Showing 1 - 10 of 28
Beware of rogue presidents (this time in Korea)
News, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 07/01/2025
» Turning yourself from a democratically elected president into a dictator is a tricky operation, and most people who try it fail. It's called a "self-coup", from the Spanish auto-golpe, and to try it without first gaining the support of the armed forces is sheer lunacy. Yet, from time to time, an elected president tries to do exactly that.
Ukraine War: South Korea to the rescue?
News, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 20/11/2024
» The consensus assumption is still that Donald Trump will force Ukraine to yield to Russia as soon as he takes office on Jan 20. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky himself said on Friday that once Mr Trump becomes president the war with Russia will "end sooner" than it would otherwise have done.
Ukraine's Kursk push -- a bold or risky move?
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 17/08/2024
» Ukraine's cross-border attack into the Kursk region of Russia last week has triggered the usual claims and counter-claims. First, former Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu said that Russia had taken 420 square km of territory from Ukrainian forces since June 14 along the old front line in the east.
South Korea: Very competitive and childless
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 05/03/2024
» There are enough people to go around: eight billion now, compared to two billion less than a hundred years ago. Fifty-one million in South Korea, compared to only twelve million a hundred years ago. So why are South Koreans obsessed about their low birth rate?
Beauty queen shows old habits die hard
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 10/02/2024
» It did not end well for Karolina Shiino, the young woman who won the title of Miss Japan two weeks ago.
The baby bonus just does not work any more
News, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 22/05/2023
» I was one of five children -- not seen as a particularly big family in Newfoundland at the time -- and there was one year when we allegedly beat Guatemala to have the highest birth rate in the world. (That's probably not true, but people were proud of it anyway.)
Iran nukes: End of the road for an agreement
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 20/07/2022
» About six weeks ago Rafael Grossi, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), warned that the attempt to revive the 2015 deal that restricted Iran's ability to enrich uranium was on the brink of collapse. Three or four weeks more without an agreement, he said, would deal the talks a "fatal blow".
South Korea's gender politics getting ugly
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 10/03/2022
» Gender is not the only issue in this week's election in South Korea, but it's the hot-button topic. It's not clear if there was ever a successful sexual revolution in the country, but the counter-revolution is definitely doing well. The 'F-word' (feminism) is being used a lot by both major parties, and not in a good way.
North Korea: The sting in the scorpion's tail
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 02/02/2022
» 'They want to have a deterrence system that is like a scorpion's tail," said Professor Kim Dong Yup, a former South Korean naval commander. "North Korea's main purpose is not to attack but to defend themselves." They want a "diversified deterrent capability", and who could blame them?
The industrialisation of space
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 11/01/2022
» It will be a bumper year for big space launches to the Moon, Mars, and asteroids, including many manned flights, but the real shocker is the number of satellites and spaceships being launched by private companies.