[Other view] Trump brawl was politics at its worst

It is a sad indictment on the decline of discourse in this country when a rally in support of the president of the United States devolves into a brawl. But that is what happened in Huntington Beach, California, over the weekend when folks rallying in support of President Trump clashed with anti-Trump protesters. It seems doubtful this is what President Trump had in mind when he promised to be a “president for all Americans” on election night.　“We were expecting it to be more peaceful,” Jordan Ho

March 31, 2017

[Jesse Walker] Story on Russia ties: Credible or kooky?

How do you tell a plausible charge from a fevered fantasy? As allegations drip, drip about President Donald Trump’s purported ties with Russia, most news consumers will want to keep an open mind about potential wrongdoing. But they won’t want to get lost in some eternal connect-the-dots game that never forms a coherent and believable picture. 　There’s a difference between thinking that Moscow may have hacked the Democratic National Committee and thinking that Moscow actually hacked the election,

March 31, 2017

[Other View] Make Brexit about mending, not destroying

The UK has formally served notice that it’s quitting the European Union. Beyond a doubt, this decision was a grave mistake -- but it’s done, and now Britain and its European partners need to arrange the friendliest possible divorce.The EU’s initial posture has been anything but friendly, which is understandable. Britain is the defaulting party and shouldn’t expect gratitude. Europe’s leaders, watching anti-EU sentiment gain ground in other countries, are rightly concerned that various EU exit mo

March 30, 2017

[Leonid Bershidsky] The yellow rubber duck is a potent protest symbol

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic was in Moscow when protesters carrying images of a yellow rubber duck marched against top-level corruption. What he saw was a global ducky conspiracy.　“I don’t believe in coincidences,” Vucic said, according to the Serbian newspaper Novosti. “If someone tells me that different people have thought of the same symbol in Belgrade, Brazil and Moscow, don’t expect me to believe it.”　Vucic’s skepticism is misplaced. The rubber duck has become an unlikely protest

March 30, 2017

[Judith Matloff] Forget fighter jets, we need mules

President Donald Trump has called our military “a disaster,” and he wants to remake it with a $54 billion increase in defense spending. He imagines the cash infusion will go toward big ships, aircraft carriers and fighter jets.　Most experts believe that the world’s largest expeditionary force is actually in good shape. But if a partial overhaul is inevitable, the new administration would be wise to limit flashy, big-ticket items and consider stocking up on mules and ropes for specially trained m

March 30, 2017

[Christopher Balding] China should learn the golden rule　

China appears to be thriving in the age of Trump. Faced with a protectionist US administration in Washington, Communist Party leaders have improbably recast themselves as champions of globalization, free trade and openness. Recently, they’ve admonished Western policymakers to treat Chinese investors more graciously before expecting China to open its own markets further. Greater liberalization, central bank chief Zhou Xiaochuan recently warned, will depend on whether Chinese investors “get better

March 30, 2017

[Dick Meyer] Trump defames way to fortune

President Donald Trump’s craven lies that President Barack Obama had his “wires tapped” are viscerally repugnant and maddening for anyone but the most rabid, delusional Obama-haters.　First, it is destabilizing to realize that a sitting president of the United States has the moral capacity to slander his predecessor egregiously, without regret, guilt or apology after his lies are shown to be just that — lies. And let’s remember, such a man has his finger on the button.　Second, Trump is getting aw

March 29, 2017

[The Sacramento Bee] Trumpcare collapses under the weight of its own lies

Determined to destroy Barack Obama’s signature health care achievement, Republicans in the US Congress and President Donald Trump have insisted the Affordable Care Act is a failure. If it were a car, it would be “missing two tires, leak gas and have a busted transmission.” The health care system is in a “death spiral.” Americans yearn to be freed from this “nightmare.”　Yet on Friday, as Trump and House Republicans conceded a humiliating defeat and pulled their repeal-and-replace bill minutes bef

March 29, 2017

[Dan K. Thomasson] Remember when presidents lived at the White House?

Way back when the United States was just a baby nation, its citizens built a house for their president. Not a palace for a king like the one they had shed, but a democratically suitable residence on a regular street. It was a little larger than many but with a common address — 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue — and was something they could be proud of.　It took very little time for this classic mansion to take on its own identity, separate of its occupant’s, as a place the world knew was the seat of gove

March 29, 2017

[Other View] Trump's tough talk meets bloody reality in Mosul

It’s easy to call for destroying the Islamic State group, as President Donald Trump does to thunderous applause from his supporters.　But our new commander in chief is learning how difficult and bloody war can be -- and he’s starting to stray dangerously close to deepening American involvement in intractable wars.　The US military is investigating whether its weapons killed as many as 200 civilians in Mosul, where a March 17 airstrike was called in by Iraqi troops targeting Islamic State group fig

March 29, 2017

[Other View] Trump's top generals ask congress to join the war on terror

Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Joseph Dunford found something constructive to tell senators on an appropriations subcommittee this week, even if it had nothing to do with the Pentagon budget. The two men challenged lawmakers to finally provide a legal basis for the US war against terrorist groups. It’s something that President Barack Obama was never able to get from Congress. So instead, for his entire presidency, Obama based US counterterrorism efforts abro

March 28, 2017

[In My View] How to reduce youth job unemployment

Give the Labor Ministry credit. They are trying to reduce the stubbornly high unemployment rate among young Koreans, but the latest round of policies to boost South Korea’s youth labor market is simply baffling in certain respects. The fact that the Labor Ministry says it will create a 116.9 billion won ($105.1 million) fund to pay for it is cause for pause. Market economics, including economics of the labor market, is predicated on the belief that properly structured incentives will induce indi

March 28, 2017

[Adam Cohen] Can eugenics be a force for good this time?

We entered a new phase as a species when Chinese scientists altered a human embryo to remove a potentially fatal blood disorder -- not only from the baby, but all of its descendants. Researchers call this process “germline modification.” The media likes the phrase “designer babies.” But we should call it what it is, “eugenics.” And we, the human race, need to decide whether or not we want to use it.Last month, the scientific establishment weighed in. A National Academy of Sciences and National A

March 28, 2017

[Adam Minter] The Great Firewall is a trade barrier

The San Francisco-based photo-sharing site Pinterest would seem to rank low on the list of potential threats to China. Beloved by fashion designers, photographers, cooks and hobbyists, the 7-year-old website is a global hub for the sharing of images, trends and ideas on topics ranging from living-room design to what to cook at your Saturday barbecue.Unfortunately, Pinterest Inc.’s innocuousness couldn’t save it from the same fate as other foreign internet companies in China, including Facebook I

March 28, 2017