“Closing the Debate on Supplementary Investigative Authority.”.

• Did Jeong Cheong-rae (former Democratic Party leader) ultimately prevail?
• Until now, Jeong had pushed to abolish supplementary investigative authority, while Lee Jae-myung (President) insisted it should be allowed in exceptional cases. The Blue House and the Democratic Party had diverged in their stances, until the President deferred to the National Assembly during his first-year press conference, saying, “Let the legislature decide.”
• Yesterday, Kim Min-seok (Prime Minister) held a press briefing and stated, “The government has finalized the abolition of supplementary investigative authority as its official position.” He explained, “We judged it more efficient and desirable not to submit a government bill to the National Assembly.”
• Kang Yu-jeong (Blue House spokesperson) remarked only that “the government’s position has become clearer.” This implies discussions occurred between Kim Min-seok and Lee Jae-myung.
• In the end, the supplementary investigative authority issue—which nearly escalated into a party-government conflict—seems to have been resolved in favor of Jeong Cheong-rae’s stance, at least for now.
• Related Link.

Jeong Cheong-rae’s Framing War.

• Jeong Cheong-rae sought to elevate prosecutorial reform as a central issue for the party convention. His argument: only he could finalize the reform as party leader.
• But Kim Min-seok (Prime Minister) stepped in, drawing a line by declaring supplementary investigative authority “not a key issue.”
• Kim’s remark—“We proposed handling it in May but postponed it at the party’s request”—is telling. It implies Jeong is now backtracking.
• Jeong posted on Facebook that same morning: “Abolish supplementary investigative authority completely—now.”
• After Kim’s press conference, he added: “I pray with clasped hands this isn’t a year of wasted time or a delaying tactic.”
• Jeong aimed to amplify his presence through this issue and challenge Kim Min-seok, but the dynamics have shifted.
• Related Link.

Pro-Presidential Faction Seethes.

• Kim Young-jin (Democratic Party lawmaker) said, “Is supplementary investigative authority a panacea?” adding, “Demanding a yes-or-no vote whenever it’s needed—like a universal remedy—is authoritarian.”
• Choi Eun-seok (People Power Party spokesperson) criticized, “They’re shaking the nation’s criminal justice system just to win applause from hardline supporters,” adding, “What’s collapsing isn’t the prosecution but the basic rights citizens should rightfully enjoy.”
• Some view Kim Min-seok’s stance as a bid for ideological purity.
• A senior advisor to the Prosecution Reform Task Force, interviewed by Kyunghyang Shinmun, remarked, “They’ve turned a bill many worked to prepare—solely to become party leader—into a wasted effort.”
• Related Link.

What Matters Now.

“Is This Just Collective Food Poisoning?”.

• Hong Myung-bo (South Korea national team coach) was asked this by a reporter. After losing 0:1 to South Africa in the third Group A match, the team dropped to third place. Wins and losses happen, but the performance was abysmal.
• Hong admitted, “It’s true this was our worst game out of the three.”
• Leaving Son Heung-min (player) out of the starting lineup was also an inexplicable decision.
• Park Ji-sung (KBS commentator) said, “They should ask themselves whether they even prepared to win this game.”
• Related Link.

“Even Advancing to the Round of 32 Is Embarrassing.”.

• Chosun Ilbo’s front-page lead article.
• Donga Ilbo called it “the worst blunder” and “Korean football too shameful to show its face.” It was “the darkest day for Korean football” and a “humiliating defeat.”
• The Hankyoreh assessed it as “a performance that drew only sighs.”
• Advancing to the Round of 32 now depends on luck in the remaining group matches. JoongAng Ilbo’s article, titled “Another Tedious Set of Scenarios,” analyzed, “If Japan defeats Sweden by two goals or more, Korea’s chances of advancing increase.” Strong teams must win, and weak teams must lose for Korea to benefit. The analysis adds, “Spain, Uruguay, and England must win for Korea to breathe easier.”
• Related Link.
• Related Link.
• Related Link.
• Related Link.

“Who Is Our Main Enemy?” at Prime Minister Hearing.

• It’s a loaded question. Kim Sun-kyo (People Power Party lawmaker) asked it, and Han Suk-jung (prime minister nominee) replied, “Anyone who threatens the Republic of Korea is our enemy.” When Kim Hee-jeong (People Power Party lawmaker) pressed, “The North Korean military and regime are our main enemy,” Han responded, “I will take note and listen carefully.”
• Park Seon-won (Democratic Party lawmaker) said, “If inter-Korean relations develop, this person could hold a summit,” adding, “Labeling them as the main enemy is inappropriate.”
• Controversy arose over selling three of four owned homes ahead of the confirmation hearing. Critics blasted, “Houses she didn’t sell as a minister were dumped to become prime minister.” Baek Seung-ah (Democratic Party lawmaker) countered, “She sold properties at a loss and donated 500 million won out of remorse,” adding, “You’re distorting what should be praised.”
• Related Link.
• Related Link.

