The Korea Herald

‘Contagion’ lurks just outside office bathroom

A terrible wave of germaphobia is spreading across the world, and all of it can be blamed on “Contagion,” the new thriller starring Matt Damon. “It really bothers me,” said a victim of the new germaphobia. “You don’t really know what it’s like.”Actually, I do. But it was never this bad, until now, t

Sept. 20, 2011

[Reza Aslan] Yes to Palestine

Later this month, the Palestinian Authority intends to go before the United Nations to request recognition of an independent Palestinian state. Although there is strong backing for the bid, the United States, in the name of supporting Israel, has stated its willingness to use its Security Council ve

Sept. 20, 2011

[Kim Seong-kon] Americans learning from Asia

We learn from each other. We learn not only from our parents and teachers, but also from our children and students. As a father, I try to convey my experiences to my children whenever necessary, but at the same time, I often learn from them as well. And as a professor, I not only teach my students w

Sept. 20, 2011

[Kim Seong-kon] Americans learning from Asia

Tax reform may be the only deficit reduction plan

Last time we looked in on the congressional “supercommittee,” its members were preparing for a sober task: slashing future federal deficits by ― for openers ― more than a trillion dollars. Yet there was reason to hope this designated dozen really could roam the full realm of government spending and

Sept. 19, 2011

[Zbigniew Brzezinski] Toward universal political culture

WASHINGTON ― A common challenge to all of us is inherent in the ongoing transformation of global politics.Let me begin with three broad assertions, then briefly elaborate on each of them, and conclude by making a modest proposal.― First, global peace is threatened not by utopian fanaticism, as was t

Sept. 19, 2011

[Zbigniew Brzezinski] Toward universal political culture

[Virginia Postrel] Harvard’s freshman pledge values ‘kindness’

When the members of the class of 2015 arrived at Harvard College this fall, they encountered a novel bit of moral education. Their dorm proctors ― the grad students who live with freshmen to provide guidance and enforce discipline ― invited each student to sign a pledge developed by the Freshman Dea

Sept. 19, 2011

[Trudy Rubin] Many Iraqis who helped U.S. still awaiting visas

In July, I wrote about the plight of Iraqis who worked with U.S. soldiers and civilians but face death as “collaborators” when we leave. Their situation remains unresolved.Congress set up a special program in 2008 to grant these Iraqis 25,000 special immigrant visas (SIVs) over five years. Only 3,62

Sept. 19, 2011

[Graciana del Castillo] Economics of peace in Afghanistan

KABUL ― Suicide bombings, assassinations of top Afghan leaders, brutal attacks on Charikar and other places close to Kabul, Afghanistan’s capital, and a rapid increase in civilian deaths from drone attacks are jeopardizing the withdrawal of American and NATO forces from the country. So pervasive has

Sept. 19, 2011

[Graciana del Castillo] Economics of peace in Afghanistan

[Stephen Carter] Google do-gooder discount leaves churches to beg

I am not sure what exactly led Google Inc. to decide to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible by making it harder for religious groups to do their work. But that is the practical effect of a set of changes in pricing policies adopted by the tech giant this year. Until recently, Goo

Sept. 18, 2011

[David Ignatius] Israel and the Arab street

WASHINGTON ― The expanding confrontation between Israel and its neighbors has been described variously as a “train wreck,” a “lose-lose situation” and a “political tsunami.” It’s all those things, and likely to get worse: For there’s no quick fix by Israel’s ally, the United States. The Obama a

Sept. 18, 2011

[David Ignatius] Israel and the Arab street

Euro bonds won’t cure what ails Europe

In recent weeks, euro bonds have gained traction in policy circles as the solution to the sovereign-debt crisis. The proposed debt could be structured in different ways, but in all cases it would imply joint and severally issued obligations by the members of the euro zone and would fundamentally cha

Sept. 18, 2011

[Meghan Daum] Save the nation ― buy now

Remember the famous Stanford marshmallow study of 1972? It asked children at a campus nursery school to choose between eating a marshmallow (or a cookie or a pretzel, depending on their preference) right away or waiting while the researcher stepped out of the room for a period of time, at which poin

Sept. 18, 2011

[Peter Singer] Can we increase happiness?

PRINCETON ― The small Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan is known internationally for two things: high visa fees, which reduce the influx of tourists, and its policy of promoting “gross national happiness” instead of economic growth. The two are related: more tourists might boost the economy, but they woul

Sept. 18, 2011

[Peter Singer] Can we increase happiness?

[Jonathan Weil] European bank blowups hidden with shell games

The last time the world had a major banking crisis, fair-value accounting rules were near the top of the list of scapegoats most likely to be denounced by government and industry leaders. Not so this go-around. Today many of Europe’s largest financial institutions are seemingly on the brink again, d

Sept. 16, 2011

[Robert Reich] Perry’s plan to help blue states

Of all the nonsense Texas Gov. Rick Perry spews about states’ rights and the 10th amendment, his dumbest is the notion that states should go it alone. “We’ve got a great Union,” he said at a Tea Party rally in Austin in April 2009. “There’s absolutely no reason to dissolve it. But if Washington cont

Sept. 16, 2011

[Robert Reich] Perry’s plan to help blue states

Japan’s new trade chief must act on nuke issues

Former chief Cabinet secretary Yukio Edano was named economy, trade and industry minister Monday to succeed Yoshio Hachiro, who resigned over insensitive remarks and actions toward disaster-hit areas.Edano served as secretary general of the Democratic Party of Japan and chief Cabinet secretary under

Sept. 16, 2011

No end in sight 10 years on

Ten years after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, people still remember the collapse of the two World Trade Center towers. But the world has changed in those 10 years. The 9/11 attacks have greatly changed the Middle East, the U.S. and even the world. But it’s hard to tell who has

Sept. 16, 2011

Burma is not changing enough for recognition

The speech by Burmese Foreign Minister U Wunna Muang Lwin to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva earlier this week was very impressive. He discussed at length the progress his country has been making since the new government under President Thein Sein was formed in March. He said Burma

Sept. 16, 2011

[Frank Ching] As China rises, so does fear

The latest issue of Foreign Affairs magazine carries an article on the inevitability of China becoming the next superpower, one of a mounting cascade of articles on America’s decline and China’s rise. For many Chinese, it is high time for their country to regain its rightful place in the world,

Sept. 16, 2011

[Frank Ching] As China rises, so does fear

[Editorial] Abandoning principle?

In his confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Unification Minister-nominee Yu Woo-ik said he would exercise “flexibility in methodology” in relations with North Korea while maintaining a “principled approach” to them. In making this remark, did he mean to be deliberately ambiguous or did he have a probl

Sept. 15, 2011