| This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a poorly-executed coup of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. Sign up here. How many people viewed South Korea’s Wikipedia page today? I’d wager a lot, judging by the spike of folks turning to Google after the country’s very unpopular president randomly decided to declare martial law and send the country into utter chaos: Karishma Vaswani says Asia’s most memorable martial law enforcers include Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand and the Philippines. The fact that South Korea — a nation that pledged to “promote human rights, democracy, security, and prosperity” alongside the US and Japan just two weeks ago — is joining the list is shocking, to say the least. Seeing Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the South Korean Democratic Party, livestream himself climbing over a blockade to break into parliament was certainly not on anyone’s geopolitical bingo card. Luckily, democracy is alive and well: President Yoon Suk Yeol’s rationale for the emergency decree — a baseless claim about the opposition party being full of Kim Jong Un sympathizers — was extremely suss, and no one was having it. The 190 lawmakers who made it into the hall unanimously voted against martial law. Soon after, Yoon lifted the order. Some people found the entire ordeal amusing, calling it one of the worst-executed coups of all time: But it could have gone very differently. Karishma says martial law was first declared in South Korea in 1948 and has “been a tool of various regimes to maintain power” ever since. In 1979, the last time it was imposed, a student uprising (now nicknamed the “Tiananmen Square of Korea”) led to mass killings. It was a “dark chapter in the country’s history,” she writes. “That Yoon could in any way fathom bringing the nation back to the days of that brutal past is a reflection of the rocky times he’s going through.” Even before today’s drama, Daniel Moss says South Korea was “bracing for bleak days.” In addition to a corruption scandal concerning his wife’s Dior handbag, Yoon faces a budget tussle and the incoming Trump administration. His desperate power grab may have failed, but it could have horrible repercussions for the economy. Read the whole thing for free. There must be something in the water, because France is moments away from telling South Korea, “hold my Pinot Noir.” Far-right leader Marine Le Pen — remember her? — is not at all happy with the budget cuts planned by recently appointed French Prime Minister Michel Barnier. Instead of working it out on the remix, Lionel Laurent says Le Pen has promised to topple the entire government. Since Barnier’s belt-tightening is rather unpopular, she’s got the public wrapped around her finger. “Despite Barnier’s offer of concessions worth billions of euros on everything from electricity taxes to reduced drug reimbursements, Le Pen’s turn of the screw has gone from gradualist to maximalist,” Lionel writes. On Wednesday, French lawmakers will hold a no-confidence vote, and Le Pen has established an unlikely alliance with the left to oust Barnier. Globally, Marc Champion says her efforts are just one piece in the post-American world disorder puzzle. Lionel says the situation playing out in Paris is “unprecedented and clearly messy territory for the EU’s No. 2 economy.” John Authers agrees: “France has become virtually ungovernable,” he writes. The rise in borrowing costs is evidence that investors have pretty much lost all confidence in the nation. Where’s President Emmanuel Macron in all this? Aside from rolling out the red carpet for Trump, who plans to attend the Notre Dame’s grand reopening this weekend, Macron is probably shopping for a new prime minister. Since his presidential term won’t end until 2027, John says he “will need to nominate a new premier who will presumably be similar politically to the centrist Barnier.” Although Macron is holding out hope for a miracle, it seems likely that France will ring in the New Year with no budget and no government. So much for good tidings! Bonus Fiscal Reckoning Reading: President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s misguided decision to combine Brazil’s spending curbs with tax cuts is kind of like going to the gym in the morning so you can have a cheeseburger at lunch. — Juan Pablo Spinetto Perhaps it’s the perm or the string of pearls around her neck, but my grandma has always had an uncanny resemblance the late Queen Elizabeth II. So when she turned 90 this weekend, her 10 children and 20-some-odd grandchildren threw her a majestic tea party. My sister lent her a tiara and we ate pink ham sandwiches and drank from an assortment of ancestral teacups. It was very wholesome, as you can see: Why am I telling you about my grandma’s birthday, you ask? Well, it turns out that grandparents are an endangered species in this nation. In 20 years, who knows how many will even exist! I’m not being morbid, I’m just following the demographics: A recent New York Times story says “a growing number of aging parents of adult children [are] experiencing ‘unspoken grief’ about the possibility that they [will] never become grandparents as their own children opt out of parenthood,” writes Erin Lowry. Yet Erin says “frustrated millennials and Gen Zers have an important message” for their parents: Raising a child in this day and age is NOT easy! For one, it’s astronomically expensive: Have you seen the price of a stroller!? Plus, pregnant women are being denied lifesaving medical care on the daily. Some people would rather be lifelong DINKs — dual income, no kids — than sacrifice their physical and financial wellbeing. To change the status quo, Erin says we need policies that make parenthood more feasible for more people. Only then will we ensure future newsletter writers will celebrate their grandparents for generations to come. “Adaptation — the process of adjusting our lives and infrastructure to the effects of climate change — was once mitigation’s controversial cousin,” Lara Williams writes. “Now, it’s seen as necessary evil.” But that necessary evil needs a lot more money to function properly. Lara says two cities could guide the way. Singapore’s “ambitious whole-government approach” and Copenhagen’s “Cloudburst Management Plan” offer hope for places struggling to raise capital: “When the government takes an active role in promoting adaptation and incorporating resilience needs into standards and regulation, enthusiasm and money will often follow,” she writes. Will DOGE get any further than previous efforts to curb waste? — Bloomberg’s editorial board Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy's plans are riddled with legal problems. — Noah Feldman China won’t fill the vacuum left by Trump’s “America First” agenda. — Minxin Pei Trump’s opposition to the energy transition won't extend to critical minerals. — Liam Denning India’s cities can’t escape their cycle of mediocrity. — Andy Mukherjee Elon Musk still can’t get his money. — Matt Levine BlackRock pays $12 billion to catch up in private credit. — Chris Hughes Scott Bessent's old Trump jokes could make his Treasury job tricky. — Jonathan Levin A billionaire could help head the Pentagon. Supreme Court will weigh in on trans teens. The Black Swan murderer got sentenced. The Mets could rule New York. Do art galas really raise much money? A colony of bees is saving a California mall. A hoard of Roman coins were found in England. Jacob Elordi’s new beard is divisive. Or should I say, Jacob Elirdo? Notes: Please send gold and silver coins and feedback to Jessica Karl at jkarl9@bloomberg.net. Sign up here and follow us on | 
