Penalties meted out to many sumo wrestlers involved in bout-fixing must be a catalyst for eliminating this unseemly practice from the sumo world. The Japan Sumo Association announced Friday (April 1) that it had punished 23 wrestlers and sumo elders who had rigged bouts.The penalties, including “a recommendation to voluntarily retire” and two-year suspensions from sumo tournaments, were imposed on

Viewpoints April 4, 2011

Michele Bachmann, who is basically Sarah Palin with better articulation, appears to be mapping a 2012 Republican presidential bid. Swell. This means we’ll be hearing a lot more about how the socialists are coming to take away our incandescent lightbulbs.Seriously, this is one of Bachmann’s big causes. She happens to be flat wrong on the facts, but people who pay attention to facts probably wouldn’

Viewpoints April 4, 2011

American presidents routinely have been savaged: Abraham Lincoln was called a “hideous baboon,” Dwight Eisenhower a communist and Franklin D. Roosevelt was described with epithets unprintable in this space. Few if any, however, have had the very circumstances of their birth or childhood questioned, until Barack Obama.Claims by the so-called birther movement that the 44th president wasn’t born in A

Viewpoints April 4, 2011

Korea’s per capita income recovered to the $20,000 level last year on the back of robust economic growth and the Korean currency’s gain against the U.S. dollar. According to the Bank of Korea, the nation’s per capita gross national income registered $20,759 in 2010, an increase of $3,566 over the previous year. Korea first crossed $20,000 in 2007 when its GNI per capita reached $21,695. But it dro

Editorial April 1, 2011

As expected, flames of anger have flared up in Busan and Daegu following the government’s decision on Wednesday to scrap President Lee Myung-bak’s election pledge to build an international airport in the southeastern part of the nation. In Busan, infuriated lawmakers of the ruling Grand National Party resolved to promote the relocation of Gimhae International Airport to Gadeok Island on their own.

Editorial April 1, 2011

The unfolding crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant is, of course, not just a problem for Japan alone.The future of the peaceful use of nuclear energy around the world rests with how effectively this country can cope with the situation.Because of a nearly unimaginable natural disaster ― a devastating earthquake and ensuing colossal tsunami ― the Fukushima plant’s reactors, which were c

Viewpoints April 1, 2011

The military in Burma may or may not be ready for meaningful and inclusive dialogue with the opposition as it handed over power on March 30 to the government elected last November. If it were so inclined, it could simply respond to the offer that pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi made last weekend for talks to clear up “misunderstandings.” Even after the new, nominally civilian government take

Viewpoints April 1, 2011

What’s up with the blue jackets?This is suddenly the question I’m getting when speaking with folks overseas or reading my emails. It’s not whether I feel safe, or if I’m drinking Tokyo’s radioactive tap water or if I plan to make a beeline out of the Fukushima zone. It’s why, oh why, are Japanese leaders dressed like auto mechanics?It’s to show, of course, they are in full-blown crisis-management

Viewpoints March 31, 2011

Traces of radioactive iodine, cesium and xenon believed to be from Japan’s quake-damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant have been detected in Korea. But don’t panic. According to the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, the amounts of radiation were far below levels considered dangerous to people.The institute said on Tuesday that it detected iodine-131 at all of its 12 monitoring centers across the

Editorial March 30, 2011

Lawmakers of the National Assembly’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee have drawn ire from listed companies by requiring them to hire at least one “compliance support officer” starting April next year.The new regulation was put into the amended Commercial Code despite opposition from the corporate community. The revision bill passed the panel on March 11 and won approval on the floor the next da

Editorial March 30, 2011

Life satisfaction ― commonly known as happiness ― is what it’s all about. What makes us happy is another matter altogether. The adage that money can’t buy happiness, it turns out, is mostly wrong.If by money we mean luxury cars, McMansions and exquisite jewelry, then there might be some truth to it. If, on the other hand, we mean individual and national well-being, money does buy us happiness.In T

Viewpoints March 30, 2011