Venezuela Earthquake: Death Toll Could Reach 100,000.

• Multiple earthquakes of magnitude 7 or higher have occurred.
• Analysis suggests the damage could amount to 1–4% of Venezuela’s GDP.

Micron Effect Lifts KOSPI to 2,893.0.

• Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix rose 13.1% and 5.3%, respectively.
• Micron’s operating margin reached 80.4%. Its Q2 revenue was $4.15 billion, with an operating profit of $33.31 billion.
• In the HBM market, SK Hynix holds 58% share, while Samsung Electronics and Micron each have 21%.
• Analyst consensus expects Samsung and SK Hynix to post Q2 operating profits of ₩8.7 trillion and ₩6.3 trillion, respectively, with combined annual profits reaching ₩63 trillion.
• Yesterday, the S&P 500, Dow, and Nasdaq fell -0.01%, +0.14%, and -0.46%, respectively.

Deep Dive.

“Samsung + SK Hynix’s Gwangju Plant: Regional Discrimination?”.

• People Power Party lawmakers from Daegu-Gyeongbuk gathered to argue, “The Gumi National Industrial Complex is the optimal location.”
• Chosun Ilbo amplified the conflict, calling it “a nationwide escalation.”
• The Democratic Party countered, “They are inciting regional strife.”
• Kim Eui-gyeom (Democratic Party lawmaker) argued during the dispute, “To prevent the ‘Yongin overconcentration’ backlash from becoming a ‘Gwangju overconcentration’ issue, dispersed placement is necessary.” This implies Jeolla Province must also be considered.
• Jang Dong-hyeok (People Power Party leader) claimed, “They’re saying, ‘Give us semiconductors, and we’ll drop Jeong Cheong-rae.’” Han Dong-hoon (independent lawmaker) argued, “Semiconductor plant locations shouldn’t become ammunition for the Daejeon party convention.”
• Lee Jae-myung stated in a senior advisory meeting, “A groundbreaking strategy to diversify key industries—expanding large-scale investments to Yeongnam, Chungcheong, Gangwon, Jeju, and Honam—is essential.” This suggests investment plans for other regions as well.
• Related Link.
• Related Link.

“Cheaper Than Daiso.”.

• Kim Jang-ho (Gumi mayor) said it. He proposed supplying industrial land at 1,000 won per 3.3 square meters.
• The total area is 2.7 million square meters, with a standard sale price of 1.48 million won—but Gumi City plans to cover 1.2 trillion won of the cost.

Lee Jae-myung and Moon Jae-in Meet.

• Speculation arose that Jeong Cheong-rae’s meeting with Moon Jae-in (former president) aimed to consolidate pro-Roh and pro-Moon factions.
• Coincidentally, a few days later, news leaked that the Blue House had invited Moon Jae-in for lunch. A ruling-party insider met by Chosun Ilbo remarked, “Couldn’t this also be a way to support Kim Min-seok and check Jeong Cheong-rae?”
• This is the first time the two have met since Lee Jae-myung visited Moon Jae-in during the height of the “non-Myung death” controversy ahead of the 2024 general election.

Comprehensive Real Estate Tax Soars.

• “Increasing the burden,” not “raising the rate,” is JoongAng Ilbo’s framing.
• Observers suggest the July-end tax reform bill will discuss higher comprehensive real estate tax rates for high-value homes, even for single-homeowners.
• Currently, rates are 0.5% for assessed values under ₩300 million, 1.3% for under ₩2.5 billion, and 2.7% for over ₩9.4 billion. A ₩4 billion property pays 1.3% (₩5.2 million), but at 2.0% it would jump to ₩8 million.
• The reform’s core is “a shift from ownership to residency.” Tax credits for long-term holding—possibly being phased out—are under discussion.
• Related Link.

Another Take.

“The Core Is Falling Away.”.

• “It’s not moderates or soft conservatives leaving—it’s the core base abandoning the president.” The Democratic Party is rattled by Kim Eo-jun (Ddanzi Ilbo CEO)’s claim.
• Pro-Moon factions are drawing a line, saying, “If they’re swayed, are they even the core?” but infighting within the party is intensifying. Some interpret Kim’s actions as indirect support for Jeong Cheong-rae (former Democratic Party leader)—the logic being that securing the “house rabbit” requires Jeong.
• Lee Dong-hyung (YouTuber) remarked, “If they’re swayed, they’re soft supporters—not the core.”
• Kim Young-jin (Democratic Party lawmaker) dismissed it as “just Kim Eo-jun’s analytical style.”

