[Richard Parker] The debt ceiling debacle: Buckle up, folks

Here we go again.The debt ceiling debacle that is unfolding in Washington is not about ideology and it’s not even about putting the nation’s fiscal house in order. It’s not even really about the American people. This is about appeasing just one group of people: the people on Wall Street. And before this is over, watch out for a Wall Street panic, which ultimately breaks the deadlock.So far, the St

July 28, 2011

[Albert R. Hunt] Debt fight is secondary to jobs in 2012 election

For all the frenzy in Washington on debt and deficits, President Barack Obama’s political strategists realize jobs are more important in next year’s elections; they see the two different scenarios. In one, voters conclude that while the incumbent is a nice fellow, the administration’s policies have failed, the economy isn’t getting better and whatever the reservations about the opposition, change

July 28, 2011

[Jeffrey Goldberg] Husain Haqqani, hardest working man in D.C.

Life for many members of Washington’s diplomatic corps is, one imagines, pretty much a picnic. For example, the ambassador from Barbados generally faces no career-threatening crises. Nor does the ambassador from Luxembourg. Others have trickier assignments. The ambassador from Yemen, Abdulwahab Abdulla al-Hajjri, can’t be having an easy time lately, especially since his brother-in-law is his count

July 27, 2011

[Editorial] Youth recruit quotas?

The June job figures showed that the employment rate of women in their 50s, which was at 59.3 percent, was higher than those of men in their 20s (58.5 percent) and women in their 20s (59.2 percent).One commentary said the high rate of employment for women in their 50s cannot be welcomed wholeheartedly, adding that elderly women are driven into the job market as their sons and daughters have diffic

July 27, 2011

[Michael Smerconish] Trust misplaced even among the wariest

Muslim extremists. American heroes. Betrayed confidences. Barren landscapes. It’s the stuff of a summer thriller, but sadly, Joby Warrick’s spellbinding book “The Triple Agent: The al-Qaeda Mole Who Infiltrated the CIA” is a work of nonfiction. And in the end, nine individuals ― including seven CIA operatives ― were killed.Why was a young Jordanian doctor named Humam al-Balawi, who had never been

July 27, 2011

[Ron Paul] Default and take medicine now, or suffer a more expensive crisis later

Debate over the debt ceiling has reached a fever pitch in recent weeks, with each side trying to outdo the other in a game of political chicken. If you believe some of the things that are being written, the world will come to an end if the U.S. defaults on even the tiniest portion of its debt. In strict terms, the default being discussed will occur if the U.S. fails to meet its debt obligations, t

July 27, 2011

Will Bachmann’s migraines give GOP a headache?

Migraine sufferers are all around us. Twelve percent of Americans ― almost one in eight ― are occasionally affected, and most of them don’t retire to a dark room for four days to recover.If you’re one of the afflicted, chances are you have a fairly strong opinion about whether U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann’s migraines are a deal breaker in her campaign for president. That opinion is likely based on h

July 26, 2011

[Chung Dooeum] Jiang Jieshi and Chinese Communist Party

China has emerged as a major world power. The country’s emergence from obscurity into planned modernization has surprised many. The introduction of a market economy has released the Chinese people’s previously-repressed desire for material wealth, while giving them the means to attain it as well. Would China have been able to achieve the same economic progress under a non-Communist regime, say und

July 26, 2011

[Jon Lee] What SC First Bank needs to do to resolve disputes

The following is a personal letter to SCB Group CEO, Peter Sands, from Jon Lee, a management consultant, for resolving current disputes at SC First Bank in Korea. ― Ed.Dear Mr. Sands,This letter is written in the hope that it can help resolve the current stalemate situation in Korea ― which is detrimental to everyone involved the longer it drags on.I write to you directly as you hold the key to re

July 26, 2011

Republicans grandstand in theater of the absurd

A British parliamentary committee hearing into the transgressions of media baron Rupert Murdoch offered a surprising Benny-Hill pie-in-the-face moment on Tuesday. But the day’s Academy Award for legislative farce still went to the U.S. House of Representatives.By a margin of 234 to 190, House Republicans rammed through a bill labeled “Cut, Cap and Balance,” the purpose of which is to Starve, Gut a

July 25, 2011

[Jeffrey Scott Shapiro] Tabloids don’t deserve the First Amendment

The FBI opened an inquiry late last week into Rupert Murdoch’s media empire amid allegations that British reporters tried to access cellphone messages and records of Sept. 11 victims. Rep. Peter T. King, R-N.Y., among the members of Congress who sought the investigation, wrote to FBI Director Robert Mueller, citing news reports that reporters attempted to obtain phone records of victims through br

July 25, 2011

[Doyle McManus] Doomsday doubters and the debt-ceiling debate

President Barack Obama says that if Congress doesn’t raise the debt ceiling by Aug. 2, the consequences will be dire. A long list of economists and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce agree. Even the Republican leader in the U.S. Senate agrees.But there’s also another view.Many House Republicans ― even those who believe the debt ceiling must be raised ― aren’t buying the doomsday scenario. And they’re no

July 25, 2011