On the Kiddie-Fiddling NSET Front…

by thekorean on January 28, 2012

The police arrested a 24-year-old American English teacher for sexually harassing a 12 year old boy in a public bath in Busan. The suspect allegedly grabbed the boy’s thigh and genital, and put his genital near the boy’s mouth.

The suspect apparently claimed that he mistook the public bath for a gay bar, and approached the boy because the boy was smiling at him. Not much more detail is available at this point, but it is worth mentioning that that the incident happened around 7:30 in the morning.

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Now THAT’s a one-person protest

by Robert Koehler on January 27, 2012

Lawmaker-turned-podcaster-turned-guest of the Korean penal system Chung Bong-ju certainly has friends—at his supporters’ homepage, people have been sending in photographs of support, including one woman in a bikini with words of encouragement written across her ample page space.

Could be photoshopped, but it’s funnier if it ain’t.

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Group forms to support Stephen Kim

by Robert Koehler on January 27, 2012

Remember Stephen Kim, the State Department advisor arrested on charges of revealing secrets to FOX News? Well, a group of Korean scholars certainly do:

A committee in support of Stephen Kim, led by Kim Jae-chun, dean of Graduate School of International Studies at Sogang University, started a Web site at www.stephenkim.or.kr to collect letters, signatures and donations.

His supporters in the U.S. have helped Stephen Kim through the “Stephen Kim Legal Defense Trust” at www.stephenkim.org, but it is the first time people in Korea have launched a campaign for him.

“Stephen Kim has been in a dire situation for something that he did not do and we thought this kind of campaign in Korea is necessary to help him,” Kim Jae-chun told the Korea JoongAng Daily by phone on Wednesday.

Two thoughts: 1) I’m sure Kim appreciates the sentiments, but I do wonder how it might look for a bunch of foreign co-ethnics to help a guy charged with espionague; and 2) does anyone know what, exactly, Kim did other than tell FOX News the obvious?

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GNP to Change Its Name, Keep Trying

by thekorean on January 27, 2012

It’s like going from Philip Morris to Altria. Facing the bleak landscape in which it is the most hated political party by more than 50% of the people, GNP is willing to try just about anything. Although Park Geun-Hye initially ruled out changing the name of the party, GNP reversed course on Thursday and announced that it have a new name and a logo based on the public’s suggestions.

Although the name change might be warranted, other things that GNP is trying are admirable in their desperation. For the upcoming National Assembly elections, the party is considering reflecting the “social networking services score” in the process of nominating the party’s official candidates. The “SNS Score” will reflect how active the candidates are on Facebook, Twitter, etc. GNP expects this measure to revamp its image among young voters, who overwhelmingly dislike GNP. But true to form, it is reported that some of the prospective GNP candidates are looking into purchasing Twitter accounts with a large number of followers.

GNP is also considering the issuance of “Promise with the People.” The draft released by GNP’s Emergency Response Committee includes:  ”We will not use banmal“; “We will not play golf”; “We will fly economy”; “We will not charge Korail for train fare”; “We will not hire our family as our staff”; “We will be responsible for our staff’s actions”; “We will not smoke in public space”; “We will not engage in violence.” The draft also promises that anyone who breaks these promises three times will not be allowed to run for the National Assembly under GNP name.

I don’t think it is too partisan of me to say that the promises are not exactly a soaring vision of moral fortitude required of a legislator.

Try as GNP might, the survey still favors DUP. In the most recent survey, DUP led GNP 33% to 30.6%. For the presidential race, the support for Park Geun-Hye is not improving. Not only is she still losing huge to Ahn Cheol-Soo in a head-to-head matchup (56.4% to 34.9% in the most recent survey), but also Moon Jae-In is rapidly catching up to her. Although Park Geun-Hye led Moon 46.7% to 38.4% in the most recent survey, Moon narrowed the gap from 16% to 8.3% in just one month.

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Re-Elect Roh Moo-Hyun

by thekorean on January 27, 2012

That’s not me saying that. A survey conducted by Research Panel Korea asked 26,586 people:  if you could re-elect any president, which one would you choose? Roh Moo-Hyun crushed the competition, garnering 43% of the response. Those who chose Roh said that he was a good communicator with the ordinary people, and his good policies like reforming the Prosecutor’s Office was never fully carried out.

