Land being returned to Korea by USFK is “soaked” with oil and heavy metal, reports the Hankyoreh Shinmun (Korean). In particular, oil and lead pollution levels are over four times the national level.
This was according to an October 2005 report by the Environment Ministry obtained by the Hankyoreh. The report surveyed soil pollution [...]
Korean film stars Kim Sun-ah, Hwang Jeong-min, Jeon Do-yeon and others actors and actresses attached to management firm Siders HQ plan to gather in Gwanghwamun at 2:00 today to protest the government’s plans to reduce the screen quota as part of its negotiations with the United States over a potential free trade deal.
This, of course, [...]
“I may look like a right-winger from the far left of the ideological spectrum and like a left-winger from the far right.”
So said Unification Minister-designate Lee Jong-seok, the National Security Council deputy chairman who has been one of the godfathers of Korean foreign policy under the Roh administration.
And he might be right. During his [...]
Because it’s easy to get confused sometimes…
SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “Hangeul Day?”, url: “http://www.rjkoehler.com/2006/02/08/hangeul-day-2/” });
Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso put on a veritable clinic on pissing off your largest neighbor Saturday by not only referring to Taiwan as a country, but also by praising the role Japanese colonialism played in the territory, especially in the field of education. As HK Dave pointed out at Simon World:
Aso effectively hit [...]
Bangkok’s request that traditional Thai massage shops be allowed to set up shop in Korea may pose a barrier to free trade talks between Korea and ASEAN.
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Andrei Lankov discusses the history of prostitution in South Korea.
SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “Let’s talk about SEX”, url: “http://www.rjkoehler.com/2006/02/08/lets-talk-about-sex/” });
Henry Kissinger is a Microsoft agent, according to Fair Trade Commission (FTC) chairman Kang Chul-kyu:
“Henry Kissinger tried to lobby for Microsoft by sending a letter where he insisted Korea and Microsoft will suffer from damages alike (if we ruled against Microsoft),” Kang said.
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USFK command has officially apologized for Sunday’s gochu exhibition in Gwangju. In an email sent to the media, USFK expressed its deep regret for the unseemly incident and apologized to the citizens of the city of Gwangju. It also expressed its intention to cooperate actively with the Korean authorities. The email said [...]
Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward has been named Super Bowl MVP after a five-catch, 123-yard performance.
SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “Ward named Super Bowl MVP”, url: “http://www.rjkoehler.com/2006/02/06/ward-named-super-bowl-mvp/” });
Police are investigating three U.S. soldiers following a tip that one of them flashed fellow passengers of a Gwangju subway while the other two laughed along. According to the tipster, the three GIs got on the subway at Hwajeong Station at around 6:00 p.m. Sunday. As soon as they got on, one of [...]
UPDATE 2: See also Mingi and Richardson.
UPDATE 1: Joshua has a lot more about this over at One Free Korea, and deservedly rewarded with an Instalanche for his efforts.
ORIGINAL POST: South Korean officials are allegedly putting pressure on a musical depicting the horrific conditions of North Korea’s Yodok prison camp, reports the Chosun Ilbo (English [...]
By SHELTON BUMGARNER
FNY Guest Blogger
Sometimes, it’s enough to make you think the Powers That Be use daisies to decide what will happen next here in Korea. “The DPRK loves me, it loves me not.”
SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “Come On Guys, Make Up Your Mind”, url: “http://www.rjkoehler.com/2006/02/06/oh-come-on-guys-make-up-your-mind/” });
By SHELTON BUMGARNER
FNY Guest Blogger
Let’s we here in the ROK get to know the views of one Bishop W. Bower Jr., late of Clarkridge, Arkansas, shall we?
Mr. Bower believes that there is one, quick way to end the lingering A-bomb crisis festering up in the cold, dark DPRK. For those of you who live [...]
Last Thursday and Friday nights, we finally had the big New York City debut by the Korean superstar Rain (or Bi, as in Korean for rain) (certainly not bi, as in bisexual, so get your mind out of the gutter and stop your snickering). Rain tried to make it big in the Big Apple, and [...]
UPDATE: Baby pics here.
From Andy’s blog:
Since I wrote that my daughter was about to be born a few days ago, I would be a bad person if I did not announce that Adelia Hye-nah Jackson (name subject to change) was born on February 2, 2006 at 12:06 pm.
I’m sure pictures will follow.
SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “Yangban baby [...]
Nora Park, everyone’s favorite “moderate Log Cabin Republican from California now living in exile in Korea thanks to neocons who have usurped the GOP,” is back blogging. Her wit and insight were sorely missed.
SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “She’s back”, url: “http://www.rjkoehler.com/2006/02/04/shes-back/” });
I guess there are good reasons for keeping women off Japan’s Chrysanthemum throne after all:
“Did the panel consider if Princess Aiko married a man with blue eyes after falling in love when studying abroad and the possibility that their first child would become emperor?” Takeo Hiranuma, a former economy and industry minister, told the rally. [...]
Korean prosecutors have sent an email to University of Pittsburgh scientist Gerald Schatten inviting him to Korea for investigation.
SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “Welcome, Dr. Schatten!”, url: “http://www.rjkoehler.com/2006/02/03/welcome-dr-schatten/” });
Quisling diplomacy? Leaked diplomatic papers? Foreign Ministry shenanigans? It’s hard to tell who’s bullshitting whom at this point, but this little brouhaha between one Uri Party lawmaker and the government over Korea’s acceptance of the “strategic flexibility” of U.S. forces in Korea has the potential of getting ugly. Here’s some reports on [...]
