[Andrew Sheng] Is Asia prepared for deglobalization?

In 2021, the US Director of National Intelligence Report 2040 saw five future scenarios by 2040: shared global challenges, fragmentation, disequilibrium, contestation and adaptation. These five possible outcomes from different structural forces and emerging dynamics comprise (i) a renaissance of democracies (ii) a world adrift (iii) competitive coexistence, (iv) separate silos and (v) tragedy and mobilization. In the post-pandemic condition, which saw a Vaccine Divide and Digital Divide along We

Feb. 27, 2024

[Yoo Choon-sik] Election a test over growth woes

Events regarding central bank policy meetings attract huge attention not only from professional investors but also from many others outside the financial industry in most countries, including South Korea. This attention is understandable, as their policy decisions -- usually concerning short-term interest rates -- impact everyday economic activities across the country indiscriminately. In addition to the policy decision and its underlying factors, the head of the central bank frequently comments

Feb. 27, 2024

[Robert J. Fouser] Turning Seoul’s dead streams into parks

Ask former residents of Seoul, Korean and foreign alike, what they miss most about the city, many will cite the mountains in and around the city. Indeed, few major cities of Seoul’s size have as many accessible mountains as Seoul. But Seoul has another important natural feature: streams. The streams may not be as flashy as the mountains, but in recent years they have played an important role in improving the quality of life in the city. One of the most accessible and popular streams is t

Feb. 23, 2024

[Wang Son-taek] Pyongyang-Tokyo talks a two-edged sword

North Korea and Japan are not hiding signs that they recently had behind-the-scenes talks on a possible summit. While the so-called new Cold War structure is being discussed and worries about the potential war breaking are spreading, interest is increasing rapidly in whether the contact between North Korea and Japan could be a critical event that can change the dynamics of Northeast Asia. It remains to be seen whether the two parties can hold a summit, as there are many obstacles. The most signi

Feb. 22, 2024

[Martin Schram] A week of Valentines and courtship

One way or another, Valentine’s Day week seemed mostly consumed with the complicated courtships of Donald Trump. Anchors with famous faces spent most of the week pinballing between Trump’s criminal and civil cases in courthouses in New York City, Washington, DC, Atlanta and south Florida. They kept us up-to-the-minute on the maneuverings involving 91 charges contained in the four indictments involving America’s 45th president. They include criminal cases focusing on Trump&rsquo

Feb. 22, 2024

[Kim Seong-kon] We should prepare for the worst-case scenario

Watching the deplorable, childish skirmishes between our politicians these days, experts on the Korean Peninsula wonder if South Koreans are sufficiently aware of their precarious situation in the vortex of unparalleled international crises. If they were, our politicians would not indulge in such pathetic political scuffles, while the future of their country is nebulous at best. In the late 19th century, our ancestors were neither good at reading international change nor at foreseeing what lay a

Feb. 21, 2024

[Nabil Ahmed] Cracks in the New Gilded Age

The past 12 years have been extremely good for the ultra-rich. The fortunes of billionaires -- a group comprising the 2,640 wealthiest people on the planet, most of whom are men -- has more than doubled. The wealth gap between the top 0.01 percent and the bottom half of the world’s population has increased by 50 percent since the 2008 global financial crisis. The aftermath of COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine have been particularly lucrative for the ultra-wealthy as they reaped an enormous w

Feb. 20, 2024

[Harry Litman] How verdict will hit Trump empire

Over the course of an 11-week fraud trial before New York Justice Arthur Engoron, Donald Trump practically begged for a harsh verdict. On Friday, he got his wish and then some. Engoron issued a scathing 92-page decision that ordered Trump and his co-defendants to pay $364 million for defrauding the people of New York. And that gargantuan figure actually understates the price tag: With the addition of prejudgment interest required under New York law, Trump is looking at closer to $500 million. Co

Feb. 20, 2024

[Jieun Kiaer] Will translation still be necessary in the AI age?

"Once you overcome the one-inch-tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films." At the 2020 Golden Globes award ceremony, Bong Joon-ho, director of the internationally successful film Parasite, spoke of the one-inch barrier. The one-inch barrier refers to the hurdle of Western, English-speaking audiences when they are faced with watching foreign language films. However, the one-inch barrier that Bong talks about might already belong to the past, now th

Feb. 19, 2024

[Yoo Choon-sik] South Korea’s value-up program and its true goals

South Korean stock prices have been on an unexpectedly strong rally in the past several weeks, even without any significant changes to the generally bleak macroeconomic and corporate earnings prospects, and despite the global geopolitical situation deteriorating further. Market players and commentators broadly attribute the rally to growing hopes among investors that the Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s so-called corporate value-up program, centering around possible requirements on companies

