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Michael Breen

Michael Breen

The Korea Times

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Was there method in President Yoon's martial law madness?

In the wake of Tuesday night’s on-off declaration of martial law, as bewilderment turned to anger and the nation, it seemed, realized President Yoon...

05.12.2024 30

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

How should Koreans view the second Trump presidency?

A few months ago, as soon as our political leaders figured that Donald Trump might win the presidential election, they asked the United States if...

14.11.2024 20

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Is America's choice Hitler or the commie?

If the pollsters are right this time and the race is that tight, when Americans vote on Tuesday for their next president, the outcome may well depend...

31.10.2024 30

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Will Han Kang's Nobel literature prize make Koreans read books?

Michael Breen When Han Kang won the Nobel Prize this month, people rushed to buy her works. Bookstores reported sales of over 1 million copies within...

31.10.2024 20

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Is America's choice Hitler or the commie?

If the pollsters are right this time and the race is that tight, when Americans vote on Tuesday for their next president, the outcome may well depend...

31.10.2024 30

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Will Han Kang's Nobel literature prize make Koreans read books?

Michael Breen When Han Kang won the Nobel Prize this month, people rushed to buy her works. Bookstores reported sales of over 1 million copies within...

27.10.2024 40

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Could North Korea change its name?

North Korea this month amended its constitution to formalize its abandonment of reunification. It followed up immediately with an announcement that it...

13.10.2024 30

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Would Korea's political discourse gain from courtesy?

When Im Jong-seok, a senior figure in the previous government, recently suggested that South Korea give up trying to take over North Korea and...

03.10.2024 40

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

When the absence of fear is scary

In a discussion recently about young people who don’t bother with relationships or careers, the only Korean man in our group made a point that got...

30.09.2024 20

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

When the absence of fear is scary

In a discussion recently about young people who don’t bother with relationships or careers, the only Korean man in our group made a point that got...

29.09.2024 40

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

With martial law claims, opposition shows it is too frivolous to lead

When the leader of the main opposition party in a stable, advanced democracy hints that the government is planning to introduce martial law, as...

05.09.2024 30

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Will Kim Dae-jung's former home become a cafe?

The news earlier this month that the late Kim Dae-jung’s son had sold the family home in Seoul to the owner of a coffee franchise stirred up the...

22.08.2024 40

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Koreans need to be more confident about modern history

When South Korea’s Olympic athletes were wrongly introduced as North Koreans at the opening of the Paris Olympics, it was a minor error for the...

06.08.2024 10

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

The real fight against bigotry in Korea

Many years ago, I turned up at an office to find the manager I had come to see, going through a pile of papers. As we talked, he continued this task,...

25.07.2024 10

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Frivolous impeachment drive reveals contempt for democracy

Despite Korea’s healthy reputation for feisty politics, the current petition to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol exposes an underlying weakness in...

11.07.2024 20

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Should Ireland, not Germany, now be the model for Korean reunification?

At the beginning of this year, when Kim Jong-un announced he was abandoning reunification, South Koreans were flummoxed and did not know how to react....

30.06.2024 10

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Should Ireland, not Germany, now be the model for Korean reunification?

At the beginning of this year, when Kim Jong-un announced he was abandoning reunification, South Koreans were flummoxed and did not know how to react....

27.06.2024 30

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Envisioning a democratic Northeast Asia

If you were to peer into a crystal ball and summon the best future for Northeast Asia, it is hard not to agree that the region envisioned would be...

13.06.2024 20

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Has North Korea made an unwanted change we never expected?

  For decades now, since the world came to agree with what South Koreans felt all along — that theirs was the better Korea — we have been...

23.05.2024 40

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

Springtime in Korea and the expectation of change

Shortly before Yoon Suk Yeol became president, I sawed down a dozen small evergreen trees in the garden right outside my bedroom window. The new view...

09.05.2024 80

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

How can we understand a possible move to impeach President Yoon?

With the conservatives given a gigantic thumbs down in last week’s elections, everyone is now wondering whether the progressives might try to...

16.04.2024 20

The Korea Times

Michael Breen

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