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[ED] Iran's reconstruction & US allies
Editorial

ED Iran's reconstruction & US allies

Reports that a postwar memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran may include a $300 billion reconstruction fund, with contributions expected from allied nations and their corporations, raise important questions about responsibility, burden-sharing and the future of international cooperation. While the U.S. government has not officially confirmed the details, multiple media reports suggest that the proposed agreement would combine sanctions relief, the release of frozen Iranian assets and the creation of a massive reconstruction fund designed to rebuild Iran's economy and infrastructure after years of conflict and isolation. Of particular concern is the suggestion that much of the financing would come not from the United States itself, but from investments by companies based in allied and partner countries, including Korea. If these reports are accurate, the proposal deserves careful scrutiny. Economic reconstruction is an essential component of lasting peace. Yet there is a significant difference between inviting international participation in rebuilding efforts an

3 MIN READ
Bye-bye left and right: Korea's politics needs a new vocabulary
Opinion

Bye-bye left and right: Korea's politics needs a new vocabulary

If you have been following the protests at Seoul's Olympic Park over election mishandling, you will know that the protesters insist they are neither left nor right. Many commentators have welcomed this as evidence of a younger generation's independence from old political loyalties. I think the protesters are onto something more profound: a reality that much of political commentary has yet to recognize. The routine description of Korean politics as a contest between a progressive left and a conservative right no longer describes what is happening. More accurately, it never really did. The two main sides in politics today are descendants not so much of competing ideologies as of two political tribes that originated in historical circumstances that have largely disappeared. A generation ago, when many of today's political leaders were university students, Korean politics was defined by two intersecting divisions. The first separated an authoritarian government that claimed Korea was a "liberal democracy" from a democratic opposition determined to make it one. The ruling establishment justifi

3 MIN READBy Michael Breen
MZ Generation's politics
Opinion

MZ Generation's politics

Thousands of Koreans protested in Seoul to demand a revote after a shortage of ballots in the June 3 local elections restricted some people, including youths, from voting. The election was the first nationwide vote since President Lee Jae Myung took office following the ouster of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, whose 2024 martial law bid led to his impeachment. President Lee Jae Myung has ordered a comprehensive investigation into the ballot shortage. Young people in different countries, from Seoul to Kathmandu, react in surprisingly similar ways when the system fails them. In Korea, millennials and Generation Z — commonly referred to as the MZ Generation — have grown up with high speed internet, economic pressure and skepticism of older political elites. When polling stations ran out of ballots recently, many young voters protested on social media. They organized quick grassroots checks. Some filed formal complaints. This was not a riot. It was civil resistance. Recent youth protests in Nepal, initially triggered by anger over a brief government ban on social media, were fueled by

2 MIN READBy Brabim Karki
Fake news: Paradox of democracy
Opinion

Fake news: Paradox of democracy

Korea was once regarded as one of Asia’s most remarkable success stories. Having endured Cold War division, authoritarian rule and a difficult transition to democracy, it came to symbolize the possibility that political freedom and economic prosperity could advance together. Today, however, Korea has entered an age of deep distrust. Public debate has become increasingly polarized. Questions surrounding the integrity of electoral administration continue to fuel public controversy and deepen political distrust. Trust in the media, the judiciary and public institutions has weakened. How can democratic debate function when citizens no longer trust the same institutions or even agree on the same basic facts? In many respects, that may be the most serious challenge facing Korean democracy today. The government has identified false and manipulated information as a serious threat to democracy and has moved toward stronger regulation. The revised Information and Communications Network Act, scheduled to take effect in July, includes penalties for the circulation of false or manipulated informat

4 MIN READBy Park Jung-won

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Tribune Service

Leftist ‘martyr’ now tries to save his own rear

Many progressives elevated accused killer Luigi Mangione to folk-hero status after he was arrested and accused of gunning down a health insurance executive in cold blood in New York City in late 2024. The horrifically twisted theory is that executing business executives should be celebrated if it seemingly advances some left-wing cause du jour. But it’s quite telling how this leftist vigilante has now gone weak-kneed when it comes to sacrificing for his misguided cause. On Wednesday, CBS News reported that Mangione’s defense “will argue that he was suffering from an extreme emotional disturbance” when he killed Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare. This could allow a jury to convict him on the lesser charge of manslaughter. It’s not an insanity defense, but it is an effort to blame psychiatric problems for Mangione’s actions. “It seems like they are giving up the question of who did it,” legal expert Richard Schoenstein told the network. “This is a defense when you are conceding that he is the person who pulled the trigger. You’re not fighting that anymore. Yo

