[James K. Galbraith] Think again about inflation and the Fed

Two days after the midterm elections in the United States, the Financial Times reported that US inflation has slowed, markets are “giddy,” and the Federal Reserve may now ease up on its interest-rate hikes. The timing was strategic, given that the push from oil prices ended in June, and that overall price changes have been low since July. With the election over, it seems, now it is safe to admit the facts. Just this past August, Harvard economist Jason Furman wrote that “underl

Nov. 22, 2022

2022 Asia 100 years Forum

SUSTAINABLE ASIAN COMMUNITY The Uzbekistan Embassy's deputy chief of mission, Zokir Saidov (third from left) and the Bangladesh Embassy’s First Secretary Samuel Murmu (left) attend the 2022 Asia 100 Years Forum held in Gwangju on Friday. Co-hosted by the Northern Economic and Cultural Center and The Korea Herald, the forum explored ways to cooperate in regional politics, economy, society, culture and environment with a vision of establishing a sustainable Asian community. Philippine

Nov. 22, 2022

[Sławomir Sierakowski] The rocket attack that wasn't

The rocket strike that killed two Poles near their country’s border with Ukraine on Nov. 15 proved to be a test not so much of defense policy as of the information policy of Poland, Ukraine, and NATO. Only the Americans passed. The European allies and Ukraine floundered, revealing a shocking lack of preparation for a scenario that could have been predicted almost from the beginning of the war. Poland is the largest country on NATO’s eastern flank and serves as the most important logi

Nov. 21, 2022

[Elizabeth Shackelford] Will US foreign policy change after the midterms?

Though foreign policy played no real role in the outcome of the midterm elections, that outcome matters for foreign policy. Friends and allies around the world are likely breathing a sigh of relief that the predicted red wave never crashed. Our partners around the globe have been pleased by President Joe Biden’s “America is Back” foreign policy, and all signs point to that direction continuing. Supporters of democracy the world over are also taking comfort in the fact that Dona

Nov. 21, 2022

[Robert J. Fouser] US midterms mark return to stability

The midterm elections in the United States last week upended the political scene. The Republicans had expected to ride a wave of discontent to take control of both houses of the US Congress, but, after more than a week of counting votes, the Democrats remain in control of the Senate. The Republicans will end up with a paper-thin majority in the House of Representatives, not the large margin they had expected. What happened? Historically, the president’s party loses seats in both houses i

Nov. 18, 2022

[David A. Hopkins] Republicans’ underlying problems

Is it Dr. Mehmet Oz’s fault that the “red wave” expected by many Republicans didn’t materialize on Election Day? Did the Pennsylvania Senate candidate violate the physician’s Hippocratic Oath -- “first, do no harm” -- by inflicting severe damage to his own party’s electoral fortunes? You might think so, given the tenor of many post-election analyses. One of the main storylines of this year’s campaign has depicted a dramatic tension between

Nov. 17, 2022

[Kim Myong-sik] Lee Jae-myung’s fate hangs in the balance

“The prosecutors’ job is to protect the people from crimes. Only criminals fear the prosecution that does its job properly. “The true prosecution reform, the real reform of criminal justice system is to establish a just law enforcement system to deal sternly with socially powerful people. There are countries on the earth that can do so and countries that cannot, but the Republic of Korea should be one that can do it. Because the Koreans are great people who have achieved indu

Nov. 17, 2022

[Kim Seong-kon] Lessons from watching US midterm elections

In the US midterm elections on Nov. 8, many political commentators and analysts had predicted a “red wave” or even a “red tsunami” that would have resulted in Republicans’ taking control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives. However, no such thing happened. Instead, Republicans unexpectedly underperformed in the midterm. Expectations do not always match reality. What people thought would happen initially is that the Republican Party would win the el

Nov. 16, 2022

[Reed Brody] More tyrants being brought to justice

Anyone hoping that Russian President Vladimir Putin will soon find himself in the dock of the International Criminal Court should take several long, deep breaths. While Putin’s war of aggression in Ukraine has not gone as planned, his grip on power remains unchallenged. And even if the ICC were to indict Putin for war crimes, it has no police force to arrest him. The international community simply lacks such enforcement tools. But Putin’s accomplices may not be as impervious as the

Nov. 16, 2022

Bulgarian Embassy holds ‘Hidden Letters’ exhibition on Cyrillic, Korean alphabets

The Bulgarian Embassy and Korea Foundation showcased an exhibition on Bulgarian and Korean alphabets at the Korea Foundation gallery in Seoul on Thursday. The embassy presented the "Hidden Letters" exhibition, centered on the Cyrillic alphabet and Hangeul through a vernissage for diplomats, international organizations, local and central authorities, businesspeople and media personalities. Delivering welcome remarks at the exhibition, Bulgarian Ambassador Petko Draganov highlighted the

