[Gregory Rodriguez] Obama: Black and more so

It could have been a historic teaching moment. Instead, President Obama, the most famous mixed-race person in the world, checked off only one race ― black ― last year on his census form. And in so doing, he missed an opportunity to articulate a more nuanced racial vision for the increasingly diverse country he heads.The president also bucked a trend. Last month, the Census Bureau announced that th

April 11, 2011

[Jameel Jaffer] National security: When secrecy is a weapon

In a recent interview with Newsweek magazine, former CIA lawyer John Rizzo spoke with surprising candor about the CIA’s “targeted killing” program. He discussed the scope of the program (about 30 people are on the “hit list” at any given time), the process by which the CIA selects its targets (Rizzo was “the one who signed off”) and the methods the CIA uses to eliminate them (“The Predator is the

April 11, 2011

Hope amid the obstacles in Haiti government

The victory of Michel “Sweet Micky” Martelly in Sunday’s runoff election for the Haitian presidency brought his supporters into the streets to celebrate what many called a complete change from the last 25 years of rule. At this point, however, that’s more wishful thinking than reality.Many obstacles stand in the way of President-elect Martelly’s supporters realizing the positive change that they s

April 10, 2011

[Joseph S. Nye Jr.] A shift in perceptions of power

Last year, when China broke off military-to-military talks after the Obama administration’s long-expected sale of defensive arms to Taiwan, a high American official asked his Chinese counterpart why China reacted so strongly to something it had accepted in the past. The answer: “Because we were weak then and now we are strong.”On a recent visit to Beijing, I asked a Chinese expert what was behind

April 10, 2011

[Editorial] Challenge to ‘time-off’

Tensions are growing between the management and labor of Hyundai Motor Co. over the “time-off” system. The automaker’s trade union is stepping up opposition to the new system as it would drastically cut the number of employer-paid full-time union officials.The time-off system went into effect in July last year. According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, as of March this year, about 90 perc

April 10, 2011

[Editorial] Care for students

A spate of student suicides has pushed the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, one of Korea’s top science universities in Daejeon, into a crisis it has never experienced before. In a short span of three months, four students took their own lives, shocking the school’s students and staff. The latest victim was a 19-year-old sophomore, identified by his surname Park, who jumped to hi

April 10, 2011

[Joshua Long] Detroit’s demise sets up rebirth from grassroots for development

These days it seems impossible to write about Detroit in measured terms. Words like “war zone,” “post-apocalyptic” and “ghost town” are often used. Stories portray it as a dystopian landscape of crumbling Gilded Age monuments, abandoned warehouses and overgrown vacant lots.Recent census data confirms that residents are moving out as fast as wildlife is moving in. A sympathetic tone of urban social

April 10, 2011

[Susan Straight] A noble profession

At a time when teachers and their unions are under fire across the nation, my eldest daughter just had a much-anticipated interview with Teach for America. She will graduate from college in May and hopes to be a teacher in the fall.She was worried that I’d be disappointed she didn’t feel a desire for graduate school.But I was thrilled. Since graduating from college in 1984, I’ve taught GED (Genera

April 10, 2011

Overcoming the nuclear crisis in Japan

The crisis at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant does not warrant optimism. Nuclear fuel in the cores of the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 reactors is believed to have been severely damaged. In the No. 4 reactor’s storage, where spent nuclear fuel is kept, water evaporated at one point, and a hydrogen explosion released radioactive substances into the environment.The governmen

April 8, 2011

[Tim Rutten] Wedge issue that’s losing its point

Wedge issues are the rhetorical enablers of the bitterly partisan politics that have disfigured our national conversation in recent years.They’re the controversial questions on which significant numbers of voters hold views that admit no compromise or nuanced disagreement. Candidates raise them to divide their constituents and to morally discredit their opponents. Abortion is a classic wedge issue

April 8, 2011

Promises made before votes are often broken

Thailand’s Pheu Thai Party’s proposal to give the three southernmost provinces some degree of autonomy sounded like a political campaign platform ― but on closer examination it looks more and more like a cheap ploy to win votes.What’s worse, its proponents are exploiting the sentiment of the Malay Muslims of the deep South, who deserve better.In this heavily centralized country of ours, decentrali

April 8, 2011

[Editorial] China’s message

The Filipino public’s consuming interest in the execution of Sally Ordinario-Villanueva, Ramon Credo and Elizabeth Batain was both melodramatic and inevitable. The three drug mules were the first Filipinos to be executed by China, and their personal narratives mirrored the stories and the self-image of millions of Filipinos, as hardy but unfortunate creatures of circumstance. Little wonder, then,

April 8, 2011