[Editorial] Kim’s Russia visit

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is on his train journey back home after talks with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in Siberia on Wednesday. As expected, their talks focused on Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program and Moscow’s aid to the North. But no fresh ground was broken.At the talks, Kim propos

Aug. 26, 2011

[Editorial] Operating system R&D

The Ministry of Knowledge Economy is planning to initiate an R&D project to help domestic smartphone manufacturers jointly develop a new operating system for mobile devices. According to reports, the ministry intends to launch a consortium this year together with Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics

Aug. 25, 2011

[Editorial] Balanced welfare policy

The nation has lost a precious opportunity to put the brakes on the rising tide of welfare populism as the free lunch referendum in Seoul held Wednesday was declared invalid due to low voter turnout. Only 25.7 percent of the capital city’s 8.4 million-strong electorate voted, falling far short of th

Aug. 25, 2011

[Editorial] End of Geumgang tours?

The project of sending South Korean tourists to a scenic resort in North Korea, suspended since July 2008, is now at the risk of being put to an end as Pyongyang is confiscating South Korean assets in Mount Geumgang on North Korea’s east coast.North Korea, which said on Monday it was legally disposi

Aug. 24, 2011

[Editorial] Soaring household debt

Alarm bells are set off each time the central bank announces data on household debt. But little action has been taken to curb its growth, and the action that has been taken has had little impact. Nothing else explains why household debt has been snowballing.The potential threat that soaring debt was

Aug. 24, 2011

[Editorial] Lessons from Libya

The collapse of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi’s iron-fisted regime appeared imminent on Tuesday as rebels took control of most of Tripoli and seized two of the leader’s seven sons. Rebels briefly celebrated their victory in Green Square, the symbolic heart of Gadhafi’s dictatorial rule.Gadhafi still

Aug. 23, 2011

[Editorial] Vote on welfare populism

Today, Seoul citizens express their views on the controversy over school lunches in a referendum. They are asked to choose between two opposing schemes ― a free-lunch-for-all-students plan supported by the main opposition Democratic Party versus an alternative program from Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon tha

Aug. 23, 2011

[Editorial] Kim Jong-il in Russia

It does not take genius to guess why North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is visiting Russia. Kim desperately needs economic aid, with his country gripped by a chronic food crisis, which has been aggravated by recent floods.Also of great concern to Pyongyang watchers is whether or not he is attempting to

Aug. 22, 2011

[Editorial] Business lobby’s fate

On Aug. 16, the Federation of Korean Industries, the lobby for big enterprises, turned 50 ― the age at which it, were it a person, should “know the will of heaven.” In Confucian philosophy, those aged 50 are thought to be old enough to understand their destiny as mandated by heaven.But the FKI is no

Aug. 22, 2011

[Editorial] Athletics meet in Daegu

The world’s athletics enthusiasts have only five days to wait before the start of the IAAF World Championships in Daegu. The world’s premier track-and-field competition is set to open on Aug. 27 in Daegu for a nine-day run until Sept. 4.Some 2,500 of the world’s greatest athletes from more than 200

Aug. 21, 2011

[Editorial] Estate tax relief for SMEs

The government is seeking to ease the tax burden associated with generational business succession at small and medium-sized family enterprises. Baek Yong-ho, policy planning chief at Cheong Wa Dae, told a meeting of SME executives on Thursday that the government has set out to introduce the German m

Aug. 21, 2011

[Editorial] Little help to tenants

On Thursday, the administration announced a package of policies aimed at curbing the steep rise in home rent ― the third of its kind this year. But it is unlikely to produce its intended outcome, as it fails to address the core problem appropriately ― a chronic shortage in supply.The shortage dates

Aug. 19, 2011

[Editorial] Shift to software

Both Sony and Nokia looked invincible in their heydays. But Sony is now being pushed out of the TV market and Nokia is at risk of being taken over. Behind the fall of Sony and Nokia is the rapid rise of Samsung, Apple and others in their global market share.As the Financial Times recently reported,

Aug. 19, 2011

[Editorial] Curbing health care costs

The National Health Insurance program has a loophole that helps rich people pay a far smaller proportion of their income in premiums than most people. Under the present system, the subscribers are divided into two categories ― the employee insured and the self-employed insured. For employee-insured,

Aug. 18, 2011

[Editorial] Longevity not a blessing?

In the old days, longevity was considered one of the five blessings in Korea, the other four being wealth, health, love of virtue and a peaceful death. Longevity was one of the most common themes in paintings and embroidery pieces, reflecting people’s wish for it.Koreans’ view of longevity, however,

Aug. 18, 2011

[Editorial] New charity foundation

Rep. Chung Mong-joon, his relatives and their Hyundai companies are contributing 500 billion won to inaugurate a charity ― the Asan Sharing Foundation ― in memory of his deceased father, Chung Ju-yung.The Asan Sharing Foundation sets itself apart from many charity foundations established by other bu

Aug. 17, 2011

[Editorial] Cost of unification

All swans were perceived to be white in the West. But what stood this perception on its head was the discovery by a Dutch expedition that found black swans in Australia in 1697. A black swan was no longer an oxymoron.Based on this episode, Nassim Nicholas Taleb, the author of “The Black Swan,” build

Aug. 17, 2011

[Editorial] Balancing budget by 2013

In his Liberation Day address on Monday, President Lee Myung-bak committed himself to balancing the national budget by 2013 when his five-year presidency expires. If he makes good on his promise, it will certainly be remembered as one of his greatest achievements.Fiscal soundness cannot be emphasize

Aug. 16, 2011

[Editorial] Dire economic prospects

Each Aug. 15, the anniversary of liberation from Japan’s colonial rule has served as an occasion for the incumbent president to grandstand. This year’s anniversary was no exception.In his Liberation Day speech on Monday, President Lee Myung-bak enumerated the policies he has pursued for “green growt

Aug. 16, 2011

[Editorial] East Sea or Sea of Korea?

Various arguments are presented in the disputes between nations over geographical names. One can cite legal, political, traditional, historical and academic grounds to justify a preferred name for a certain place. The name of a sea, a gulf or a strait has little legal importance, as it rarely involv

Aug. 15, 2011