The Korea Herald

Mayer could inspire better policy for moms

In announcing that she would soon be a new mother, Marissa Mayer, the new chief executive officer of Yahoo! Inc., made one thing perfectly clear: She wouldn’t be taking maternity leave. More precisely, Mayer said she would grab just a few weeks away from the office and would work at home the whole time. Many been-there-done-that moms scoffed. Just wait until she experiences the labor, the every-two-hours feedings and the moments of intense joy in between, she’ll change her mind. This would not b

July 22, 2012

[Robert B. Reich] Truth about Obama’s tax plan

To hear the media report it, President Obama is proposing a tax increase on wealthy Americans. That’s misleading at best. He’s proposing that everyone ― including the rich ― receive a continuation of the Bush tax cuts on the first $250,000 of their incomes. (If they’re filing singly, the first $200,000.) Any dollars they earn in excess of $250,000 will be taxed at the old Clinton-era rates.Get it? Everyone is treated exactly the same. Everyone gets a one-year extension of the Bush tax cut on the

July 22, 2012

[Robert B. Reich] Truth about Obama’s tax plan

ASEAN is not blind to China’s moves

Philippine Foreign Undersecretary Erlinda Basilio did well to explain ― in print ― “[w]hy there’s no ASEAN joint communique” that came out of last week’s big regional meeting at Phnom Penh. Until I read her essay yesterday, all I had read about was China’s going to town with its “success” at ASEAN, portraying the Philippines as an isolated state pathetically abandoned by its fellow ASEAN countries, all of them bowing before China’s might and meekly going along with the regional bully.Basilio exp

July 22, 2012

Can we learn anything from America?

South Korea is competitively successful and produces excellent students. Families who move to America, even temporarily, find that their children do very well in school. Korean children achieve easily in mathematics, refine their English quickly, and win honors within two to three years in subjects such as science, history, foreign languages, and of course, English! Given the success of Korean students, is there anything to be learned from America? Is there anything Korean families and corporati

July 22, 2012

[Jeffrey Frankel] How the First World got its Keynesian policies all wrong

CAMBRIDGE ― The world’s advanced economies remain divided over whether to strengthen budget balances in the short term or to use fiscal policy to promote recovery. Those worried about the short-run contractionary effects on the economy call the first option “austerity”; those concerned about long-term sustainability and moral hazard call it “discipline.”Either way, the debate is akin to asking whether it is better for a driver to turn left or right; depending on where the car is, either choice m

July 22, 2012

[Jeffrey Frankel] How the First World got its Keynesian policies all wrong

HSBC reminds us why anger at bankers is norm

You have to love the chutzpah at HSBC Holdings Plc. At the very moment it’s asking the courts to remove a ragged band of Occupy Wall Street protesters encamped under its Hong Kong headquarters, the largest European bank is also reminding the world why many people are so angry at bankers. The subject of the anti-Wall Street crusade isn’t much to behold: A few dozen 20-somethings living in tents, lounging on shabby sofas, strumming guitars and handing out pamphlets. Their notoriety is all about lo

July 20, 2012

[Joel Brinkley] Morsi’s silence speaks volumes

Mohammed Morsi has been Egypt’s president for less than a month, and already senior clerics in his country and around the Islamic world are loudly calling for the demolition of the pyramids, Egypt’s most important tourist attraction and among the Seven Wonders of the World.Saudi Sheik Ali bin Said al-Rabi’i called them heinous “symbols of paganism.” In recent days, similar calls have been echoing through Egypt and the region, including one from a Bahraini sheik who urged Morsi to “destroy the py

July 20, 2012

[Joel Brinkley] Morsi’s silence speaks volumes

Clinton’s legacy for Asia hangs in the balance

If U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wants to leave a positive legacy in our region, she must make sure that her constant presence, smile and speeches do not further divide ASEAN and cause discord with other major powers and among countries. Clinton has just made another tour of the region as her tenure in office nears completion. She is not going to take up any post in the next U.S. administration. Whatever she has done in Asia, especially in Southeast Asia, will be gauged carefully from

July 20, 2012

A good start for Libya

The Arab Spring has been a mixed blessing for Western governments. While those governments provided considerable support for the forces battling the old regimes in the region, the overthrow of those autocratic governments has in some cases brought to power Islamic political parties whose commitment to democracy is unclear and which demonstrate considerable enmity to the partners which made it possible for them to come to power.In Libya, however, elections on July 7 produced a victory for a liber

July 20, 2012

[Andy Mukherjee] Asian countries are making the most of a bad year

The symptoms are many, and they are all pointing towards a worrying diagnosis: Asian economies, led by China and India, are rapidly losing steam.Corporate bosses are worried about slowing Asian demand, some of which is already reflected in lackluster company earnings.Meanwhile, Europe continues to cast a shadow on global business sentiment. The recession in the eurozone could yet worsen, and that might make Asian exporters scramble for sales, especially if a much-awaited recovery in global elect

July 20, 2012

[Andy Mukherjee] Asian countries are making the most of a bad year

[Guy Sorman] Japan, U.K.: Islands of isolation

PARIS ― The Japanese and the British may seem very different, but a closer look reveals something akin to a parallel destiny for these two island peoples. With their old imperial ambitions and widespread distaste for the great continents from which the narrowest of seas divide them, both the British and the Japanese are vulnerable to the siren song of isolationism. Unfortunately, both now appear to be succumbing to that dangerous temptation.Perhaps geography is destiny. As islanders, Britons and

July 19, 2012

[Guy Sorman] Japan, U.K.: Islands of isolation

Education’s pendulum: Thinkers or test takers?

