It’s long been a tenet of this country that Americans believe in fair play. But millions are ready to elect a president who believes the rules do not apply to him. And millions more are willing to be convinced that if this man is elected, somehow he will change from a self-centered oligarch to a leader who will put the country first.　It used to be that politics stopped at the water’s edge. That meant that unless a controversial vote on declaring war were involved, presidential candidates did not

The escalating factional rift is plunging the ruling Saenuri Party into a deeper quagmire, prompting speculation that the warring factions may not stay together under one roof.   The latest development surrounds the cancellation Tuesday of the national committee -- believed to have been orchestrated by the loyalists of President Park Geun-hye -- which otherwise would have endorsed the launch of an “emergency” leadership panel and a reform panel. The pro-Park members effectively boycotted the nat

Whether a literary work -- or any other art or cultural product -- receives an award should not be the only yardstick for assessing its value. However, the significance of the Man Booker International Prize given to writer Han Kang for “The Vegetarian” is worth noting.  Han is the first Korean writer to win one of the world’s three most prestigious literature awards, which include the Nobel and Goncourt prizes. The novel written by 45-year-old Han beat works by Nobel laureate Orhan Pamuk and oth

Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif arrived in parliament on Monday with a great cloud of questions hanging over his head, not least of which were the seven questions that the combined opposition had wanted him to answer. He left answering few of them except perhaps the most immediate — there will be a parliamentary committee consisting of both government and opposition members who will draw up mutually acceptable terms of reference for a judicial commission to investigate the disclosures in th

The latest news on the global economic situation seems bittersweet, especially in relation to the impact of low unemployment in the U.S. An improvement in the U.S. economy has two side effects: a positive one in the potential rise in imports from emerging markets and a negative impact in the potential rise in interest rates.Fears of Chinese banking debt, of Japan, of the euro area and more are resurfacing, and predictions from the International Monetary Fund have indicated a negative tone. The p

Having seen “The Three Faces of Eve” and “Sybil,” I imagine Donald J. Trump reclining comfortably in a state of mild hypnosis. “I’d like to speak with John Miller now,” the psychiatrist intones.　The patient rouses, looks momentarily confused, then his eyes brighten in awareness.　“Hello, John,” says the therapist. “Tell me about Donald Trump.”　“Have you met him?” the man who now calls himself “John” replies. “He’s a good guy, and he’s not going to hurt anybody.”　“Right,” says the psychiatrist. “T

On Oct. 21, 2014, Robin Raphel, a former assistant secretary of state, got an urgent call from her daughter, who said that something had triggered the burglar alarm at home. When Raphel arrived, she found FBI agents searching through her files and other personal materials. Raphel frantically telephoned her office at the State Department to ask what was happening; colleagues said they had been instructed not to speak with her. Agents were already rifling her desk at State, and putting up yellow t

The head of the European Union police agency has raised the possibility that the jihadist Islamic State group could conduct attacks on the Euro 2016 soccer tournament in France this summer. He said the tournament was an “attractive target” for terrorists.The Europol warning reminds Europeans of the tragedy in Paris last November during a friendly soccer match between France and Germany.Starting from the opening match between France and Romania on June 10, the Euro 2016 finals will run through Ju

The National Pension Service has announced it will diversify its investment portfolio by actively targeting overseas markets over the next five years, as part of its efforts to raise fund management profitability.Under its plan for the period 2017-21, the proportion of the state pension fund’s investments that are made in global stocks will rise to around 25 percent in 2021 from 13.7 percent in 2015. The overseas bond portfolio will also increase to 5 percent from 4.3 percent over the period.The

Are Americans as stupid as the rest of the world thinks we are?Two conversations — one with a colleague and one with my daughter — left me pondering that question recently.The colleague told me about a visit to our newsroom last summer by a group of foreign journalists and government officials. Why isn’t the American press covering Donald Trump more seriously? they asked. This guy could be your next president.No way, we all thought back then. He’s just a reality TV star. We aren’t that stupid. T

Even by European Union standards, the response to the refugee crisis is a mess. This seems to defy logic: While the crisis is certainly a challenge, human rights -- and, indeed, refugee protection -- is embedded in Europe’s DNA. Moreover, the EU’s aging and demographically challenged member states need immigrants. Yet, instead of spurring solutions, the current crisis has been bringing out all that is ugly, feckless, and dysfunctional about the European project. What happened?As is so often the

For a long time, it looked like Apple had found the key to unlock the Chinese market. A world-famous brand, extensive factories in China and cooperation with the government’s demands led to booming sales of iPhones and other Apple products.Recently, however, the company has discovered that even the best-behaved of Western multinationals may not be able to hold the government’s favor for long. The Chinese government just shut down two of Apple’s key service products, the iBooks Store and iTunes M