Monthly Archive: July, 2004

The Unwinnable War on Terror?

The media sing in unanimity that the “distracted” Bush Administration can’t beat the terrorists. Meanwhile, in the space of a year, Libya has gone from honorable mention for the Axis of Evil to quasi-ally (though still mostly despicable), actually catching key remnants of a vicious al-Qaeda linked terrorist group from Algeria. Remember the Millenium Bomb plot? The would be bomber came from Algeria’s radical Islamic insurgency. A few years ago, those groups were poised to make Algeria the next Afghanistan....

The Pointless Talks

Colin Powell is insisting that his meeting with North Korea’s foreign minister was a mere rehash of the two sides’ positions, and that those positions remain far apart. Yet we see how far we have come from our firm insistence that we would not negotiate with North Korea to keep the obligations is already made. If Powell is indeed the leader of the Administration’s wobbly faction, this is still pretty disturbing. Powell understands that people like yours truly will have...

Korea’s Jimmy Carter

The BBC has two recent stories on labor trouble in the Korean auto industry. Hyundai just settled a strike, but at a very high cost in wages that will be passed on to customers, who have already been buying fewer of their cars. Then there’s the brain trust at GM that decided to buy Daewoo. I bet they’re wondering what they were thinking. As most other economies in Asia are rebounding, the Korean economy is in a sustained contraction. Consumers...

That’s Wonk, With an “O”

Check out this story in the Korea Herald on Roh’s new “independent” Korean Multipurpose Helicopter project. This has “Made in South Cholla” written all over for it (for you folks in Washington, South Cholla is to the Korean left what West Virginia is to Robert Byrd). I’m quoted as an “avid military enthusiast.” And while I prefer the more vague description of “Korea watcher,” which might apply to, heck, racing girl fans, for that matter, I will certainly admit that...

Can Hong Kong Win Its Freedom?

It’s a question worth asking after the superb turnout at the July 1st protest. The media can’t quite agree on whether that turnout was 200,000 or 530,000, but it was enough to make the event a big success. The NYT coverage had the most depth. It quoted protest organizers as estimating that 350,000 started the march, and that thousands more joined in along the route. It also reported that the protest’s tone was more confrontational than last year’s, focusing more...

The Unwinnable War on Terror?

The media sing in unanimity that the “distracted” Bush Administration can’t beat the terrorists. Meanwhile, in the space of a year, Libya has gone from honorable mention for the Axis of Evil to quasi-ally (though still mostly despicable), actually catching key remnants of a vicious al-Qaeda linked terrorist group from Algeria. Remember the Millenium Bomb plot? The would be bomber came from Algeria’s radical Islamic insurgency. A few years ago, those groups were poised to make Algeria the next Afghanistan....

The Pointless Talks

Colin Powell is insisting that his meeting with North Korea’s foreign minister was a mere rehash of the two sides’ positions, and that those positions remain far apart. Yet we see how far we have come from our firm insistence that we would not negotiate with North Korea to keep the obligations is already made. If Powell is indeed the leader of the Administration’s wobbly faction, this is still pretty disturbing. Powell understands that people like yours truly will have...

Korea’s Jimmy Carter

The BBC has two recent stories on labor trouble in the Korean auto industry. Hyundai just settled a strike, but at a very high cost in wages that will be passed on to customers, who have already been buying fewer of their cars. Then there’s the brain trust at GM that decided to buy Daewoo. I bet they’re wondering what they were thinking. As most other economies in Asia are rebounding, the Korean economy is in a sustained contraction. Consumers...

Korea’s Jimmy Carter

The BBC has two recent stories on labor trouble in the Korean auto industry. Hyundai just settled a strike, but at a very high cost in wages that will be passed on to customers, who have already been buying fewer of their cars. Then there’s the brain trust at GM that decided to buy Daewoo. I bet they’re wondering what they were thinking. As most other economies in Asia are rebounding, the Korean economy is in a sustained contraction. Consumers...

That’s Wonk, With an “O”

Check out this story in the Korea Herald on Roh’s new “independent” Korean Multipurpose Helicopter project. This has “Made in South Cholla” written all over for it (for you folks in Washington, South Cholla is to the Korean left what West Virginia is to Robert Byrd). I’m quoted as an “avid military enthusiast.” And while I prefer the more vague description of “Korea watcher,” which might apply to, heck, racing girl fans, for that matter, I will certainly admit that...

That’s Wonk, With an “O”

Check out this story in the Korea Herald on Roh’s new “independent” Korean Multipurpose Helicopter project. This has “Made in South Cholla” written all over for it (for you folks in Washington, South Cholla is to the Korean left what West Virginia is to Robert Byrd). I’m quoted as an “avid military enthusiast.” And while I prefer the more vague description of “Korea watcher,” which might apply to, heck, racing girl fans, for that matter, I will certainly admit that...

Can Hong Kong Win Its Freedom?

It’s a question worth asking after the superb turnout at the July 1st protest. The media can’t quite agree on whether that turnout was 200,000 or 530,000, but it was enough to make the event a big success. The NYT coverage had the most depth. It quoted protest organizers as estimating that 350,000 started the march, and that thousands more joined in along the route. It also reported that the protest’s tone was more confrontational than last year’s, focusing more...