Since moving to Philadelphia, I’ve often visited the room in Independence Hall where the Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.As July Fourth approached, I felt a special need to return there to pay tribute to the qualities that enabled those men to establish a democratic system. I refer to their ability to compromise and show tolerance for the opinions of ot

Viewpoints July 8, 2011

The growing number of low-cost carriers in Asia in recent years is putting pressure on Japan to reform its commercial aviation system.Two South Korean LCCs have expanded their routes to include service to and from Japan this year, following similar moves by Chinese and Malaysian low-fare airlines last year. Another South Korean LCC is set to start service to Japan in mid-July. Clearly, Asian LCC o

Viewpoints July 8, 2011

Yingluck Shinawatra and her Pheu Thai party have won Thailand’s parliamentary elections, claiming a commanding majority in the legislature. The results are a vindication of sorts for Shinawatra’s brother, former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, deposed in 2006 by a military coup.We say “of sorts” because Thaksin has been vindicated before: Since the coup, Thai politics have been marked by the co

Viewpoints July 8, 2011

When wage earners are asked if they are better off today than before, many will probably be quick to say no. Such an instant response is borne out by new wage figures. Worse still, few signs indicate there will be any significant improvement in the near future.The average monthly real wage per employee was at 2,364,074 won during the first quarter of this year, down 4.08 percent from a year before

Editorial July 7, 2011

Korea’s ardent, decade-long pursuit of the Winter Olympic Games was rewarded when Jacques Rogge uttered one long-awaited word, “PyeongChang.” Its selection as the venue of the 2018 Winter Games in the South African city of Durban on Wednesday sent not just Korean delegates but all Korean citizens glued to the TV back home into ecstasy.PyeongChang’s win over Munich of Germany and Annecy of France w

Editorial July 7, 2011

Forty years ago this month, a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine revealed that sleep-deprived resident physicians reading electrocardiograms made twice as many errors as their rested counterparts. Back then, in 1971, there were no limits on the hours that medical residents could be scheduled to work. Thirty-six-hour on-call shifts were the norm.Under new rules that take effect

Viewpoints July 7, 2011

Self-defense against threats to national security and individual citizens is a core right and duty of all nation-states. No one seriously disagrees. And yet this week, the Mediterranean Sea will once again be the site of a dangerous attack on this basic right.Activists from around the world, seeking to draw attention to the plight of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, plan to launch a flotilla of shi

Viewpoints July 7, 2011

More than 255,000 women have served in the U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan. Twenty-one percent of the 2011 graduating class of sailors at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis were women; of the Marines, 17 percent. The Air Force Academy and West Point graduated similar percentages: nearly 20 percent and more than 16 percent, respectively. All told, women account for nearly 15 percent of activ

Viewpoints July 7, 2011

Upon reports of Korea Exchange Bank’s release of huge dividends to its shareholders, a wave of criticism has been hurled at the Texas-based Lone Star Funds, which will collect nearly a half trillion won from its 51 percent share in the bank. Xenophobia again raises its head in some civic quarters. Radical voices ask financial regulators to stop the U.S. buyout fund’s “eat-and-run” business. The Fi

Editorial July 4, 2011

At a time when America’s economy is hurting, Republican presidential hopefuls call for “restoring American greatness.”So why are Republicans in Congress bent on policies that would hasten U.S. decline?America’s strengths ― which made it the unchallenged global leader ― were based on democratic institutions and economic successes. Other nations sought to copy our economic and political systems beca

Viewpoints July 4, 2011

At periodic intervals, the American body politic has shown a marked susceptibility to messianic fevers. Whenever an especially acute attack occurs, a sort of delirium ensues, manifesting itself in delusions of grandeur and demented behavior.By the time the condition passes and a semblance of health is restored, recollection of what occurred during the interval of illness tends to be hazy. What hap

Viewpoints July 4, 2011

Bank of America on Wednesday announced an $8.5 billion settlement for investors who bought its toxic mortgage bonds before the housing crash.For the homeowners who took out those toxic mortgages, the settlement delivers … nothing.It’s only natural for Americans to feel disgusted in the aftermath of the real-estate bust. People want more sanctions against those who profited during the boom, more re

Viewpoints July 3, 2011