Comments on: Lankov on the Japanese settler community

By: judge judy

judge judy — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 02:21:06 +0000

unfortunately, there are still some artisans who work with their hands whose craftsmanship is not extolled by society in korea. however, as haisan mentioned, their prices have gone up from $6 to $60.

By: michael

michael — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 01:13:45 +0000

“craftsmen are actually being extolled for their virtues as professionals”
The Japanese appreciated Korean potters so much in the 16th century that they kidnapped them and took them back to Japan. So that must be the Korean influence on the Japanese influence.

By: wjk

wjk — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 01:03:53 +0000

Chonko, you must not like the Korean world that much. For all you’ve mentioned, it might as well have been American/European influence.

True, even during my time, my parents told me not to grow up to be in certain occupations, because society looks down on them.

Thankfully, society is changing for the better from the Chosun era’s system of class, status, values, etc, some of which are unreasonable and evil. Promoting people who read books and not apply it for any meaningful use, putting down people who invent, make things, engage in commerce, etc.

Don’t you all find it weird though that these values have not disappeared at all from our POSITIVE Japanese colonial occupation of 30 plus years, which is enough time to change society? What a great influence those blood suckers had… We couldn’t even form an honest line in public places, after 30 plus years of Japanese teaching. Ha ha ha. We couldn’t even appreciate craftsmen are artists, but put them down as lower class people, even when Japan promoted these people back then. I find it real hard to believe nor accept that Japan meant for any good in Korea. Korea actually accepts these values from American/Western influence, in my opinion.

By: Haisan

Haisan — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 00:52:05 +0000

> See, that’s the Japanese influence.

Uh, last I checked, one of the big scandals rocking Japan was the builders who cheated the earthquake safety standards.

Anyhow, as prevalent as prostitution may be these days in Korea, wasn’t it moreso in the 1970s? The stories I get from my older soldier friends make Korea back then sound like the Philippines or Thailand. After all, it was not long ago when the haircut and hummer was $6, not $60. And I don’t hear Korean women talking about getting kidnapped from discos anymore (which was something I still heard about less than 10 years ago, in the boonies, at least).

By: Robert

Robert — Tue, 28 Mar 2006 23:32:25 +0000

Also, lately it seems that people who work with their hands, such as skilled artisans, cooks, and craftsmen are actually being extolled for their virtues as professionals.

See, that’s the Japanese influence.

If there were no influence from Japan, people in these occupations would be treated according to the traditional Korean spiteful way…as subhuman trash.

Gotta love that Korean system of values.

Surely, you must be joking.

By: chonko

chonko — Tue, 28 Mar 2006 22:50:45 +0000

Imagine also a building or bridge built in Korea that does not fall down or collapse when the wind blows. Imagine a car produced in Korea that does not break apart within the first 100 miles driven. Also, recently, amazingly enough, Koreans are actually understanding the concept of forming a queue and waiting their turn instead of the traditional Korean “me first” attitude. Also, lately it seems that people who work with their hands, such as skilled artisans, cooks, and craftsmen are actually being extolled for their virtues as professionals.

See, that’s the Japanese influence.

If there were no influence from Japan, people in these occupations would be treated according to the traditional Korean spiteful way…as subhuman trash.

Gotta love that Korean system of values.

By: wjk

wjk — Tue, 28 Mar 2006 15:20:36 +0000

plus, I believe I stayed at a yeogwan, yeoinsuk with my family several times on a road trip. Because outwardly, it’s just a motel. But we all knew what it meant when a man said he was taking a girl to a yeogwan, even when I was young.

Imagine a family on a road trip staying at a love hotel. Just imagine. What do you tell your kids? People have sex here? There might be condoms lying around?

See, that’s the Japanese influence.

I hear from my age Koreans these days, though, they use love hotels for cheap stays, like one would use a motel.

By: wjk

wjk — Tue, 28 Mar 2006 15:15:06 +0000

yeah, they were yeogwans, but not these blatant signs saying “make love here”. That’s Japanese, man. Japanese people are unashamed of their vices. Koreans are different.

By: judge judy

judge judy — Tue, 28 Mar 2006 11:30:10 +0000

it’s estimated that prostitution accounts for somewhere between 5 and 10% of the GDP in the rok. that’s quite a bit no matter your religious beliefs.

love hotels were here long before 1998, although more in the form of yeogwans (ryokans) and yeoinsuk that provided entertainment for men.

but what would vibrators be used for other than body massagers???…

By: wjk

wjk — Tue, 28 Mar 2006 06:09:27 +0000

I don’t know. I always wondered about Japan. Just the ubiquitous openness of sexual material in Japan always made me wonder why they would do that. After all, I grew during the dominion of Jun Doo Hwan-Roh Tae Woo, when tv news would show men getting busted by cops for mass producing porn video tapes. The news footage would show something like a little hidden room, where there were literally about 50 vcr’s running. And as Korean news goes, the dude would cover his face with his shirt. I’m talking of an era when actresses ended their careers when they were caught sleeping around. A new era in Korea now, though. Racing girls didn’t exist, nudes by Koreans for the public was a no-no. I don’t think anyone would refute that these were imported from Japan, more or less. From my American friend who visited Japan, I think Love Hotels were brought over from a long standing Japanese practice to the current Korean practice (starting maybe 1998? with Kim Dae Jung). There are Korean people who think that Japan’s sexual culture is a negative for Korea. That said, sex being sex, it sells very well.