In The News

A Changed World for Korea’s Returnees

Kim Sun-jung July 27, 2005
It is common that people often leave their native country in search of opportunities elsewhere. Several decades ago, many young Koreans left their country and its dictatorial rule hoping to find better things in the U.S. Now, however, despite having found success in the U.S., a certain segment of these Korean ex-pats are returning to Korea, taking on a unique type of “Korean” identity as a...

Chinese Businessmen Learn Western Table Etiquette

Wieland Wagner July 26, 2005
As their economy grows and international trade increases, Chinese businessmen are facing a new challenge in an unlikely setting: dinner meetings. Western etiquette is a mystery to many of these rising business elites, accustomed to using cellphones during dinner and loudly slurping their noodles. Their rescuer is Andy Mannhart, a Swiss businessman who realized the demand for etiquette classes...

The Crossover Queen

July 25, 2005
Most Latino singers who succeed in the lucrative English-language pop market abandon their origins and cease to cater to the Latin marketplace. Shakira, however, recently broke the industry’s conventional wisdom by returning to the Spanish-language market after selling 13 million copies of her first English album – “Laundry Service” – in 2001. Exercising an unusual level of control over her own...

Iraq: This Is Now an Unwinnable Conflict

Patrick Cockburn July 25, 2005
The Iraq war, predicted to be an easy victory, has instead become further confirmation of the Duke of Wellington’s sage warning nearly two centuries ago against getting involved in guerilla war, “Great nations do not have small wars.” As the fighting drags on with no end in sight, reporter Patrick Cockburn argues that it has become a “demonstration of weakness” and stoked the flames of terrorism...

A Stir in Asia

Victor Mallet July 19, 2005
Mounting tensions between China, Japan, and South Korea have brought a wave of nationalism to East Asia over the past year. Taking an increasingly assertive stance on controversial disputes over territory, history, and nuclear weapons, politicians in these three nations have worked excessively hard to promote chauvinistic sentiments in public. Although passionate nationalism is not new in East...

Islamic Extremism: Common Concern for Muslim and Western Publics

July 15, 2005
As last week's terror attacks rekindled fears about Islamic extremism in Europe and the US, many journalists and politicians urged Muslims to take action against the extremists hiding in their midst. But it isn't only the residents of non-Muslim countries who worry about extremism. The latest survey conducted by the Pew Research Center indicates that citizens of Muslim countries share...

The Zapatistas: The Second Stage

Immanuel Wallerstein July 15, 2005
When NAFTA came into effect in January of 1994, the Zapatistas – a group representing the indigenous Mayans in Mexico – revolted in Chiapas, one of the poorest regions in the country, and drew attention to their right to autonomy. For the last 11 years, the Zapatista rebellion has reinvigorated anti-systemic movements around the world. The protests at the 1999 WTO meetings in Seattle, as well...