The main opposition Democratic United Party is seeking to protect its embattled floor leader, Rep. Park Jie-won, no matter what. Park is facing an investigation over allegations that he received more than 100 million won in bribes from two distressed savings banks.To protect Park, a top-notch election strategist, the party is even moving to use the widely criticized practice of creating a “bullet-proof” Assembly ― prolonging Assembly sessions simply to prevent prosecutors from arresting lawmaker

Editorial July 26, 2012

A deadly heat wave is gripping the nation, prompting the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to activate a network of emergency medical facilities to take care of victims of heat stroke.According to the centers, the sweltering heat has already left six people dead nationwide. Heat waves are often called a silent killer as people who die from heat exhaustion show few symptoms of illness.Experts compare the ongoing heat wave to July 1994 when the temperature in Seoul stayed above 32 d

Editorial July 26, 2012

The prospect of Greece leaving the euro is infecting markets again like a recurring case of the Spanish flu. As Greece’s international creditors begin talks in Athens, a few deep breaths and some perspective are in order. Did anyone think Greece wasn’t still at risk of a euro departure? The election of a pro-euro government on June 17 did no more than avoid an instant Greek exit. The challenges that existed before the vote remain, and that was as clear in June as it is now. The latest hyperventi

Viewpoints July 26, 2012

For a century, incomes became increasingly equal across the U.S., as poor states such as Alabama caught up to rich places like California. Economists have long taught this history to their undergraduates as an illustration of the growth theory for which Robert Solow won his Nobel Prize in economics: Poor places are short on the capital that would make local labor more productive. Investors move capital to those poor places, hoping to capture some of the increased productivity as higher returns.

Viewpoints July 26, 2012

This is the last in a three-part series on corporate-governance issues. ― Ed.It is often said that social change can’t occur until what was seen as misfortune is seen as injustice. There is a corollary in the financial world. It says change can’t occur until what was seen as immaterial is seen as risky. That’s happening with executive compensation. Investors are recognizing that excessive pay for chief executive officers does more than shave a few cents off earnings; it also provides important c

Viewpoints July 26, 2012

This is the second in a three-part series on corporate governance issues. ― Ed.When I testify before Congress about corporate governance, I like to watch the faces of the committee members when I explain the rules for electing corporate directors. “I know you, better than anyone else, understand what the word ‘election’ means,” I say. “Well, in the wacky world of public corporations, you win even if 99 percent of the shareholders vote against you.” Except for the fraction of cases where someone

Viewpoints July 25, 2012

Time flies when you’re moving backward. With the federal minimum wage stuck at $7.25 an hour since July 24, 2009, workers now have less buying power than they did in 1997 at the start of the longest period in history without a raise.It took 10 years, from 1997 until 2007, to raise the minimum wage above $5.15. A worker would need $7.36 today to match the buying power of the $5.15 minimum wage in 1997.If you picture raising minimum wage as climbing a mountain, workers have fallen below the spot r

Viewpoints July 24, 2012

This is the first of three articles on corporate governance issues. ― Ed.We don’t let students grade their own exams, but we let CEOs chair their own boards. At 281 of the S&P 500 companies, the chairman is the current chief executive officer. At 38 of the 500, the chairman is a former executive or has some other connection to the CEO or company. And at 72 others, the chairman is listed as an independent outside director, yet a closer look too often reveals relationships that squeezed through lo

Viewpoints July 24, 2012

The Obama administration has quietly issued new bureaucratic rules that overturned the popular welfare reform law of 1996. This illegal move completely undoes years of progress that helped millions of Americans.The 1996 reform replaced the old Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program with a program called Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF). At the core of TANF were federal work standards that required able-bodied welfare recipients to work, prepare for work, or at least

Viewpoints July 24, 2012

The main opposition Democratic United Party is seeking to revise a set of labor laws in its bid to enhance the fundamental rights of workers. Yet the party’s move could undermine the current relative stability in industrial relations. The party is focusing on workers’ rights as part of its campaign to “democratize the economy.” Economic democratization ― a new buzz word among domestic political parties ― involves two key aspects. One is to level the playing field between large and small companie

Editorial July 23, 2012

The Fair Trade Commission has slapped a subsidiary of Lotte Group with a 650 million won ($562,000) fine for providing unfair financial support to a zombie sister company. The fine was imposed on Lotte PS Net, an affiliate that takes care of automatic teller machines installed at the group’s department stores and discount stores. According to the commission, Lotte PS Net purchased a total of 3,534 ATMs between September 2009 and last month. The acquisition was made not directly from the manufact

Editorial July 23, 2012

When I was a little kid, there was a game I used to play while out and about with my family. Every time we came upon an escalator, I’d run ahead and charge up it as fast as I could, just so I could then stand at the top and “pull” everyone else up by the moving handrail. When they joined me at the top, I’d proudly claim full responsibility. No one could escape being pawns in my victory if they were on that escalator. It was their own fault if they didn’t take the stairs.I was about 5 at the time

Viewpoints July 23, 2012