Opinion - The Korea Times

Dream About Asia

By Tom Plate LOS ANGELES ― The Grand Asian Master, no more than a few thousand years old, appeared to me the other night (as he does from time to time) and asked what I wish for these days. This was a dream, of course, but it was a very nice dream, and I didn't want it to end. Here's why - here is what I said to the Master: NORTH KOREA: I told him that I dream of North Korea's "Dear Leader" Kim Jong Il deciding to feed his people instead of his military. I dream he finally concludes that the Six-Party nuclear-disarmament agreement is the only way his country will ever crawl out of the hole because it hugely obligates the West to come to the North's aid. In fact, as the aid pours in, the Dear Leader hands power over to his non-belligerent foreign minister and flees to Libya. Months later the nation is put under UN Trusteeship. JAPAN: I imagine that a cabal of cutting-edge Japanese engineers clones Junichiro Koizumi, a former brilliant prime minister who, amazingly, lasted for a full term and got Japan's polity and economy moving again. With one difference: they manage to extr

Jan 13, 2008By Tom Plate

Tom Plate

Cutting Down on Lust

By Tom Plate LOS ANGELES ― It appears that many mainland Chinese movie-goers are traipsing over to Hong Kong in droves to view the uncensored version of Ang Lee's latest blockbuster, ``Lust, Caution.'' With their feet, in effect, they are voting for lust ― and as if wishing for official Beijing caution to be ``gone with the wind.'' As it is, on the mainland, authorities are allowing their moviegoers only a somewhat de-sexed version of the sexy espionage thriller. In effect, Beijing much prefers the caution part of the Ang Lee film to that other part. The great director Ang Lee himself took the news of the partial censorship calmly and professionally. Perhaps he was quietly pleased that bosses of Beijing were permitting the inherently racy and riveting firm to be shown at all. But serious cinema-philes were expectedly outraged. They note that the director isn't just another Hong Kong or Hollywood hack but the Academy Award-winning director of ``Brokeback Mountain'' and ``Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.'' He is on the level of a Spielberg. He has more creative, artisti

Jan 6, 2008By Tom Plate

Tom Plate

A Lady Is Murdered

By Tom Plate LOS ANGELES ― Perhaps it was the ever-present white scarf, wrapped around her head, as if shouting to us that a woman in her particular culture might not have it so easy, especially if she wanted to change things. Or perhaps it was the simple drama of history exerting a powerful pull that was tugging her back from exile to her native Pakistan, even as the severe dangers of such a return seemed daily more evident. Or perhaps the tense and ultimately tragic saga of Mrs. Benazir Bhutto, facing political crisis in her homeland, attracted America's attention precisely because of its own impending need to make a major political decision about a high-profile woman of ambition. Whatever the reason, the sound of the pistol bullets that have left Bhutto dead have resounded all over the world ― and not the least here in the United States. The Bhutto assassination is a big American news story ― bigger than almost any story out of Asia in recent memory. Even President George W. Bush, at vacation rest, again, was required to slough off evident fatigue and emerge from

Dec 30, 2007By Tom Plate

Tom Plate

Asian Quartet

By Tom Plate LOS ANGELES ― I constantly tell my students that if they only come to understand one area of the world fully, make it Asia. Why the emphasis on Asia, they ask? Well, here is just one of many reasons: In just a few years, something like 90 percent of all PhD-holding scientists and engineers will be living in Asia. Want more? ``Each year," notes the gifted Kishore Mahbubani, dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, and Singapore's former U.N. ambassador, ``India is introducing more gifted people into the global economy than any other society, with the possible exception of China." Still not convinced? Alright then, try this: something like one billion Asians are Muslims (only about 200 million live in North Africa and Europe). So if you're interested in the `Moslem world' ― whatever that might mean ― keep watching Asia. But how best to maintain an intelligent and efficient personal Asia watch? Aside from the obvious ― travel there as much as possible ― read and bookmark the best stuff available. Among the periodicals that students generally

Dec 25, 2007By Tom Plate

Tom Plate

Shameful Practice of Torture

By Tom Plate LOS ANGELES ― There are times when, from a moral standpoint, men and women simply should not remain silent. In such times, seemingly fine lines need to be turned into unequivocal hard lines. This is when the men and women of conscience stand out. Consider the controversy about torture (the universally recognized term for extreme interrogation techniques) that is bedeviling America. It may be hard to believe, but only one serious presidential candidate so far has been outspoken about the need for the U.S. never to use torture. That's right, just one major candidate: The truth is, the U.S. Presidential Primary Campaign is now a study in fuzzy lines. At a time when real potential leaders ought to be standing up, by and large they are falling all over themselves in an attempt to avoid taking firm policy lines that might alienate fifteen potential primary voters. Moral waffling and macho posturing is not the style, on the vital question of torture, for Sen. John McCain. God bless him. And he should know. This candidate for the American presidency spent quantity-t

Dec 20, 2007By Tom Plate

Tom Plate

Merry Christmas, Kim Jong-il!

