Lawmakers are bracing for a North Korean provocation as its year-end deadline for the United States to change its policies draws near.Rhetoric is already heating back up, with North Korea reviving its “dotard” insult of President TrumpDonald John TrumpRepublicans aim to avoid war with White House over impeachment strategy New York Times editorial board calls for Trump's impeachment Trump rips Michigan Rep. Dingell after Fox News appearance: 'Really pathetic!' MORE and saying “foolish” U.S. actions have already helped it make a “definite decision” on its next steps.Senators were loath to predict what exactly the unpredictable country might do after its deadline passes. But as analysts forecast a return to intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and nuclear tests, lawmakers warned of rocky times ahead.ADVERTISEMENT“If North Korea goes back to nuclear testing or they go back to ICBM testing, that will destroy their last best chance to have a … [Read more...] about Washington braces as North Korea deadline looms
When north korea and south korea separated
Why South Korea has first-world economy and developing-market currency
South Korea has cast off most of the trappings of a developing economy over the past decade, but it is heading into the 2020s with a currency that is still distinctly emerging market. The Korean won can only be directly exchanged with the dollar and the Chinese currency, with trading overseas limited to the yuan in Shanghai. What's more, the country's $50 billion foreign-exchange market opens for just six-and-a-half hours a day. The country's restricted currency-trading regime -- a hallmark of many emerging markets -- arguably doesn't fit the country's current economic reality. "Authorities are reluctant to let the won trade offshore," said Lee Jang Young, a former deputy governor of the Financial Supervisory Service. "They're scared that any vulnerabilities will be exploited by foreign investors to launch 'speculative attacks' on our markets," said Lee, who is now an senior adviser at law firm Kim & Chang in Seoul. Their fears have deep roots in the Asian financial crisis of the … [Read more...] about Why South Korea has first-world economy and developing-market currency
ISIS Yearns To Be North Korea And Nine More Things You Won’t Believe About These Muslim LUNATICS
Earlier this month, The Atlantic published “What ISIS Really Wants” by Graeme Wood. Wood’s main point in the impressive piece is that al-Qaida and ISIS — also called the Islamic State — are totally different. Their goals are largely different. Their tactics are vastly different. And, in fact, the two groups generally can’t stand each other. Thus, unless they merge, policymakers are making a huge mistake by not treating them differently.Beyond that big picture, though, the details Wood provides are riveting. Here are the 10 most amazing ones. 1. A primary goal of the Islamic State is to purify humankind by murdering and enslaving massive numbers of people. The Islamic State is a caliphate modeled on the government regime proposed in the Koran. Its adherents view the system as a perfect and complete one which cannot be improved.Because the Koran decrees both slavery and crucifixion, the leaders of the Islamic State enthusiastically and … [Read more...] about ISIS Yearns To Be North Korea And Nine More Things You Won’t Believe About These Muslim LUNATICS
Book World: In this U.S. government program, diplomacy has a hip-hop beat
Build: The Power of Hip Hop Diplomacy in a Divided World Build: The Power of Hip Hop Diplomacy in a Divided World Photo: Oxford, Handout Photo: Oxford, Handout Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Image 1 of 1 Build: The Power of Hip Hop Diplomacy in a Divided World Build: The Power of Hip Hop Diplomacy in a Divided World Photo: Oxford, Handout Book World: In this U.S. government program, diplomacy has a hip-hop beat 1 / 1 Back to Gallery Build: The Power of Hip Hop Diplomacy in a Divided World By Mark Katz Oxford. 232 pp. $24.95 --- In late December 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin called a meeting of his cultural advisers to talk about rap music. Like rap's American critics a generation ago - and … [Read more...] about Book World: In this U.S. government program, diplomacy has a hip-hop beat
Remember When Obama Was The Messiah?
President Barack Obama had an approval rating of just 38 percent as of late September and he is having a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad year. This week, the man who once filled arenas like a rock star suffered the indignity of Wisconsin Democrats walking out on him as he stumped for another struggling Democrat, Mary Burke. Obama’s visit to Wisconsin coincided with the disappearance of Burke’s modest lead in statewide polls. She now trails her opponent, Scott Walker, by seven points. (RELATED: Marquette Poll: Walker Opens Up 7-Point Lead)The very same thing happened in deep-blue Maryland last week, where the bleachers reportedly began emptying while Obama was giving a speech. The Republican gubernatorial candidate then enjoyed a nine-point polling boost. (RELATED: Obama Visits Maryland; Democrat Drops 9 Points?) Adding still further to Obama’s misery, a new nationwide poll from Harvard’s Institute of Politics shows his Svengali-like … [Read more...] about Remember When Obama Was The Messiah?