Kim Dae-Jung gained 12% of the response, making this a rather strong showing for the progressives. Park Chung-Hee won 10%, and the rest hovered around 1-2% of the response. Incredibly, Chun Doo-Hwan earned more votes (322) than Kim Yeong-Sam (209). Park Chung-Hee led the same survey last year.

Perhaps representing the wisest group of people, 24% of the respondents said: “None.”

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Diamonds: Corrupt Ambassadors’ Best Friend

by thekorean on January 27, 2012

Apparently, envelopes full of money were too old-fashioned for these guys. Board of Inspection and Audit recommended Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade to sack Kim Eun-Seok, Ambassador for Energy and Resources.

The story goes back to 2010, when a Korean company called CNK International, who claimed that they discovered a massive amount of diamond in a mine in Cameroon, over which CNK had the mining right. Kim Eun-Seok composed two press releases on CNK’s behalf, touting the discovery and claiming that Cameroonian government officially certified the amount. CNK’s stock shot up, and people who owned the CNK shares — which includes Kim Eun-Seok’s brothers, secretary, staffers, etc. — made a handsome profit. The president of CNK earned $51 million (assuming $1 = KRW 1,000), and Kim Eun-Seok’s brothers earned $20,000.

But, as it turns out, the real amount of diamonds buried in the mine was 1/17 of what was claimed, and there was no certification from the Cameroonian government. In addition to recommending Kim Eun-Seok to be sacked, BIA also turned over evidence to the Prosecutor’s Office that Park Yeong-Joon, former Vice-Minister of the Ministry of Knowledge and Economy, and Jo Joong-Pyo, former assistant to the Prime Minister, were also involved in the scheme.

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What is this Moncler Brand?

by yuna on January 27, 2012

Because I’ve never really been a fan of the padded (down) jacket fashion, I have not kept up-to-(my usual)-date with these luxury brands producing sleeping bags with arms (or generally any *functional* clothing..)

So it was a bit funny to read this article and to come across a brand that I’d never heard of before called “Moncler”. I remember when I stayed for a little while in Stockholm *everybody* was going around with jackets that had the logo “Canada Goose” on them, so until now I somehow have a mental image of the Stockholm winter with a bunch of geese going 뒷뚱뒷뚱 around on the Tunnelbana. I found out later it’s an expensive brand which apparently produces the gear for the Antarctic researchers.

It’s not entirely without its controversy due to its Coyote fur lining of the hood. I swear I started doing this post with absolutely no idea/intention of steering towards this topic, I wanted to start afresh, because after all I promised on GBever’s Dokdo, so I will stop my line of thoughts right here. Actually, Dokdo is the next post topic. Apparently another Japanese minister said something something a few days ago, but who cares?

Caption competition on the Joongang photo? How about I start it off with
“How many chocopies can you get for that jacket?”

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Korea ahead of China, Japan in globalization

by Robert Koehler on January 26, 2012

Can’t say this surprises me:

The index measures a nation’s degree of globalization by using its gross domestic product (GDP) as a comparison basis. China and Japan were listed 39th and 40th, respectively, garnering 3.56 and 3.47 points.

“The Ernest & Young index shows that Korea beat Japan and China in globalization thanks especially to advantages in the movement of goods and services category,” said Ryu Jin, a spokesman for Ernst & Young Hanyoung, the Korean partner of the U.K.-based international accounting and consulting company.

Korea marked 5.2 points in the movement of goods and services field while Japan and China earned 4 and 4.3 points, respectively. In terms of the movement of capital and finances, all three Asian countries were in a similar range above 4 points.

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North Korea’s first ruler: Terenti Shtykov

by Robert Koehler on January 26, 2012

If you’re a Korean history buff, check out Andrei Lankov’s piece in the KT on Soviet Colonel General Terenti Shtykov, the man who really gave birth to North Korea.