Nov. 15, 2022

[Cory Franklin, Robert Weinstein] COVID-19's long-term devastation

Halloween is over; Christmas beckons. “Monster Mash” is out; “All I Want for Christmas Is You” is in. Feel-good movies have replaced seasonal zombie and vampire flicks. In the US, our real-life zombie movie is called COVID-19, and it has caused more than 1 million deaths. Along with that, there have been hundreds of thousands of non-COVID-19 excess deaths, and the number of people with long-term disabilities from COVID-19 may top off at a million or more. But no zombie

Nov. 15, 2022

[Sergei Guriev] Disquiet on Western front

The timely release of a new film version of Erich Maria Remarque’s "All Quiet on the Western Front" offers a reminder of the close parallels between World War I and the current war between autocracies and democracies. The fighting now is in Ukraine, but, as in WWI, the broader war has several fronts: the energy front, the grain front and, less well noticed, the Western front. Across Western capitals, autocrat-backed lobbyists, enablers, fellow-travelers and “understanders&r

Nov. 15, 2022

[Serendipity] Mourning, remembering

The concert hall remained eerily quiet as the conductor took his place at the podium. Then, all at once, the solemn sound of “Nimrod” from Elgar’s “Enigma Variations” filled the air. The evocative melody proved cathartic for the audience that had gathered less than a week after a crowd surge in Itaewon left 157 people dead. I saw people silently sobbing, wiping away tears. When the music ended, a minute of silence was observed in tribute to the victims of the countr

Nov. 13, 2022

[Lee Kyong-hee] Prayers for 156 innocent souls and Itaewon

When the Sewol ferry sank in April 2014, claiming 304 lives including 250 high school students, it was simply unbelievable that so many precious lives could be lost in coastal waters. The ferry capsized 24 kilometers off the island Jindo on the southwestern coast, but rescue operations were incredulously ineffective. The botched response severely dented public trust in the Park Geun-hye administration and eventually contributed to her impeachment. The Halloween weekend disaster in Itaewon, in wh

Nov. 10, 2022

[Kim Seong-kon] Incidents undermining democracy and peace

Recently, two events in the news shook the world. One was the tragic disaster in Itaewon that took away the lives of 156 people, including 26 foreigners from 14 countries, who died in a crowd crush while celebrating Halloween in Seoul. The other one was the violent assault on Paul Pelosi, husband of the US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, by a man with a hammer. Pelosi is now recovering from a skull fracture. After the Itaewon tragedy, many people are taking to the streets in anger and grief. A num

Nov. 9, 2022

[Simon R. Hankinson] Real words convey truth on policy

Fighting for the high ground on contentious political issues inspires a partisan twisting of the English language. Take this Oct. 19 news from Immigration and Customs Enforcement that “officers arrested 175 unlawfully present noncitizens with multiple DUI convictions.” “Unlawfully present noncitizens” is how our Department of Homeland Security describes illegal (a synonym for unlawful) aliens (the legal term for noncitizens). In line with open-borders advocates, DHS now c

Nov. 9, 2022

[Mariana Mazzucato] States must lead on climate change

In recent weeks, several members of the Glasgow Financial Alliance on Net Zero -- a group of 450 financial institutions -- have quit over concerns about the cost of delivering on their climate commitments. In dropping out, they have given the lie to the notion that private financial institutions can lead the transition to a carbon-neutral economy. What the transition really needs is more ambitious states that will go beyond market-fixing to become market shapers. The market-led approach is roote

Nov. 8, 2022

[Andrew Sheng] What can the stronger US dollar tell us?

As the Fed raised interest rates by 75 basis points on Wednesday for the fourth time this year, financial markets are beginning to shake. Basically, the interest rate hikes in response to higher inflation is a reversal of nearly two decades of generally declining global interest rates, higher asset bubbles and not surprisingly, anemic growth. The Bank for International Settlements has just issued a paper looking at the policy implications of exchange rate swings. The US dollar index has broadl

Nov. 8, 2022

[Jasen Castillo] Nuclear risks in Russia’s war with Ukraine are real

For the second time in my life, the threat of nuclear war is keeping me up at night. The first occasion was in 1983, when as a child, I sneaked out of my bedroom to watch the TV movie “The Day After.” That movie gave me a healthy appreciation for what a nuclear conflict between the United States and Russia might look like. Now, almost 40 years later, that fear has returned, as Russian President Vladimir Putin issues threats of nuclear use, seemingly to compensate for the poor perform

Nov. 7, 2022

[Martin Schram] Democracy must shatter the hammer

The sound was unmistakable -- and potentially shattering. It was yet another reverberating sound of silence at a time when we needed to hear everyone speak out in condemnation. Thankfully, this time it was not a total silence. But it was an inexcusable silence from far too many famous names from one political party -- the Republicans. A violent attack had just occurred at the San Francisco home of the Democratic speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi. Only by the grace of God, it didn’t end

Nov. 7, 2022