-
Column
Muslim Brothers: No End Game!
<Hassan Al-Banna(1906~1949), The Founder of Muslim Brothers> The story the Society of Muslim Brothers is related to the life and death of many people, but the most adequate start could be the story of its founder and supreme guide; Hassan AL-Banna (1906~1949). Hassan AL-Banna was born in Mahmudiyya, a village…
Read More » -
Society
Hallyu messengers must learn etiquettes
Editorial: The seven-member hip-hop group Block B (Blockbuster) is under fire for joking about Thailand’s tragic flooding. The band and other K-pop stars need to learn manners. Thai social networking services are abuzz with angry comments critical of one of the group member’s joking about the Bangkok floods which killed…
Read More » -
N. Korea flexes muscles ahead of nuclear summit
North Korea is back in the spotlight. On Wednesday, it launched a verbal assault at South Korea for its scheduled hosting of the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit slated for March 26 and 27. The North’s Central News Agency characterized the global gathering as a grave threat to the Stalinist state,…
Read More » -
The Death of Kim Jong Il: Now What?
After 17 years at the helm of North Korea, the Dear Leader is no more, and suddenly we are faced with a reality on which so much “contingency planning” has been based. So, what can we expect of the next chapter in the North’s political history? And how should the…
Read More » -
A Proposal for a Nuclear Weapons-Free Zone in Northeast Asia
As the Six-Party talks aimed at eliminating North Korea’s nuclear program remain stalled, a fresh approach incorporating the concept of a nuclear weapons-free zone in Northeast Asia should be considered as a way of ensuring peace and security in the region, Morton H. Halperin argues. If the international community…
Read More » -
Politics
Power shift to Asia: no need to panic
On Feb. 15, just as Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping arrived in the United States for a four-day visit, U.S. President Barack Obama told an audience of American workers in Milwaukee: “Manufacturing is coming back!” Coming back from China, that is. But while the Master Lock Company of Milwaukee has indeed…
Read More » -
Column
De-caffeinated courtships
Arguably the most pressing long-term issue confronting millennial Korea is its declining birth rate. According to reports, South Korea today has the fastest aging population on earth. This trend has ominous ramifications. Higher taxes will be required from a dwindling workforce to support an expanding populace of doddering droolers. Insurers…
Read More » -
To the youth on the eve of the graduation
Some people understand one out of ten while others understand ten out of one. Hajin definitely belongs to the latter group. I first met him when I just started teaching Japanese at one of the universities in Cheonan. So, I met him more than 10 years ago. I always remember…
Read More » -
Column
Time to value virtues of moderation, frugality
Editorial: South Korea had long been a Confucian society that respected family values. People attached great importance to four major ceremonies ― coming of age, wedding, funeral and ancestral rites. It was common to observe such occasions in a moderate and frugal way not only because Koreans were poor but…
Read More » -
Column
Seoul needs to pursue diplomatic balance
Editorial: South Korea paid much attention to Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping’s visit to Washington just as other countries did since Sino-U.S. ties are a key factor in ensuring peace, stability and prosperity in East Asia as well as across the globe. Xi won an extraordinary welcome from U.S. leaders…
Read More »