OpenAI’s Jalapeño.

• It’s an AI chip OpenAI is developing with Broadcom.
• From design to tape-out—just before mass production—took nine months.
• It’s being manufactured by Taiwan’s TSMC, and of course, includes memory from Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix.

Are All These Data Centers Really Necessary?

• U.S. hyperscalers have pledged over $5 trillion for computing resources by 2030.
• Gary Marcus (NYU professor) noted, “LLMs (large language models) are closer to low-cost carriers (LCCs) than monopolies.” Technological moats are vanishing as everyone churns out similar products. Margins are slim or negative, yet they must compete with cheap Chinese open-source models.
• Some argue that even if the bubble bursts—as it did during the dot-com crash—infrastructure will remain. But depreciation must be considered. In the worst-case scenario, bailouts might become necessary.
• Related Link.

The Corporate Bond Market Is Drying Up.

• Money is flooding into the stock market, making it harder to issue long-term corporate bonds. The proportion of debt due within a year has surged. As of Q1, it reached ₩583 trillion—17% higher than Q1 last year. Short-term borrowing now exceeds 11%.
• Warnings emerge that rising rates could trigger a liquidity crisis.

The Fix.

A National Wealth Fund for Citizen Dividends: ₩620,000 Monthly in 30 Years.

• Proposed by Oh Joon-ho (Director, Basic Income Policy Research Institute). If the government invests ₩100 trillion annually in AI transition and advanced strategic industries, assuming 3% growth and 5% returns, citizens could receive ₩108,000 monthly per person after 10 years, ₩290,000 after 20 years, and ₩620,000 after 30 years.
• Jeon Seong-in (former Hongik University professor) suggested acquiring shares in semiconductor companies.
• Jang Jin-hee (Research Fellow, Korean Confederation of Trade Unions Central Research Institute) proposed establishing a workers’ solidarity fund.
• Related Link.

Let’s Create a Basic Income for Artists.

• France provides unemployment benefits to cultural workers if they prove at least 507 hours of labor annually.
• Germany introduced social insurance for artists, with the state subsidizing 20% of premiums.
• Ireland selects 2,000 artists by lottery to receive a €325 weekly basic income.
• South Korea? Relative poverty rates among artists are three times higher than for general workers.
• Choi Min-young (Khan Newspaper culture editor) emphasized, “Radical investment is needed so artists can focus on creation.”

Cutting Health Insurance Prices for CT-MRI Scans.

• Changing the practice of ordering scans first could save ₩2.6 trillion annually.
• Hospitals were incentivized to perform more MRI scans, as reimbursements increased with volume—while core medical services like consultations and surgeries remained relatively undercompensated.
• The Ministry of Health and Welfare (Minister Cho Kyu-hong) is overhauling the health insurance reimbursement system. ₩3.6 trillion will be redirected to regional and essential medical services. Additional fees will be added for consultations in depopulating areas, nighttime surgeries, and emergency treatments.
• Premium increases remain a possibility.

A Town Where Residents Take Loans to Pay the Local Doctor’s Salary.

• Suson Medical Clinic in Suson-myeon, Jecheon City, North Chungcheong Province, closed at the end of last month. It reportedly operated at a loss after accounting for staff wages like nurses.
• It takes an hour by car from Suson-myeon to downtown Jecheon. A local clinic is a matter of survival. Residents took out a ₩60 million loan in the village’s name to support the director with ₩5 million monthly for a year.
• They also plan to establish a social cooperative. With 300 members and ₩50 million secured, the goal is to raise ₩100 million.
• Related Link.

The Scissors-Lopped Leg Incident.

• A human leg was found at a recycling facility. It turned out to be from an Incheon nursing hospital. The patient was an 89-year-old woman whose blood supply failure had caused severe necrosis.
• Yang Seong-gwan (head of the family medicine department at Uijeongbu Paik Hospital) explained, “Reality doesn’t move like a textbook.” Amputation requires anesthesia, and anesthesia requires the heart and body to withstand it. Heart failure patients must risk their lives to undergo surgery.
• The patient was already unable to feel pain, and the amputation was performed while guardians watched. The disposal as recycling waste was allegedly a volunteer’s mistake—but there may have been no alternative to cutting the leg with scissors.
• Yang questioned what would happen if the nursing hospital faced a business suspension. “Hospitals will become risk-averse at the sight of rotting legs, and no one will accept high-risk patients,” he said.
• Related Link.

Government-Sponsored YouTubers: Schuka World Leads the Pack.