Read it on your own—here’s just a sample:

He also played a decisive role in the 1946 land reform, arguably the most popular of all the actions ever undertaken by the nascent North Korean regime. The present author is not amused when he reads the writings of South Korean left-wing historians who tend to describe North Korean land reform in great detail and usually attribute it to Kim Il-sung and Korean communists. Soviet military documents, long declassified and published, make a joke of this statement. From beginning to end, the 1946 land reform was planned and prepared by the Soviet military. It is often said that Kim Il-sung “gave the land to the North Korean farmers.” This is factually untrue. It was Shytkov, not Kim Il-sung, who destroyed the established privileges of the landowners of the Northern half of the Korean Peninsula and made the farmers there masters of their land.

With the exception of Japanese colonial politicians, no other foreigner has ever made such an impact on Korea’s destiny as Shytkov. Even though, this role will probably never be recognized by Koreans themselves, largely due to the complexities of Korea’s ideological politics and nationalist worldview. Shytkov was the actual architect of the North Korean state as it emerged in 1945-50. His individual imprint might have been small, since he implemented a fairly standard Soviet policy for that era. Nonetheless, the results of his actions were tremendous.

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New. Anti-Obama. Ad. Odd. Speaking. Style.

by Bobby McGill on January 26, 2012

I don’t know if they feel there’s a need to speak with slow, punchy phrases for a dim-witted electorate, or the Republicans are aiming at those pesky immigrants who haven’t mastered English quite yet, but have registered to vote.

 

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When all of Seoul looked like Bukchon…

by Robert Koehler on January 26, 2012

An Indian who served as an officer with a medical unit dispatched to Korea during the Korean War has donated his photos and other materials to the Korean Embassy in New Delhi.

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Mongolians are a linguistically talented people

by Robert Koehler on January 26, 2012

A 24-year-old Mongolian has been booked for calling police officers an obscenity.

It all started at a bar in Seoul at around 2 am Webnesday when the mouthy Mongol got into an argument. The bar owner told him to get out, but in vain. The argument got louder and the owner called the cops. Two officers arrived on the scene. When they tried to remove the Mongolian from the bar, he unleashed on them, calling them jjapsae (a derogatory slang term for the police) and another obscenity Ye Olde Chosun did not feel fit for print.

In response, one of the officers pressed charges against the Mongolian for contempt.

The Mongolian—a business administration student a private university in Seoul—claimed during question he thought jjapsae was a synonym for the police, and that he didn’t know the obscenity was an obscenity. He also claimed he was abused, saying police used a baton, stun gun and cuffs on him.

A police official, however, said the only thing police did was put him in cuffs and bring him to the station after he scuffled with them. He also said the Mongol’s claim that he didn’t know Korean was unpersuasive as he’s been in Korea five years.

Clearly, the official hasn’t hung out with a lot of white folk.

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Say annyeong and win!

by robert neff on January 26, 2012

According to etravelblackboard.com (January 25, 2012):

Annyeong’ is the friendliest way to say hello in the Korean language.  Korea Tourism Organization  (KTO) is hosting a new online event where viewers from around the world can say ‘Hello’ in their own language at the same time as saying ‘Annyeong’to Korea and have the chance to win a MacBook and other great prizes such as an iPad2 or an iTunes gift card.

The ‘Annyeong’ event is being hosted on the official KTO online integrated communication platform  – www.ibuzzkorea.com  Viewers are invited to participate in the event by uploading their own videos saying ‘hello’ in their native language and saying ‘annyeong’.

Here’s your chance Mr. B. (said with a smile).

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South Korea and coffee

by robert neff on January 26, 2012

Did you know that South Korea is the 11th biggest coffee market in the world?  Dong-A Ilbo (January 25, 2012) reports:

According to research by KB Financial Group released Tuesday, the number of coffee shops in Korea reached 12,381 last year, up 54 percent from 8,038 from the previous year. Sales jumped 59.7 percent to 2.48 trillion won (2.2 billion dollars) from 1.55 trillion won (1.4 billion dollars) over the same period. The number of coffee shops shot up 887.3 percent from 1,254 with sales climbing 1,598.8 percent in five years. Coffee shops are now spreading from the Seoul metropolitan area to the country`s five major cities.