The people of a large and mighty nation wonder why their schools can’t do more to imitate those of another large, powerful nation across the Pacific Ocean. But this time it’s not the United States seeking to emulate the schools of an Asian country ― it’s China seeking to emulate ours, at least to some extent.China is pushing for more emphasis on building creative skills and less on high-stress, high-stakes testing, according to a recent article in the New York Times. Under the existing system, a

July 19, 2012

Do business schools incubate criminals?

The recent scandals at Barclays Plc, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and other banks might give the impression that the financial sector has some serious morality problems. Unfortunately, it’s worse than that: We are dealing with a drop in ethical standards throughout the business world, and our graduate schools are partly to blame. Consider, for example, the revelations about two top executives at the elite consulting firm McKinsey & Co., which has avoided public vilification des

July 19, 2012

[Meghan Daum] Sara Palin remains as the GOP’s hangover

Ann Romney is on the record: She would like to see a woman as her husband’s running mate. And so would any number of Republicans who are concerned about their party’s standing with female voters. But for all the excitement that the topic stirs up, don’t hold your breath: It’s unlikely a woman will share the spotlight at the top of the GOP ticket.It’s not for lack of qualified candidates ― former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, Gov. Nikki Haley of South Ca

July 19, 2012

[Meghan Daum] Sara Palin remains as the GOP’s hangover

[Eli Park Sorensen] Aristotle’s ‘golden mean’ and doing the right thing

The recent release of yet another superhero film ― Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight Rises” (2012) ― raises the question of why, and in what sense, these figures still speak to us today. From Superman to Spider-Man, what they all seem to share is an exemplary sense of morality: they are above all moral heroes, unique individuals willing to put their lives at risk to do the right thing at the right time. But if one is not in possession of superpowers and a fancy suit, how does one ever know th

July 19, 2012

[Eli Park Sorensen] Aristotle’s ‘golden mean’ and doing the right thing

[Peter Singer] Verdict on assistance in dying

UTRECHT ― Gloria Taylor, a Canadian, has amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Over a period of a few years, her muscles will weaken until she can no longer walk, use her hands, chew, swallow, speak, and ultimately, breathe. Then she will die. Taylor does not want to go through all of that. She wants to die at a time of her own choosing.Suicide is not a crime in Canada, so, as Taylor put it: “I simply cannot understand why the law holds that the able-bodied who

July 18, 2012

[Peter Singer] Verdict on assistance in dying

Hardheaded socialism pays off in Canada

On July 1, Canada Day, Canadians awoke to a startling, if pleasant, piece of news: For the first time in recent history, the average Canadian is richer than the average American. According to data from Environics Analytics WealthScapes published in the Globe and Mail, the net worth of the average Canadian household in 2011 was $363,202, while the average American household’s net worth was $319,970. A few days later, Canada and the U.S. both released the latest job figures. Canada’s unemployment

July 18, 2012

France, the U.S. and libert or liberty?

France celebrated Bastille Day on Saturday. Like its sister republic on this side of the Atlantic, the French Republic marked its liberation from the yoke of monarchical rule. But despite the shower of fireworks, parades and speeches in praise of liberty, don’t be deceived. Just as America’s red, white and blue is the mirror image of France’s blue, white and red, liberte isn’t quite the same as liberty, especially in the 21st century.We have long known that France is, well, a foreign country. Ta

July 18, 2012

Rotten Apple: Samsung’s fair use of design

Among the chaotic and hectic environment at Apple due to the passing of Steve Jobs, people must try to look past their brand loyalty (to Apple) to fully understand that Samsung isn’t copying Apple’s designs. Does the Galaxy Tab 10 inch tablet intentionally resemble the iPad? Probably. Does the Galaxy Tab create confusion in the market place so that buyers are deceived into thinking the Galaxy Tab is the iPad? No. Fortunately for Samsung, international law regarding copyright infringement (of des

July 18, 2012

Obama-Romney debate over offshoring is both phony and harmful

The U.S. presidential campaign seems to have time-traveled back to 1992, when independent candidate Ross Perot thought he heard the “giant sucking sound” of American jobs moving to Mexico. Perot lost his presidential bid, along with the argument against globalization. The winner, Bill Clinton, went on to sign the North American Free Trade Agreement. The resulting U.S. job losses, primarily in manufacturing, were offset by gains elsewhere, according to numerous studies. Two decades of bipartisan

July 18, 2012