OPINION: US presidential election remains very close

SEOUL, October 28 (AJP) - The United States presidential election will be held on Nov. 5. In analyst Nate Silver's aggregate of national polls, Democrat Kamala Harris leads Republican Donald Trump by 48.6–47.4, a gain for Trump since last Wednesday, when Harris led by 48.8–47.2. Harris' national lead peaked on Oct. 2, when she led by 49.4–45.9. The U.S. president isn't elected by the national popular vote, but by the Electoral College, in which each sta

October 28, 2024

OPINION: How Elon Musk has become powerful figure in US politics

SEOUL, October 25 (AJP) - Elon Musk, whose company SpaceX recently made history by catching a Starship rocket booster as it careened back to Earth, wants you to vote for Donald Trump for many reasons. That includes not just what Trump will do here on this planet, but also for what he'll achieve that's outside this world. "Vote for @real DonaldTrump," Musk recently tweeted, "if you want humanity to be a spacefaring civilization." Back inside the Earth'

October 25, 2024

OPINION: Why more men and fewer white women say they will vote for Trump in US election

SEOUL, October 24 (AJP) - Donald Trump is leading Kamala Harris by 11 percentage points with male voters, according to a recent New York Times poll. Trump is carving out a definitive advantage with U.S. men. While Trump's core support comes from white men, he has also made notable gains with Hispanic-American and African-American men. Though Trump has repeatedly denigrated Hispanics and regularly uses anti-immigrant rhetoric, this has not been a deal breaker for the Latino commu

October 24, 2024

OPINION: Canada's tariff strategy on Chinese EVs- A misstep in trade and climate policy

KARACHI, October 23 (AJP) - Canada’s decision to impose 100 percent tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, with 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum to follow, reflects a critical moment in Sino-Canadian relations. From Beijing’s perspective, these measures are not merely economic sanctions - they represent a broader alignment of Canadian policies with those of the United States. Historically, Canada had pursued a more diversified trade policy, leveraging China&rs

October 23, 2024

OPINION: North Korea and Russia - Alliance of the weak

KENOSHA, October 23 (AJP) - Considerable media attention is directed to reports that North Korea is supplying troops to aid Russia’s war in Ukraine along with workers. In reality, this is simply the latest step closer between two already-close but weak partners. Both struggle today. Moscow’s assumption that Ukraine would be an easy conquest has proven disastrously wrong. As the war grinds on, significant numbers of young men are fleeing Russia rather than being drafted i

October 23, 2024

OPINION: Kim Jong-un sends North Korean troops to fight in Ukraine – here's what this means for war

SEOUL, October 23 (AJP) - It is still unclear how many North Korean soldiers will find their way onto the killing fields of eastern Ukraine. What is clear is that the drive to recruit fighting forces from North Korea is at least in part politically motivated. But is it also a tactical masterstroke that will boost the Russian war machine's chances of a definitive victory? The political aspect appears straightforward. The use of foreign forces from an enemy of the United States de

October 23, 2024

OPINION: Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar's death is defining moment, but it will not end war

SEOUL, October 22 (AJP) - The death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, one of the masterminds behind the group's horrific Oct. 7 2023 attack on southern Israel, is no doubt a consequential moment in Israel's year-long war against Hamas. But is it a turning point? Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sinwar's killing – long a major objective of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) – would signal the "beginning of the end" of the war. But he made c

October 22, 2024

OPINION: What does China want from next US president?

SEOUL, October 21 (AJP) - During a Taiwan National Day speech on Oct. 10, Taiwanese president Lai Ching-te said that Taipei was determined to defend Taiwan's sovereignty against "annexation and encroachment," and emphasized that "China has no right to represent Taiwan." China's response was swift. Less than a week after Lai's provocative speech, a record 153 Chinese war planes swarmed and surrounded Taiwan during a Chinese military exercise over 24 ho

October 21, 2024

OPINION: 'The Apprentice' released so close to polls, this Trump biopic is inevitably political

SEOUL, October 18 (AJP) - "The Apprentice" – a new film dramatizing Donald Trump's business career during the 1970s and 80s – is the latest in a presidential election full of controversy. The movie charts Trump's (Sebastian Stan) professional rise from an awkward nobody to hotshot real-estate tycoon. Trump's Pygmalion-like transformation is credited to his friendship with Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong). Cohn was an infamous prosecutor who worked with Sena

October 18, 2024

OPINION: This year's Nobel prize exposes economics' problem with colonialism

SEOUL, October 17 (AJP) - Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James Robinson have been awarded the 2024 Nobel memorial prize in economics for their influential work on how institutions shape economic development. Some would say the decision to award these scholars the Nobel was long overdue. The paper that formed the basis of their work is one of the most cited in economics. Acemoglu and Robinson’s subsequent book, Why Nations Fail, has also been hugely influential. These wor

October 17, 2024