How much coffee is that in cups?  According to World Coffee News (January 16, 2012) – “individuals [meaning Korean coffee drinkers] consume on average 350-400 cups of coffee each year.”  Not so sure of the accuracy of the figures – especially considering I drink three or four cups a day – and not that cheap instant stuff – Starbucks, Coffee Bean or hand-drip done at home for me.  It seems I am in the minority on that point – at least for now – because according to the article:

Instant coffee-mix products took up 64.2 percent of coffee consumption last year, with coffee shops accounting for just 7.8 percent, but this is changing fast. Dongsuh Food, a dominant player in Korea’s coffee industry, said consumption of brewed coffee expanded an annual average of 19.2 percent between 2006 and last year, with that of coffee-mix packets growing just 6.1 percent in the five-year period and slowing to 1.4 percent last year.

Korea Herald (January 20, 2012) recently published an article about a star barista in Seoul (sounds like a good place to have a cup).  Our own Mr. Elgin did this nice posting on coffee last year on the gold rush of coffee shops and the importance of finding a good roaster.  Here is a piece I did on the controversy of the first coffee in Korea - (get a chance – visit the coffee museum outside of Seoul, their coffee is to die for) and, of course, a link to the attempt to assassinate King Gojong with – what else – cofffee and its aftermath.

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Korea sweetens pot

by robert neff on January 26, 2012

Actually the title by UPI (January 24, 2012) is South Korea sweetens pot in Israeli jet deal but judging from the article – not everything is so sweet:

South Korea has sweetened the pot in a bid to secure a hotly contested $1 billion contract for its T-50 Golden Eagle jet trainer for Israel’s air force by offering to buy Rafael Advanced Defense Systems’ Iron Dome counter-rocket system.

The Haaretz daily reported Tuesday that Seoul’s proposal to acquire Iron Dome, added a new dimension to an earlier offer to buy “a significant quantity” of Israeli-made weapon systems if the Jewish state agreed to purchase 25-30 T-50s manufactured by Korean Aerospace Industries.

South Korea is eager to sell these planes.  Apparently Indonesia has agreed to buy some,  not sure if the Iraq deal went through or not – (anybody know?) and it seems that The Philippines may purchase a couple from Korea or from the Italians.  Korea claims that Israel is playing favorites with Italy and so has not only sweetened the pot but has also added some heat:

Seoul has indicated that if Israel buys the Italian trainer, all military procurement deals between the Jewish state and South Korea would be scrapped, Israel’s media says. In recent years, Seoul has purchased Israeli defense products worth an average of $280 million annually.

Speaking of arms and somewhat ironic, Ban Ki-moon is not pleased with the U.N. Conference on disarmament:

“Today, this distinguished body is no longer living up to expectations,” Ban said at the first of three public sessions scheduled this year, in a speech read out by the top UN official in Geneva, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev.

“The tide of disarmament is rising, yet the Conference on Disarmament is in danger of sinking,” Ban warned the delegates from 65 countries. “Let us restore the conference to the central role it can and must play in strengthening the rule of law in the field of disarmament.”

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Eric Perriard: Urban Souls

by Robert Koehler on January 25, 2012

The HuffPost ran a brief post on Seoul-born photographer Eric Perriard and his work examining urban growth in Seoul.

You can check out his work here.

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Banghwa Bridge, all lit up and nowhere to go

by Robert Koehler on January 24, 2012

And in my final photoblog post of the Lunar New Year holiday, I bring you some shots of Banghwa Bridge.

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From Nigeria to Seoul – what did I learn?

by robert neff on January 24, 2012

I am not really sure what to make of this article by ThisDay’s editor (January 23, 2012).  Apparently he came to Korea – business class – at the invitation of the Korean Cultural Centre and wrote this article filled with poetic prose(?) comparing Nigeria and the “Asian Tiger”  - positive for Korea and somewhat negative for Nigeria. 

The beauty of Seoul’s skyline was clearly defined by its skyscrapers that adorn the city in well defined geometric patterns. Architecture like the modern art forms of Isamu Nogushi in Japan, articulated the modernism of Seoul as a city of international business comparable with London, Paris or New York.

Seoul makes the Federal Capital Territory here look drab and ordinary. Is it part of the master plan of the FCT that there shall be no skyscrapers such as are seen in Seoul, in particular in the business district?

