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Welfare and tax increases
Two key words should be fairness, efficiency Like other emerging economies, Korea is moving toward a welfare state, as shown by the competitive pledges presidential candidates are making for various public services free of charge. The problem is financing, more explicitly money, an inconvenient truth most politicians avoid facing. It…
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Hangeul, a uniquely Korean Script
It is an immensely positive sign for the nation that a growing number of foreigners are undertaking the study of the Korean language and Hangeul, the Korean alphabet in the wake of “Hallyu” ― the Korean Wave, which refers to the spread of Korean pop culture around the world. Furthermore,…
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Tragedy in West Sea
China must act resolutely to uproot illegal fishing Another tragedy took place in the West Sea Tuesday and this time, a Chinese fisherman died after being hit by a rubber bullet. It’s sad to continue to see a string of tragic incidents due to illegal fishing by Chinese trawlers in…
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[Indonesia Report] Living in a foreign country is exciting, adventuresome experience
Psy concert in City Hall, Seoul (October 4, 2012) (Photo: www.kzoz.com) Living in a foreign country with different language and cultural background could be an exciting as well as adventuresome experience. Especially when one has to be involved in the society where majority does not adopt English in their daily life. When…
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Collapse of security
Nation’s military and police is like Swiss cheese If we compare countries to humans, today’s South Korea is like a blind person with a hole in its heart. The story of a North Korean soldier who defected to the South earlier this month is closer to a dark comedy. The…
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NK Trojan horse
A new funny “knock knock” joke goes like this. “Knock, knock!” No answer. If you try to listen hard enough, you can hear the “Zzzz” of soldiers sleeping inside. By now, you will understand who this joke is about and will probably no longer be amused. If anyone remains amused…
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Mideast turmoil underscores Turkey’s pivotal roles
The confrontation between Syria and Turkey ratcheted up further Wednesday when a Syrian civilian passenger airplane, suspected of carrying military supplies, was forced to land in Ankara. The Turkish government has ordered civilian aircraft to avoid Syrian airspace. Syrian artillery shelling has led to retaliation in kind. Turkey shelters many…
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[Indonesia Report] Makassar breaks record in attracting most participants to “Gangnam Style” dancing
Korean Pop Singer, Psy, invades the world with his fun and humorous song, titled ‘Oppa Gangnam Style.’ The video clip broke the record of most liked clip in Youtube’s history and spread the Horse Dancing Style to everywhere in the world. Indonesia is one of the countries, full of Psy’s…
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Malala, the girl who stood up against Taliban
Malala Yousafzai is your average 15-years-old girl; she plays with her little brothers, watches cable TV, dreamt of being a doctor and loves going to school. All of that change with her first blog post associated with BBC Urdu, she begins her trip to politics, which eventually led to an…
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Presidential candidates: Are you mad?
So the candidates are declared. Park Geun-hye, Moon Jae-in and Ahn Cheol-soo are running for Korea’s top office. All eyes are on Dec. 19; the games have begun. Why are these candidates running? Perhaps, they are ego-maniacs, seeking to wield the national puppet strings in the most prestigious job in…
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