DUBLIN ― The greatest and most undeniable economic achievement of the euro is to have saved the European economy from fracturing in the economic and financial crisis unleashed by the collapse of Lehman Brothers. We know from the example of the 1930s how tempted national governments are to believe in times of economic crisis that devaluation and protectionism will serve the interests of their electors, and how devastating it is for all involved when national governments succumb to that temptation

Viewpoints June 4, 2012

Now that it’s a virtual certainty Mitt Romney will be the Republican presidential nominee, and all the other candidates have likely dozed off with the rest of us during this preliminary series of political skirmishes, it’s time to wipe the sleep from our eyes and get ready for presidential playoffs. What should be included in Romney’s tactical playbook? Here are a few suggestions:― The world isn’t the same as it was when President Obama was elected at the outset of the economic crisis. The whiny

Viewpoints June 3, 2012

Indonesia may have lost a lot more than the opportunity to see Lady Gaga when she canceled her June 3 concert in Jakarta last weekend. The episode could mark the beginning of the end for Indonesia’s civil liberties as radical groups continue unabated in their assault on the nation’s freedoms. Those who care about their freedom should speak up and fight to defend it rather than busily trying to distance themselves from Lady Gaga and whatever it is they believe she represents through her songs and

Viewpoints June 3, 2012

Our long wait for firm and concrete measures to stop the huge waste of taxpayers money on fuel and electricity subsidies has turned out to be futile as what Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono announced through a live television broadcast on Tuesday evening was nothing more than a weak appeal for energy conservation.Utterly inadequate institutional capacity will be the biggest barrier to the implementation of the five measures scheduled to start Friday.The half-baked measures include g

Viewpoints June 1, 2012

As people grow old, they tend to develop a divided personality. A case in point is ex-President Chiang Kai-shek. After he lost the Chinese Civil War and moved his government from Nanjing to Taipei, he assigned his Kuomintang its third task for the Chinese Revolution. The first task, of course, was to topple the alien Manchu government in Beijing. The Kuomintang which Dr. Sun Yat-sen founded succeeded in creating the Republic of China in 1912, but China was a divided country with warlords ruling

Viewpoints June 1, 2012

To see the results of self-defeating U.S. immigration policies, you need only open your browser to www.canadavisa.com. There, you’ll see a shrewd neighbor fishing for talent at U.S. expense. At the top of the website, in large print, is the question: “Currently on an H1B Visa or otherwise working or studying in the United States?” There is nothing subtle about the appeal. Canada is seeking skilled foreigners who’ve grown frustrated with the U.S. visa gantlet, which can take a decade for the luck

Viewpoints May 31, 2012

Choosing a worthy president and commander in chief is not a casual task for voters.Those laboring to compare and contrast President Obama and Mitt Romney on war and foreign policy have a vexing assignment.Obama’s record invites approval and stirs frustration at the same time. He is working to leave Afghanistan, but not fast enough. He recently won support from NATO on a 2014 departure date to follow handing over security responsibilities to Afghan forces in 2013.To its credit, the Obama White Ho

Viewpoints May 31, 2012

This past week South Korea hosted the APEC education summit in Gyeongju ― a certain nod to Korea’s recent rise in the international arena with events such as the 2010 G20 summit and the nuclear summit hosted last month. Korea is making waves in respect to its educational system with statements of affirmation from such luminaries as U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and U.S. President Obama. There are naysayers from within the “trenches” of Korean education who challenge this grand rhetoric, how

Viewpoints May 31, 2012

The curtain has been raised on the 19th National Assembly. The public has high expectations for the new parliament as the legislative procedure for contentious bills has been changed to promote inter-party compromise and prevent unsavory brawls among lawmakers.Yet the behavior of the ruling Saenuri Party and the main opposition Democratic United Party apparently has not changed much. They are reenacting the familiar haggling over the distribution of the chairmanships of the Assembly’s 18 standin

Editorial May 30, 2012

Not a day passes these days without corruption scandals grabbing headlines. On a daily basis, the media reports on corruption allegations involving presidential confidants, government officials, savings bank owners, police officers, etc. So much so that we are getting numb to corruption.For many years, Korea has been committed to fighting corruption. Successive governments have made earnest efforts to crack down on it. As a result of a continued anti-corruption drive, Korean society has become m

Editorial May 30, 2012