The editor was obviously well-entertained:

Driver Han drove into the exotic Lotte Hotel, which by all standards justifies its five-star status, where the high and mighty rulers of this world are quartered as guests of Korean presidents. At the roof top of Lotte, every weekend, Korea’s most famous chef threats his guests with unique native cuisines, choice wines and jazzy concerts. Dining in Lotte’s exquisite two restaurants every morning was part of the fun of this visit.

(I am going to assume that “threat” was a typo) And received some valuable Korean history lessons:

In the Seoul Museum you learn how 19th century Korea resisted Western culture with the invasion of foreign powers between 1866 and 1871. This was followed by a Treaty of Friendship between the government of Korea and Japan signed in 1876. Two schools of thought emerged – Confucianism and Buddhism creating a divide in Korean politics with the East adopting the Confucian philosophy led by Yi Hwang(1801-1570) and Seong Hone(1535-1598) leading in the West. The Japanese invasion of Joseon in 1592 preferred Confucianism to Buddhism.

And, of course, my favorite:

Here [World Cup Stadium] you learn that 1882 was the beginning of Korean football when sailors of a British warship docked at the Incheon Port and introduced the round leather game to Korean workers and natives.

Wasn’t this fable put to rest a couple of years ago?  Who were they playing?

As to the purpose of the article and its rambling – the part about Jeju could have been polished up a little more – I am at a total loss.  It is true that I am unfamilair with ThisDay’s readership but am I to believe that most Nigerians flying to Korea are doing so in business class and that they are staying at the Lotte Hotel?  Do they all receive a tour of the media outlets by the Executive Director/International Relations who will assure them that  Korea’s major television broadcasting network, largely owned by “government but commercialised and founded on a platform of unbiased reportage while representing the interest of government”?

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Incheon Bridge at Night

by Robert Koehler on January 24, 2012

And over at my photoblog, I’ve posted some photos of Incheon Bridge at night.

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Move the UN headquarters to the DMZ

by robert neff on January 24, 2012

Huh, you ask? That’s right -  according to Reuters (January 19, 2012) South Korean presidential-hopeful Huh Kyung-young – the head of the Democratic Republican Party – wants to move the U.N. headquarters to the DMZ. 

“With the U.N. headquarters located in Korea, there would be no war on the Korean Peninsula. Then, I will unify the world and lead efforts to mediate between the global powers,” he said.

Of course this isn’t anything new, he suggested doing it back in 2007 but for different reasons:

If the UN HQ is moved to the Panmmunjon, 500 organizations will move with it, which means our economy will grow threefold.

But we know (or at least he thinks he does) he has the power to do it:

Like a light from the east, I have appeared for this era, and since I can see the future, I have planned my Internet strategy way back in the past. With my 430 IQ, I can also control the spiritual domain.

I have also read 35 religious scriptures from several religions, and concluded that they have no value. The religions have prepared for my coming and I’m the one who will complete them.

And

He claims to have an IQ of 430 and the ability to perform miracle cures.

“I can change 23 chromosomes and 40,000 DNA in the human body. If someone is diagnosed with uterine cancer, I can treat the cancer within 0.1 seconds just by looking into the patient’s eyes,” Huh said.

Yes, I know I repeated the IQ of 430 but who can’t be impressed by an IQ of 430?  I can fully understand your skepticism but did you know that  Michael Jackson, three days prior to his death, visited Huh in his dreams?  Not good enough? He was also able to control George W. Bush’s thinking. Did you know that (paraphrasing Min) the late President Park Chung-hee approved Huh’s marriage to Park Geun-hye and that it was Park’s dying wish to see them married and living in the Blue House?  Well, don’t feel bad if you didn’t know about the marriage because apparently she didn’t either and this landed Huh not in the Blue House but in jail after he was sued for libel.

One has to admire Huh’s determination (remember back in 2007 when Min predicted Huh would run in the 2012 election – uncanny) – after all, this is his fourth attempt but apparently this time he is going to use the Time Magazine Man of the Year approach:

[Huh] plans to launch a fan club to boost his chances in the polls and said he expects to attract a million members.

“Nowadays, I am so popular that I get several phone calls every second from my fans. I am thinking of reporting myself to Guinness World Records as the man who receives the largest number of phone calls in the world,” he said.

And if he wins ”he will give newly-married couples 100 million won ($87,300) and hand 700,000 won to each pensioner.” 

It is going to be a great year for politics.

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