NEWPORT BEACH ― The U.S. Federal Reserve sparked a global ― and now month-long ― guessing game with its decision on Sept. 18 not to “taper” its monthly purchases of long-term securities. The Fed does not surprise markets often, and this has been especially true of the Ben Bernanke-led Fed, which has devoted enormous time and effort to better communication, greater transparency, and timely management of expectations. Now that President Barack Obama has nominated Fed Vice Chair Janet L. Yellen to

In a negotiation, you might well have more power if you are powerless. Strength can be weakness, and weakness can be strength. Since 2011, these principles have been playing a significant role in conflicts between President Barack Obama and the House of Representatives.To see the general point, suppose that you are a malpractice lawyer, representing a patient in a suit against a doctor. Your client believes that the doctor made a big mistake. He is very angry. He knows a trial wouldn’t be a lot

The government is pushing for an overhaul of energy policy to reduce the nation’s reliance on nuclear power and curb energy consumption. A joint working group consisting of some 60 experts from the public and private sectors has sketched out a new energy policy vision for the government, which differs sharply from that pursued by the preceding administration.President Lee Myung-bak envisioned a “nuclear renaissance” as he regarded nuclear power as the answer to a set of policy challenges ― clima

It is increasingly clear that the Financial Supervisory Service had been well aware of the financial problems of embattled Tong Yang Group before they blew up recently. Evidence shows that the financial regulator failed to do its duty. According to Rep. Kim Ki-shik of the main opposition Democratic Party, the FSS signed a memorandum of understanding with Tong Yang Securities in 2009 to prod the brokerage to reduce its holdings of commercial paper issued by other shaky group affiliates. The broke

Although expressed in very cautious words, the U.S.’ apparent approval of the possibility of Japan’s more active military involvement in the region under the name of “collective self-defense” has become a topic of much discussion in the neighboring countries. The geopolitical implications of this development will certainly be significant in many respects. It is somewhat odd, though, to see this matter being discussed under the theme of “collective self-defense” as the situation envisioned in the

ANTALYA, Turkey ― When President Richard Nixon visited Syria in 1974, Syrians lined the streets of Damascus to greet him. Not all were delighted by his visit, though. “Isn’t that Nixon the same one you have been telling us for years is an evil man who is completely in the control of the Zionists and our enemies?” an eight-year-old boy asked his father. “How could you welcome him and shake his hand?”Today, that boy is president of Syria.Though the United States is currently focused on destroying

It has been a long time since young people in the West chose to move in together before marriage in order to make sure they are compatible. Cohabitation before marriage seems to be a reasonable strategy for couples to get to know each other. Sometimes you find out about your spouse’s fatal flaws after marriage, but at that point, it is too late to regret or undo what has been done. Unlike merchandise at a department store, marriage is not something you can return or exchange within 30 days of pu

WASHINGTON ― Syria’s chemical-weapons arsenal has rightly galvanized international attention. The chemical attacks against civilians have prompted Russia and the United States to put aside diplomatic tensions to devise a plan to eliminate the Syrian regime’s stockpiles. And the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, which has been tasked with executing the Russian-U.S. plan, has just been awarded this year’s Nobel Peace Prize.Obviously, the dangers that such weapons pose do not en

Japan is being treated to a juicy spectacle as two of its richest and most innovative entrepreneurs brawl in public over Internet market share and visions for the future. But what’s most important about the fight between Masayoshi Son and Hiroshi Mikitani is the example it’s setting.The two men have much in common. They are self-made billionaires who founded game-changing technology companies ― Son with mobile-phone carrier SoftBank Corp., Mikitani with e-commerce giant Rakuten Inc. Each is his

WASHINGTON ― “I hate space,” says the character played by Sandra Bullock in the new movie “Gravity,” and you can understand why: It’s an empty void, filled with the wreckage of failed satellites and derelict space stations, a beautiful nothingness where human beings float helplessly, praying for some way to get home. Movies have a way of distilling moments in our culture, and “Gravity” may be the defining film for the lost-in-space year of 2013: Nothing works. Our political system is clogged wit

