It was refreshing to hear expert commentary yesterday on a part of the immigration debate normally blocked out by bickering over the ideal number of brides that should come from China: the tendency for governments to treat children of "mixed" marriages -- normally a Taiwanese husband and a Chinese or Southeast Asian wife -- as an administrative problem rather than an opportunity.

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By J. Bradford DeLong
Now that the dollar has dropped 43 percent from its high against the euro, the process of global financial rebalancing is seriously under way. The US' trade and current account deficits have begun to shrink relative to US and world GDP. Asian current account surpluses are about to start to shrink as well, especially if growth slows markedly in the US in the aftermath of the end of its housing boom.

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By Jeremiah Norris
The WHO makes great sport of taking the pharmaceutical industry to task for its inability to provide everyone in the developing world with the drugs they need. This so-called market failure is being used at negotiations in Geneva this month to bring research and patents under official control, managed by the WHO.

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By Yang Yung-nane 楊永年
Last week a military police captain serving as a security guard in the presidential residence killed himself while on duty. The cause of the suicide is still being investigated. Since President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and his family members were all in the building when the incident occurred, it sent shockwaves through the Presidential Office and the National Security Bureau (NSB).

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With all its doom and gloom, the mock exercise is an attempt to push the issue of US dependence on oil onto the agenda for next year's presidential election
By JOHN M. BRODER
War in Iran. Gasoline rationing. A military draft. A Chinese takeover of Taiwan. Double-digit inflation and unemployment. The draining of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

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For millions of students worldwide, the US' higher education system still represents the global standard
By Shola Adenekan
Sophie Gilbert thinks journalism as a university course is viewed less seriously in Britain than in the US. So when she wanted to pursue a postgraduate degree, she enrolled at New York University.

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