hood in disguise. When she arrives, the wolf swallows her too, and falls asleep. Just in time, a woodcutter comes to the rescue. He cuts open the belly of the wolf and takes out

Moscow researchers say one of the country’s potential coronavirus vaccines has been proven safe in small-scale human trials and is ready for wider tests. It should be a modest win for a country that has sought for years to restore its Soviet-era reputation for cutting-edge science, and for President Vladimir Putin. Yet on Thursday, Britain, the US and Canada accused Russia of hacking international research centers that are trying to develop a vaccine. The Kremlin denies any involvement,

The blockbuster Supreme Court term that just ended was a (nearly) unmitigated disaster for movement conservatives. Chief Justice John Roberts declined to overturn precedent on abortion rights. Conservative activist Justice Neil Gorsuch showed he would join the court’s liberals when the statutory text tells him to. The natural question then is, what’s next? What are the implications for the future of the court? The short answer is that the court’s future direction is in flux l

When White House officials bullied Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman into retirement this month the damage surpassed the ruination of a patriotic officer's career. Vindman is the decorated Iraq war veteran and Ukraine expert on the National Security Council who drew President Donald Trump’s wrath for his honest testimony under oath at the impeachment hearings. He is also an immigrant, brought here by his parents as a child from the Soviet Union. At the hearings he spoke eloquently of his grati

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed the presidential campaign in the US. In a normal election year July, the party out of power crowns its nominee, and the party in power does so a few weeks later. The conventions give the candidates a chance to introduce themselves and their choice for vice president. They hope to get a bounce from the convention that will help build momentum for the fall campaign. Because of the pandemic this year, the Democrats moved their convention to August and

Two decades ago, Poles could only look on in bewilderment. Americans were so divided over who should be president that the 2000 election hung on a dimpled chad and had to be decided by the Supreme Court. George W. Bush became the first winner to lose the national popular vote since 1888. American democracy had been tested but emerged whole. As ballots for Poland’s presidential election were being counted Sunday, the results looked tight enough to go to the courts too. It was the country&r

South Koreans bid farewell to two prominent people last week amidst noises about the mixture of respect and scorn shown in accordance with the people’s ideological divide. Half a million citizens petitioned the Presidential Office opposing Seoul City Hall sponsoring Park Won-soon’s funeral at the expense of taxpayers’ money. The main opposition United Future Party joined accusers of the mayor in condemning abuse of women in bureaucracy and what they called leftist hypocrisy. T

China is building tens of thousands of 5G base stations every week. Whether it wins technological dominance or not, domestic supply chains may be revived and allow the country to maintain -- and advance -- its position as the factory floor of the world, even as COVID-19 forces a rethink in how globalization is done. By the end of this year, China will have more than half a million of these towers on its way to a goal of 5 million, a fast climb from around 200,000 already in use, enabling faste

Recently, a BBC reporter, Laura Bicker, wrote via Twitter, “Prosecution in South Korea are asking for an 18-month sentence for a man who stole 18 eggs because he was hungry.” This was the same amount of prison time, the reporter observed, that the court sentenced for the operator of Welcome to Video, the world’s largest-known darknet child pornography site. She also reported that the Seoul High Court said no to the appeal from the US for his extradition to face charges in the

The past is never dead. It’s not even past. William Faulkner’s famous line comes from a harrowing tale about two women in Mississippi. One is a Black nursemaid, Nancy, who is to be hanged for the murder of a baby girl. The other is her white employer, Temple, the child’s mother, who ekes out the semblance of respectable married life. Neither can escape the vengeful reappearance of deeds done many years earlier. Since the killing of George Floyd, a black American man, under th