As the head of a journalism school I have a strong, and obvious, interest in promoting the idea that people who decide to pursue careers as journalists are making a good choice ― that it’ll enable them both to serve a valuable social purpose and, no less important, to make a living.Without a doubt, the news business is in upheaval ― or, to be kind, transition ― and many of the institutions that have made up its core are struggling.But while some of the country’s top news organizations are being

The front-page picture in Korean newspapers told the story of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.South Korea’s President Park Geun-hye, looking frosty and gazing in the opposite direction, ignored Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe standing next to her at the Oct. 7 APEC in Bali. The two leaders barely exchanged greetings, according to a Japanese news dispatch, and kept their contact to a minimum, “only for a few seconds.”The awkward encounter was emblematic of widening gulf between tw

In this period of political dysfunction, we could use some good news. Fortunately, there is some. Small reforms, costing little, can have a major effect on people’s lives.Consider the area of education. Low-income students are less likely to apply to selective colleges than their high-income peers. That’s a big problem, because students who attend selective colleges can obtain significant economic returns, and those returns are especially large for low-income students. What might be done to enco

What is it about the hottest decade in recorded history that’s so hard to understand?The first decade of this millennium ― 2001 to 2010 ― was the warmest since measurements began 160 years ago. The earlier hottest decade was during the 1990s. And the record-breaker before that? The 1980s. These are undisputed facts.Nothing about this steady rise suggests our planet is doing anything but warming. Yet some people who have long resisted the consistency of this trend are now saying that climate chan

The dire effects of the government shutdown reach far beyond the hundreds of thousands of furloughed government workers ― along with all the stores, restaurants and other businesses that rely on them as customers.The shutdown is damaging America’s foreign policy in ways that may not be recoverable. The effects are not as immediately apparent today as, say, the closure of the Lincoln Memorial or the Head Start program hiatus. But how is the U.S. going to remain an important player in the world as

OSAKA ― Territorial and maritime disputes among China, Taiwan, and several Southeast Asian countries are roiling the South China Sea region, with little prospect of resolution anytime soon. But the current uneasy status quo may be tenable, so long as the parties embrace serious confidence-building measures through multilateral forums while maintaining effective deterrence vis--vis China and a commitment not to use offensive force.Naturally, China is eager to exclude interference by extra-regiona

NEW YORK ― When the U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers collapsed in 2008, triggering the worst global financial crisis since the Great Depression, a broad consensus about what caused the crisis seemed to emerge. A bloated and dysfunctional financial system had misallocated capital and, rather than managing risk, had actually created it. Financial deregulation ― together with easy money ― had contributed to excessive risk-taking. Monetary policy would be relatively ineffective in reviving the e

Angela Merkel, known as “Mrs. Nein,” is back for a third term as German chancellor, which is good news for a Europe that needs a grown-up to keep telling it, “No!” Greece, in particular, needs to hear that message as it tries again to evade more of its debt obligations and wiggle out of restrictions on how much its government spends.Merkel sailed to re-election with an impressive 41.5 percent of the vote last month. She is busy forming a coalition government, skillfully playing the Green party a

PARIS ― Over a year ago, I sent my fingerprints for a standard foreign background check to the U.S. State Department in Washington, D.C., along with a money order. Both promptly disappeared, never to be seen again. A personal survey of those around me suggested that this was standard operating procedure ― which is why I suspected that America wouldn’t exactly implode if this kind of federal “service” level was formally kneecapped. Still, in shock there also lies opportunity.Sure, a few politicia

An old friend who has been active in politics for more than 30 years tells me he’s giving up. “I can’t stomach what’s going on in Washington anymore,” he says. “The hell with all of them. I have better things to do with my life.”My friend is falling into exactly the trap that the extreme right wants all of us to fall into ― such disgust and cynicism that we all give up on politics. Then they’re free to take over everything.Republicans blame the shutdown of Washington and possible default on the