Of China, Korean Missile Defense and Makeup Sales

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in , at 7/28/2017 04:03:00 PM
AmorePacific owns several internationally well-known cosmetics brands--especially among PRC buyers. Whew! That post title is a bit of a mess, but believe me (Trump-style) it is accurate. A few weeks ago, I discussed the potential economic hit to South Korea from deploying the US-sourced THAAD missile defense system. The PRC does not want South Korea to deploy it on the Korean peninsula out of concern that its advanced detection capabilities potentially compromise China's military defenses. I like to think that South Koreans are a sensible sort not prone to provoking the Chinese without any sane reason...but maybe nuclear...
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Is Kaspersky Labs a Security Threat to the US?

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in , at 7/27/2017 04:03:00 PM
Is Kaspersky anti-spyware...or is it Russian government spyware? That's the question for US state & local gov't users. Arguably one of the best-known Russian companies in the world is Kaspersky Labs, the maker of anti-spyware software. Cheekily, you may say that if anyone knows how to spy on others online, it's the Russians given that the US presidency is currently enmeshed in several investigations involving Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential elections. Forthcoming additional sanctions against Russia (among others) aside, however, the commercial implications of alleged Russian spying are limited. Consider Kaspersky,...
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Twin Peaks Revival and Critiquing Anti-Globalization

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in at 7/18/2017 05:26:00 PM
Dr. Amp throws the finger [x2!] at global capitalism. After embarking on a fairly lengthy discussion of how Donald Trump should be a hero and not a hate figure of the anti-globalization movement amid violent protests at the recently-concluded G-20 meeting in Hambug, here is something a bit more lighthearted. I've been watching the return of the seminal show Twin Peaks to television after a 25+ year hiatus. Its off-kilter blend of melodrama, tragicomedy, horror, and science fiction has always been appealing to me. However, what caught my attention in the context of anti-globalization was Dr. Jacoby--he of the different...
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Shouldn't Anti-Globalization Activists [Heart] Trump?

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in at 7/07/2017 01:07:00 PM
G-20 Hamburg protests: why the hate for anti-globalization champion Trump? For years, anti-globalization protesters have gone out to all sorts of notable economically-related gatherings worldwide, be they G-7, G-8 or G-20 summits; World Economic Forum gatherings; World Bank and IMF meetings; WTO ministerial conferences, and so on and so forth. The boilerplate accusation is that world leaders betray the interests of the common people in favor of a faceless global capitalist class. To this, the common people must stand up for what they believe in. So far, nothing is new here. What's interesting with the emergence of Donald...
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After Trump Killed TPP, is Japan-EU FTA Imminent?

♠ Posted by Emmanuel in ,, at 7/05/2017 04:03:00 PM
EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom and Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida may have an FTA soon. Given its recent efforts to join the ill-fated Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), Japan actually has an effective grand total of zero [0] FTAs involving more than one country. Yes, it does have one with ASEAN, but it's actually on top of a series of bilateral "economic partnership agreements" with each Southeast Asian member country (except for later accession countries Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar). TPP was to be Japan's first real foray into a plutilateral FTA, but Trump put paid to that. Yet, emboldened by its adventure...
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