In The News

Roh Supports English as 2nd Official Language

October 24, 2003
South Korea's President Roh is throwing his weight behind a plan to make English his country's official second language. The Ministry of Finance and Economy expects to build 100 special zones nation-wide for English education, and several provinces are considering investing some of their own resources into English immersion schools. In a recent survey of 12 Asian countries, South...

Apples and Oranges Are Both Fruit, But…

William S. Turley October 24, 2003
Many US analysts have compared the current conflict in Iraq to the Vietnam War, citing similar trends - lack of support from allies, initial domestic support followed by growing doubt, and faulty intelligence. But, says Indochina expert William S. Turley, the two countries and their respective conflicts are strikingly different, making comparisons to Vietnam quite un-useful in analyses of the...

Most Iraqis Unhappy with Coalition Forces

Maureen Fan October 24, 2003
A poll by an independent think tank shows that Iraqis are less and less enamored of their American 'liberators'. Over half the Iraqis surveyed seriously doubted that US-led coalition forces could improve safety conditions and worried about deteriorating security conditions. When asked about their preferred political model for a post-Saddam Iraq, more chose Iran than the US, although...

Bolivia's Backlash

October 23, 2003
Uncertainty looms over Bolivia again now that isolationist and populist politicians have taken over former President Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada's post. Bolivia is the fourth country that has fallen victim to the trend in Latin America's political leadership of failing to complete presidential terms due to trying circumstances. His forced resignation, which followed violent clashes that...

All Over an Inch of Flesh

October 23, 2003
Last month, two schoolgirls were kicked out of school in France for wearing headscarves, a traditional Muslim symbol. While it is legal to wear religious symbols in school, French law forbids the wearing of certain ostentatious religious signs "that constitute an act of pressure, provocation, proselytism or propaganda." Thus, wearing headscarves is acceptable. But when the girls...

Coming Clean or Playing for Time?

October 23, 2003
Iran will allow a tougher UN nuclear inspection regime to confirm that it is not attempting to build nuclear weapons. Issuing a declaration that Iran says outlines all of its nuclear activities, the country aims to fend off economic sanctions promoted by the United States. Skeptics argue, however, that Iran is only buying time with an extraordinarily vague and voluntary agreement. In fact, says...

Coming Clean or Playing for Time?

October 23, 2003
Iran will allow a tougher UN nuclear inspection regime to confirm that it is not attempting to build nuclear weapons. Issuing a declaration that Iran says outlines all of its nuclear activities, the country aims to fend off economic sanctions promoted by the United States. Skeptics argue, however, that Iran is only buying time with an extraordinarily vague and voluntary agreement. In fact, says...