• Rep. Choi Min-hee (Democratic Party) disclosed government advertising expenditures on YouTube channels.
• Schuka World received ₩632.97 million, Maeil Sinmun ₩500.07 million, Picnic Live Soppung ₩479.93 million, “Science That Won’t Work” ₩345.86 million, and “Life 84” ₩331 million.
• Schuka World’s sponsors included Korea Land & Housing Corporation (₩214.17 million in branded content), the Korea Invention Promotion Association (₩94.6 million), and Seoul City Hall (₩88 million).
• Daegu Cultural Arts Promotion Agency pushed ₩504.836 billion in sponsored ads to Maeil Sinmun under the guise of promoting the “2025 Powerful K-Trot Festival.”
• (The full list is available in the Slow News database.)
• Related Link.
• Related Link.

ICYMI.

Summer Power Demand to Hit 98.8 GW This Year.

• Last year’s peak was 97.1 GW.
• Power supply capacity stands at 107 GW. The Ministry of Climate, Environment, and Energy maintains that supply-demand management poses no issues.

MacBook Air Prices Rise by $200.

• It’s been a week since Tim Cook (Apple CEO) said, “Price increases are unavoidable.”
• The MacBook Air rises by $200 to $1,299,
• the MacBook Pro by $300 to $1,999,
• the iPad Air by $150 to $749,
• and the iPad Pro by $200 to $1,199.
• iPhone prices remain unchanged for now.
• As hyperscalers sweep up memory, DRAM and NAND prices have quadrupled over a year—and are likely to keep rising until next year.
• Related Link.

Wikipedia Founder Banned from Wikipedia.

• Larry Sanger (Wikipedia co-founder) has been permanently stripped of editing privileges. He violated the principle that no one should sway editorial direction by mobilizing public opinion (canvassing).
• He claimed, “Wikipedia has become the most effective propaganda tool for the establishment in history,” and argued, “Intellectual diversity is needed.”
• Dariusz Jemielniak (Harvard professor) said, “It’s surprising he started giving orders without actually editing.” The story goes: even the founder is no exception in a community of 250,000 editors who operate without major controversy.
• Related Link.

Worth Reading.

A Time When Schools Were Fortresses of Teacher Authority.

• We endured that era with difficulty. Jeon Jeong-yoon (Hankyoreh columnist) emphasized, “The past school where figures like Na Hwa-jin—who subdued students through authority—existed cannot be the alternative for the present or future.”
• One must not confuse drama with reality. “The dopamine-fueled instant karma and catharsis in dramas are impossible in real life, which is why we cheer while watching them.”
• “What changes reality is the tedious democracy of debate, deliberation, law, procedure, trial and error, and improvement.”
• Related Link.

Raise Corporate Tax Before Spending Money.

• South Korea’s top corporate tax rate is 24%. Park Sang-in (Seoul National University professor) argued, “A 36% bracket should be added immediately starting next year.”
• The term “excess tax revenue” itself needs correction. The point is not to rejoice over higher collections but to tax profits appropriately from the start. There’s no need to discuss “excess profits”—earn more and pay taxes properly.
• Three key points must be addressed.
• First, this is no time for tax cuts. Do companies struggling to manage excessive profits really need more tax deductions?
• Second, now is not the moment for complacency over current performance. Park warned, “Demand surges while competition persists but plummets once winners emerge.” Policies shouldn’t rest on vague optimism.
• Third, increased tax revenue must be used wisely. The “sharing gains” approach is risky. Park stressed, “Reserves should be built during prosperous times to prepare for the future.” Scattering water in a desert won’t solve problems—trees must be planted and forests grown.
• Related Link.

Why the Second Windfall Is Different.

• The first windfall arrived during the late 1980s “Three Lows” boom. From 1986–1988, GDP growth exceeded 10% for three consecutive years, and inflation surpassed 8%. The KOSPI surged 666% in four years, and land prices doubled.
• Back then, wages rose significantly, and the employment situation was strong. Two million apartments were supplied during this period. The 1980s boom created the middle class.
• The second windfall is different. First, its benefits are narrowly concentrated. Wages stagnate while inflation burdens society as a whole. Government, households, and corporations are all heavily indebted.
• Kim Hak-gyun (Shinyoung Securities Research Center Director) forecasted, “The asset price increases driven by this boom are far more likely to prolong and solidify than those of the 1980s.” His analysis warns, “A small minority with assets grows richer while the excluded majority is pushed downward, with the housing ladder severed—a deepening divide.”
• Kim proposed, “Proactive debt restructuring and structural reform programs are essential.” Asset price bubbles must also be preemptively addressed. “Even utilizing greenbelt zones should be considered,” he added.
• Related Link.