[Christina Seo] Millennials have own ways to access election info

I am a 24-year-old, Korean-American post-grad, and I have been reading about every turn of this year’s presidential campaign entirely on my phone, mostly right before bed. Yes, it is a bad habit, and yes, the blue light is suppressing my pineal gland from releasing delicious melatonin into my brain, but I wouldn’t want to get my news any other way.If in my late-night reading I am not being smothered in “Make America Great Again” Donald Trump Sauce, I am usually consuming article after article ab

April 4, 2016

Downside of the minimum wage fad

Raising wages by government fiat seems to be catching on. The lowest-paid workers in Britain and California — two of the world’s largest economies — are only the latest beneficiaries of plans to lift the minimum wage.The goal in every case is commendable, but the method is far from ideal. On Friday, Britain’s minimum wage will increase to 7.20 pounds ($10.36) an hour for workers age 25 and older, rising each year until it is expected to be above 9 pounds by 2020. California has agreed to set a $

April 4, 2016

[J. Bradford DeLong] Debunking America’s populist narrative

One does not need to be particularly good at hearing to decipher the dog whistles being used during this year’s election campaign in the United States. Listen even briefly, and you will understand that Mexicans and Chinese are working with Wall Street to forge lousy trade deals that rob American workers of their rightful jobs, and that Muslims want to blow everyone up.　All of this fear mongering is scarier than the usual election-year fare. It is frightening to people in foreign countries, who c

April 3, 2016

[Michael R. Bloomberg & Joe Biden] Curing cancer within reach

One of the most frightening words a patient can hear from a doctor is “cancer.” We know it from the experience of our families and friends, and the millions of Americans who hear it directly from their doctors each year.　In President Barack Obama’s final State of the Union address, he compared the effort required to eradicate cancer to a “moon shot,” summoning the American ingenuity and scientific pursuits that sent humankind to the moon. We believe that it’s time for a full and complete nationa

April 3, 2016

[N. Balakrishnan] Hong Kong’s refugee vetting system failing

As anyone who steps out of their home knows, it takes money to travel, and the further away from home you are, the more money it takes. We have to keep this in mind when we read about ill-informed news reports about “penniless” refugees and “asylum” seekers who somehow manage to travel halfway across the world with supposedly not a penny to their name!　Hong Kong has recently seen increasing numbers of people from places such as Somalia, India and Pakistan arriving to seek “asylum.” Logic dictate

April 3, 2016

Looking at the reality of virtual reality

In coming days, people will leave our world for a new realm of gunslingers, cyberbots and other exotic sights. Their ticket out of here will be the Oculus Rift — a $600 virtual reality headset hitting the consumer market.Hmm, even from here we can see, through regular prescription spectacles, that you are unimpressed. You wonder if virtual reality is another goofy, expensive fad like 3-D television. You also remember hearing about Google Glass, the $1,500 augmented-reality eyeglasses that allowe

April 1, 2016

Political dynasties block level playing field

According to the Inquirer’s latest count, at least 542 candidates in the May 9 elections are considered sure winners. Not because of superior odds against their opponent — the result of a better program of governance, perhaps, or a more effective grassroots campaign — but simply by default: They are running unopposed.One may argue, as congressman Arthur Defensor of Iloilo does, that the lack of any adversary in what ought to be an exercise in choosing from a healthy plurality of options is, of a

March 31, 2016

Outdoors in China

Climate change is a new facet of life in developing and emerging economies; keeping with the environmental spirit of the times, China’s 13th five-year plan sets out a path of sustainable development for its economic growth. The country has unveiled new strategies to tackle climate change and the plan is expected to achieve nonbinding targets set at the Paris Climate Conference and will exceed expectations set in the Copenhagen accord of 2009. According to the World Resources Institute, an enviro

March 31, 2016

Japan’s DP must question its ability to take power

The Democratic Party of Japan marked a fresh start as the Democratic Party in the wake of a merger with the Japan Innovation Party.The DPJ lost the reins of government after a House of Representatives election in 2012. Since then, opposition parties have lacked momentum.The DPJ had been unable to regain support, and other opposition parties that labeled themselves as third-pole forces had also run out of steam.If opposition parties that had split into smaller parties are united again, it will sp

March 31, 2016

[Rachel Marsden] The most dangerous form of tyranny is weakness

It isn’t easy to be a strong leader in an era of progressives hell-bent on societal destruction. Refusing to compromise when faced with the tyranny of “progressive” reform is difficult at a time when so many leaders are allowing their countries to slip into oblivion under the guise of some greater leftist “good.”Following the recent Islamic State group terrorist attacks in Belgium that killed at least 35 people and injured more than 300, Belgian police blasted a water cannon at about 200 anti-im

March 31, 2016

[Laura Wharton] Settling the status of Jerusalem is a priority　

Jerusalem is not one city, but two. Nearly 50 years after Israel captured East Jerusalem, the city remains as divided as ever. As its neighborhoods suffer from a new wave of violence, acknowledging this reality is becoming increasingly urgent. Settling the status of Jerusalem – as two cities, one for Israelis and one for Palestinians – must be made a priority if peace between the two sides is ever to be achieved.The 1947 United Nations Partition Plan called for the division of British-controlled

March 30, 2016

The children of Fukushima: When medical tests mislead

Five years ago, the Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster spread deadly radiation by land and by sea. In the years since, Japan and the rest of the world have learned many lessons about why the reactor failed and how to prevent another such catastrophes. But one of the most intriguing lessons of Fukushima involves hundreds of thousands of Japanese children potentially exposed to excessive radiation.Japanese public health officials were aware of an increased incidence of thyroid cancer in Russia

March 30, 2016