By Tom Plate LOS ANGELES ― And so the New York Philharmonic, one of the greatest ensembles on planet earth, is to play a gig-for-peace in Pyongyang. The decision to accept North Korea's invitation was announced in New York earlier this week. It must have been music to Kim Jong-il's ears. In the past few years, the North Korean dictator, whose father founded the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in 1948, has been struggling to save his decrepit regime from unraveling any further. To this end, he has had the immediate assistance of Do-Gooders ― like me ― who assume that if the North were to collapse, the entire sovereign mess would crash like a collapsing arctic circle on South Korea. Therefore, if you care a lot about South Korea ― like me ― you can show your love by doing everything you can to keep the North patched together. Dear Leader ― yes, that's the warm appellation up North for the incompetent and cruel Kim ― has also been helped by the professional labors of Christopher R. Hill. This is the veteran State Department official who has devoted a recent h

Dec 13, 2007By Tom Plate

Tom Plate

US View of Australian Election

By Tom Plate Los Angeles ― In a parliamentary system of government, there are no guarantees. You can be in one day and out the next. So if it's any consolation to crestfallen John Howard, ignominiously defeated for re-election as prime minister of Australia last month, it tends to happen this way to the best of them. Winston Churchill saved England from the Nazis and in the end, got booted out of office. Margaret Thatcher all but saved the British economy and was forced out screaming and kicking. But was Howard ― for 11 years the top Aussie ― one of the best? Should he be put into the same breathtaking paragraph as a Churchill or a Thatcher? This big question cannot be answered by mere journalists; we bob on the surface tides of our times only hoping not to sink. So let that question remain the domain of the historians, who have the timeless luxury of diving more deeply ― and at their leisure. All we journalists can report authoritatively ― and in a timely fashion ― is that Howard, like Britain's Tony Blair, is very suddenly gone from center stage. We can also t

Dec 7, 2007By Tom Plate

Tom Plate

New World Economic Order

By Tom Plate LOS ANGELES ― In a storm you can never be sure of who your friends are, where you can hope to duck for cover or to whom you will be deeply thankful when the skies clear and the worst is over. The current world economic storm that's brewing over our heads illustrates this eternal truism perfectly. The almighty American dollar is in trouble ― it has been steadily weakening and may not have hit bottom yet. Americans traveling abroad are feeling this already as the returns on their converted dollars shrivel, increasing their costs and their worries. The dollar's downsizing reflects the overall weakening of the American economy ― and more and more it looks to be recession-bound. So who are the friends who will come to the rescue and help keep things from getting out of hand? The answer is countries and economies that just 10 years ago were basket cases. Remember the Asian financial crisis? For a two to three year stretch in the late nineties, economies now as robust as South Korea's were looking to be hospital-bound. But time ― and economic reform ― can w

Nov 28, 2007By Tom Plate

Tom Plate

Don’t All Muslims Carry Guns?

By Tom Plate BALI, Indonesia ― In the worldwide marketplace of ideas, everything has a measure of value, even a bad idea. A bad idea can sometimes even illuminate the darkest landscape of truth with brilliant flair ― and in a way that mere fact cannot. Consider, for example, the idea that Islam is incompatible with democracy. It's a really bad idea ― but it can serve a very good purpose. For starters, the proposition of Islamic incompatibility with democracy can motivate the most moderate and courteous Muslim to abandon his cool demeanor and mount a defense of his religion and culture with winning passion and charming conviction. That's exactly what happened here when the incomparable and charismatic Anwar Ibrahim took the floor at ``The Asian Century Begins,'' a three-day conference organized by the International Association of Political Consultants (IAPC) last week. Anwar ― a devout and learned Muslim ― served as Malaysia's deputy prime minister from 1993-98, and then served a few years in the slammer as a Malaysian political prisoner. Pardoned after a cha

Nov 19, 2007By Tom Plate

Tom Plate

US Ties With Asia’s Big 3

By Tom Plate LOS ANGELES _ Three of the largest pieces in the sprawling jigsaw puzzle known as Asia are of course China, India and Japan. The first is the most populous country on earth, the second is the most populous democracy and the third is the world's number two economy _ and (theoretically) chief U.S. Asian ally. Recent events show that in its relationship with this Asiatic trio, the United States has serious problems to overcome. Over the near-term, the Sino-U.S. bilateral relationship will probably become more troubled than less. This is not so much because of anything China has been up to _ with the all-important Summer Olympics pending next year in Beijing, the government is doing its best to behave itself. The problem is that the U.S. looks to be entering a bumpy stretch of history. With the dramatic housing downturn showing no sign of bottoming out and an always nervous-making presidential election race looming, external evil villains will need to be found. This is generally the American way when the going gets tough: We blame others. China, with its tr

Nov 14, 2007By Tom Plate

Tom Plate

Read more

Dream About Asia

Cutting Down on Lust

A Lady Is Murdered

Asian Quartet

Shameful Practice of Torture

Merry Christmas, Kim Jong-il!

US View of Australian Election

New World Economic Order

Don’t All Muslims Carry Guns?

US Ties With Asia’s Big 3

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