47, 47 and most important 47!
Whatever the actual outcome of the U.S. presidential election, we hear the magic numbers over and over again. The polls are abundant with close figures and even closer interpretations. It is one of the understandings of the unique country called the United States of America that words and actions can be called free speech and […]
K-pop; pre- and post-Psy
The scene: 8:59 a.m. in the headquarters of “Cool Corea” a music corporation set in darkest Gangnam. In a recording studio sits a spotty youth in torn jeans and a leather jacket, tuning an electric guitar. The door opens. In struts a smart, be-suited gent. Gent: Are you Kool Kim? Congratulations on making it through […]
Pros, cons on voting-hour extension
Presidential candidates sparring over the potential extension of voting hours certainly makes for a great headline. We all care about our basic rights, improving access to the polls and strengthening the electoral power of our social groups and communities, right? Of course we do. But it’s also hard to deny that the debate about voting […]
Obama’s reelection and priorities
WASHINGTON ― Many nations around the world are wondering what Barack Obama’s reelection means to them. Obama won a second term by a narrow 2-percent margin of the popular vote, but with an overwhelming victory of 303 to 206 in the Electoral College, over Republican opponent Mitt Romney. President Obama received almost 7 million votes […]
Will governments agree to kill tobacco farming?
Tobacco farmers around the world will turn their attention to Seoul this week when officials representing more than 170 governments meet to decide their future. The occasion is the World Health Organization’s biennial gathering to amend its Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. This will be the fifth such session since the FCTC went into force […]
Harvard admissions process
Outstanding Korean students who are now agonizing over the college admissions process at top North American universities should take a moment to curse Abbott Lawrence Lowell, president of Harvard University from 1909 to 1933. Concerned that there were too many Jewish students at Harvard, Lowell first tried to implement a quota. Later, he and the […]
No tears for Romney
Now Mitt Romney can go back to doing what he does best, making hundreds of millions off other people’s sweat and tears, investing billions overseas and shipping away the jobs to go with his investments. And he can stop that nonsense about the “blind trust” in which he’d put his fortune, come out of the […]
China and Korea
New governments ought t seek better partnership America finished picking its leader for the next four years yesterday. China will begin a similar, but a very different, process tomorrow: the new Chinese leader has long been decided and will be in charge for a decade. Korea has been paying greater attention to political developments in […]
Cautious approach to wind energy
The capital is awash with advertisements promoting wind energy featuring predictable idyllic depictions of rolling green hills, trees and sunshine. Certainly wind power may have an important part to play in the fight against climate change but what developers never mention are its adverse environmental impacts. In the Republic of Korea in recent years, wind […]
Presidential politics in Korea vs. US
It is only once every 20 years that the Korean and U.S. presidential elections coincide, so the recent campaigns have provided an excellent opportunity to compare how the political systems work in the two countries. The striking impression is that the state of democracy may be in better shape in Korea than in the U.S. […]
Media in Tie-up with The AsiaN 
Trump, Kim, and the Three P’s of Summit Diplomacy: 