48m ago
Today in History

FRIDAY, June 19, 2026

1306-The Earl of Pembroke's army defeats Robert the Bruce's Scottish army at the Battle of Methven 1829-Robert Peel introduces the Metropolitan Police Act 1829 into Parliament to establish a unified police force for London, the city's first modern police force 1862-Slavery is outlawed in U.S. territories 1865-Union General Gordon Granger declares slaves free in Texas, now the date the end of slavery is celebrated across the U.S. as Juneteenth 1944-Day one of the two-day Battle of the Philippine Sea, U.S. naval forces defeat the Japanese fleet in World War II 1991-Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar surrenders to police

22h ago
Tribune Service

Missouri's costly cut to young readers

When it comes to preparing young children for successful lives, few factors weigh more heavily than early reading. A Harvard Graduate School of Education study found that reading to children starting very early — even as babies — gives them measurable advantages later over those who don’t have that exposure. The American Academy of Pediatrics reports that “reading together with infants and young children … lays the groundwork for school readiness and long-term benefits throughout life.” Providing kids with that early benefit is surely even more crucial in a state like Missouri, with its chronically underfunded and underperforming education system. Yet, in the latest stark illustration of the skewed priorities of our state’s leaders, Missouri’s new budget guts a nationally lauded, modestly priced book-gifting program for young kids to achieve $4 million in savings — an inconsequential sum in the state’s bigger budget picture. Gov. Mike Kehoe and the Legislature can and must undo this shortsighted mistake. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a renowned program that

1d ago
Tribune Service

Ukraine’s cheap drones and combat robots offer hope for the good guys

When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Washington and Europe expected a quick Russian victory. Russia’s population was more than three times that of Ukraine, its military four times larger and gross domestic product 10 times bigger. The power imbalance was just too great. That Russia was entirely in the wrong meant little. Any realist would tell you Ukraine would fall. Then President Volodymyr Zelenskyy refused to flee, and Russia couldn’t take Kyiv. Observers decided that Ukraine just might be able to stave off defeat, as long as generous U.S. military assistance kept coming. Ukraine faced steep losses but stayed in the fight. Then Donald Trump returned to the U.S. presidency in January 2025. He had spent years blaming Ukraine for being invaded and covering for Vladimir Putin’s war crimes, so it now seemed inevitable that U.S. support would end and Ukraine would lose. U.S. assistance nearly dried up, and Trump pressed Zelenskyy to accept Putin’s terms. Observers in Washington and European capitals began to debate exactly how much territory Uk

1d agoBy Elizabeth Shackelford
Ukraine’s cheap drones and combat robots offer hope for the good guys
Editorial

ED Internal power struggle stirs up DPK

Politics and elections in Korea can often be dynamic. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) is coming apart at the seams even after it won 12 of the 16 metropolitan mayoral and gubernatorial races. Its approval ratings dipped to 38 percent, surprisingly tailing the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) for the first time since President Lee Jae Myung took office. The president's approval ratings dropped to 51.5 percent, according to a Realmeter survey conducted in the second week of June and announced Monday, while another poll conducted by Jowon C&I showed Lee's approval rate at 47.7 percent, the lowest since he took the presidency. Factional strife may be at work in the DPK. The arrogance of the liberal ruling party, with its current grip on the government and the legislature, leaves it unable to read the sentiment brewing and spreading among young voters. DPK leader Jung Chung-rae is in a tough spot, with the party losing the critical Seoul mayoral race during the June 3 local elections. The president has suggested that Jung take responsibility, saying on social media Sunday

1d ago
[ED] Internal power struggle stirs up DPK
Min Seong-jae

Problem of combating fake news in a globalized world

Korea has engineered some of the most stringent anti-fake news measures among the world's democracies. Recent revisions to election laws impose severe fines and prison terms on those who create or distribute political deepfakes during election campaigns. Other legislation allows courts to impose substantial punitive damages on those who deliberately spread false information. In addition, Korea's long-standing defamation laws punish individuals who disseminate false information that harms others' reputations and, in some cases, even truthful statements deemed damaging. These laws target not only organizations but also individual creators and distributors of misinformation. Together, they reflect Korea's broader willingness to regulate harmful information that threatens the healthy functioning of democracy. Given the seriousness of misinformation in modern society, such laws are understandable and, in many respects, necessary. During elections, false information can distort public understanding, manipulate voters and undermine trust in democratic institutions. Yet these measures have al

1d agoBy Min Seong-jae
Problem of combating fake news in a globalized world
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