I shall not want
I can hear the strains of softly struck gongs and Tibetan singing bowls from within a monastery perched on a high plateau in Central Asia. The temple like structure is steeped in solemnity and the natural wood façade, at times, peeps through the clouds like a castle in a heavenly kingdom. The surrounding plateau has […]
Taiwan acts to mitigate climate change
Mitigating climate change has a direct bearing on humankind’s survival and therefore poses a pressing challenge that the global community must face together. Consequently, despite Taiwan’s special status in international politics and its exclusion from the United Nations Framework C onvention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the government has still endeavored to join the global movement […]
Security Council carousel
UNITED NATIONS ― It’s the annual diplomatic ritual when the 193-member U.N. General Assembly elects five of its members to serve for two-year stints on the powerful Security Council. As can be imagined, the competition is intense to gain real political power and the global limelight on the 15-member Council. The new members are selected […]
Taiwan’s ‘peace initiative’
While the world’s attention has been focused on the rivalry between China and Japan over uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, Taiwan, which has the same territorial claims as China, has come up with what it calls a “peace initiative’’ involving all three parties. On Aug. 5, a month before the Japanese government nationalized […]
Looming uncertainty
Single candidacy must be completed soon With barely 50 days to go before the Dec. 19 presidential election, a mountain of uncertainty looms large. That’s largely because the main standard-bearer of the opposition camp has not been determined yet. Moon Jae-in, the candidate of the main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP), is in a position […]
Asian rivals in US
Washington should be more active judge, arbiter Many Koreans might have felt quite uncomfortable listening to a series of news stories from the United States over the weekend. In New York and New Jersey, some Japanese ultra-rightists ― who else could it be? ― perpetrated acts of vandalism, insulting the victims of the Japanese military’s […]
Rome has come to you
A recent Korea Times editorial advised American-retail store Costco to recall the old saying, “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” Sage advice, sure, but its expiration date has come and gone. That old saying needs to be updated as, “Rome has come to you.” “When in Rome, do as the Romans do” allegedly […]
If election is about women, what are they gaining?
Hey, women! The election is suddenly about you. Sort of. This was supposed to be the election about job creation (although we’re still waiting for specifics). But in recent days it is about President Barack Obama losing women voters to Gov. Mitt Romney. It’s about Republican candidates for the Senate mouthing such absurdities as rape […]
Psy phenomena: World goes Gangnam style
Psy has taken the world by surprise with his global success. Recently the Korean entertainer visited Australia where he is No. 1 in the charts, as he is in more than 30 countries. When he arrived in Sydney, Australian immigration asked him to dance “Gangnam Style.” He appeared on Australia’s “X Factor” and on morning […]
Deepening smartphone woes
The smartphone is a great invention and extremely useful in daily life. However, the rapid distribution of the electronic device has brought about an uninvited guest ― smartphone addiction. The results of a survey released last week by the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education were quite surprising and call for society to act resolutely to […]
Media in Tie-up with The AsiaN 
Trump, Kim, and the Three P’s of Summit Diplomacy: 