Feb. 19, 2024

[Andreas Kluth] Ditch the ‘Rules-Based International Order’

People have laid down their lives for love, freedom, justice, the fatherland and more. But nobody has ever died clutching the banner of the Rules-Based International Order. It’s time to junk that cliche, and replace it with something more fitting. That’s not only because the term is an Orwellian linguistic atrocity with all the emotive oomph of a Powerpoint slide. It’s also a shibboleth that, when used by American diplomats in particular, makes US foreign policy look hypocritic

Feb. 16, 2024

[Tobias Bunde, Sophie Eisentraut] No one wins in a lose-lose world

If the international community was ever on track toward a more peaceful and just global order, it was during the early post-Cold War years. While global governance was not free of flaws, the risk of a great-power war seemed low, and poverty was declining. Moreover, the initial results of summits dedicated to promoting development and safeguarding the environment raised hopes for breakthrough solutions to humanity’s most pressing problems. But geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty

Feb. 15, 2024

[Kim Seong-kon] ‘If I were born in the 1930s’

There is a trend in Korean social media lately, called “If I were born in the 1930s,” which has tremendous popularity among young people. Artificial intelligence draws your portrait in elegant 1930s-style suits or dresses with stylish hairdos and hats, which obviously appeals to Korean young men and women who are fond of fashionable trends. Ostensibly, nothing seems to be wrong with it. Yet, Koreans in their eighties and nineties may frown because of what the 1930s means in our his

Feb. 14, 2024

[Peter Singer] The competitive edge of doing good

It seems counterintuitive, but in a capitalist economy, doing the most good can provide a competitive edge. I am not referring to businesses that donate a tiny percentage of their profits to charities or tell you that they are reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. I am talking about businesses that donate 100 percent of their profits -- or close to it -- to effective charities that do a lot of good. Newman’s Own, the American food company founded in 1982 by the actor Paul Newman and author A.

Feb. 14, 2024

[Grace Kao] Are pets replacing kids in Korea?

I must confess that I have always had cats. I have no children. However, at least for me, my cats were not a cause or consequence of a child-free life. My husband and I both love cats and we cannot imagine our lives without our furry family members in our household. In fact, our lives with our non-human companions are typical of the average American household. In 2022, the US Census Bureau reported that 70 percent of US households included pets. In contrast, the proportion of households with chi

Feb. 13, 2024

[Yoo Choon-sik] Rescuing South Korea Inc. from complex crisis

Zombies have risen as a prevalent theme across various media platforms, including movies, TV shows, books and art, often serving as metaphors for societal issues and symbolizing the breakdown of social order. Moreover, they spark discussions about economic concepts, such as "zombie companies." A "zombie company" is a term used to describe a firm that persists in operation despite being unable to meet its debt obligations with its operating profits. These entities lack financi

Feb. 13, 2024

[Career Compass] Effective communication key

This is a question I often get asked. Typically, I respond, “Your English is already good enough. Don’t worry and just try it. You will learn by doing.” Despite my sincere encouragement, I usually fail to convince them. “Oh, you are just saying that to make me feel better. You don’t understand because your English must be good,” they say. But I do understand. When I was asked to write this column for The Korea Herald, I had a similar doubt. My first question t

Feb. 10, 2024

[Robert J. Fouser] An argument for more smoking booths

On a recent visit to Seoul, I noticed something that had never caught my attention before: smoking in outdoor nonsmoking areas. As a nonsmoker, I try to avoid secondhand smoke, but I began to look at smoking areas after noticing groups of smokers in front of a restaurant with a no-smoking sign on the side of the building. The sidewalks near the restaurant also had a sign stating that smoking was prohibited and punishable by a fine. I wondered what caused people to ignore the sign, even at the ri

Feb. 9, 2024

[Wang Son-taek] Diplomatic disaster and message management

Relations between South Korea and Russia are facing a severe crisis. The spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry belittled the South Korean president's remarks publicly. Under normal diplomatic relations, disparagement is an entirely unacceptable diplomatic provocation. In response, the spokesperson of the South Korean Foreign Ministry directly criticized the Russian president. It might be self-defensive as a draw because both nations exchanged accusations against each other. However

Feb. 8, 2024

[Mark Gongloff] California floods and Chile fires

After a 2023 filled with climate disasters, 2024 seems in a hurry to top it, with atmospheric rivers in California, wildfires in Chile, drought in Spain and more in just the first weeks. Even as humanity is missing its goals for limiting global warming, nature is reminding us that every tenth of a degree of heat we can avoid will be precious. While Joni Mitchell sang “I’ve looked at clouds from both sides now” at the Grammy Awards in the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Sunda

Feb. 8, 2024