Well, they did it again! On 2-12-13 North Korea conducted it’s 3rd underground nuclear test….thus pushing it’s ambitious quest for nuclear weapons to the max. In an unintentionally longer rant, the Professor expounds upon 1)Why North Korea did it, 2)the world reaction and 3)Why this test most threatens the status and stability of China over all others. Of course, the US role in all of this is peppered in for halva’ too, as American policy in the Pacific is the one thing that will likely change the most as a result of this nuke test….and the tis part of the problem for China. Cheese-ing China game on!
Keywords: North Korea, nuclear, Kim Jong-Un, test, China, US, South Korea, Japan, missile defense shield, Pacific, security, stability, Cold War, World War
Well, I totally did the podcast on new Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe two days too early! Radical developments in the assignment of his Cabinet and an announcement of a radically increased defense budget have changed the equation of what direction he will be taking Japan in for the coming year…and that direction is hawkish. Tune in to the Professor’s Godzilla-style rant on the particulars of the Samurai Shinzo shenanigans!
Keywords: Japan, LDP. DJP, defense spending, cabinet, defense budget, Senkaku, Yasukuni, hawkish, US relations, self-defense force, TPP, Godzilla, China, South Korea, India, Australia
Yo, wasabi with the Abe? Japan has a new Prime Minister, but he ain’t new to the job! In an effort to get smart, and get back into the swing of things in the plaid podcasting universe, the Professor is launching a run-down of new Presidents and Prime Ministers across the planet…and will possibly revisit some current leaders not likely to survive the year as well. Today’s top dog topic: Shinzo Abe, new Prime Minister of Japan. See what the Professor thinks are the things to watch for in this second round of Abe rule in the land of the rising sun!
Keywords: Shinzo Abe, Japan, LDP. DJP, economy, stagnant, Yasukuni, hawkish, US relations, self-defense force, TPP, Godzilla, China, South Korea
Holy titanic trade tiffs! We got a full-on fight brewing in the Pacific between the future influencers of free trade…one that covertly has the US facing off against China…and you probably didn’t hear a damn thing about it in the US news yet, have you? Was it just a coincidence that all major US officials have been visiting Australia and ASEAN in the last week? Not. Just after the big ASEAN meeting came the bigger EAS meeting, and then on the tail end of that came a surprise announcement: a RCEP trade block is forming up, the largest free trade zone EVER, and it does not include the US! Listen to the Professor rant about how this RCEP is now competing against the TPP for control of the Asia-Pacific soul! And holla back if you are interested at all in this interesting squall!
Keywords: ASEAN, EAS, RCEP, TPP, US, China, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Burma, trade, trade blocks, free trade, New Zealand, India, East Asia Summit, Southeast Asia
Forget Angry Birds, we got some serious Angry Asians! Major animosity is breaking out between China and Japan right now….over a bunch of rocks! Say what? That’s right: the Senkaku aka Diaoyu Islands just north of Taiwan have become a flash point of possible open conflict between the Asian economic titans, although the islands themselves probably aren’t worth two shakes of salt. Listen as the Professor explains the current actions between the irate island hoppers, the history of how it came to this, and the bigger repercussions to the Pacific region, and the world.
Are you a college professor teaching World Regions or Global Political classes? Pick up the cutting edge, most entertainly educating textbook currently on the market.
