As for Gwangsan and the Marmot - one of the great things about owning your own Blog - you decide what is and isn’t stupid. Frankly - I fully agree with Marmot.

You are mixing issues - telling half-truths and overly-generalizing. I am always amazed at real estate - no matter where it is in Korea - is considered prime when it involves the military. Speaking bluntly to elderly people is truly something that only American military do to the Korean people - right saam? —oops shouldn’t have used that saam - that is only open for young Korean people to use as a blunt form - even to the teachers. I am sure that Korean TV gives us more than enough examples of improper Korean being used by the young to their elders and seniors. Did you ever think that maybe the reason why the GIs are using the improper phrases are because those are the phrases they learned from their Korean friends? When I went to DLI - our books all had 한국분 and 미국인 in them - when we switched the nouns around to 한국인 and 미국분 we were yelled at by our Korean instructors for being disrespectful…..hmmm.

“Invaders into Korea” - do we need to go there? Free-living? Ask a GI if he feels like he is living the “free life” in Korea - I am fairly sure that many of them wouldn’t agree with you.

You further attack the Marmot with your “So you go around to a temple or two and take pictures… who’s after a cookie, here?” He naturally, and rightfully, came back by quoting your “I speak proudly as Korean who can trace their ancestry back 17 generations.” Who cares how many generations you can trace your ancestry back - does that make you a better Korean than someone who can only trace theirs back four generations? Lets go further - anyone who can not trace their ancestry back to the establishment of the United States is not as American as someone who arrived in 1901 or perhaps ten years ago - is that what you are saying?

Patriotism isn’t automatically instilled into a person because they were born in that country - otherwise all of these women having babies in the United States (not just Korean - but from all nationalities) would have children that were all furiously patriotic to the United States. We all know that is not true. Just remember - most of the Koreans who were Japanese sympathizers who supported Japan’s annexation of Korea could probably have traced their ancestory back more than five or ten generations too.

Which group is best at relating to the Confucian Korean mindset?

Tell me what makes you such an expert in Korean Cultural Identity, mate?

Nothing. Never said I was. All I said was your comment was stupid. And your subsequent comments have simply reinforced my initial view.

So you go around to a temple or two and take pictures… who’s after a cookie, here?

That would be you, Mr. “I speak proudly as Korean who can trace their ancestry back 17 generations.”

Look, I’m sorry that some English hagwon turned you down for a job because you’re ethnic Korean, or that your girlfriend dumped you for a white guy, or some Korean gave you shit because your spoken Korean is funny from spending so many years abroad. But I’ve got enough angry people who can’t rationally argue a point hanging around this blog, both Korean and non-Korean. I don’t need another.

Have a good one. Mate.

Tell me what makes you such an expert in Korean Cultural Identity, mate? So you go around to a temple or two and take pictures… who’s after a cookie, here?

You clearly misinterpret my protestations as Communist rants. Please withdraw your insulting insinuations.

Nope. Stupid comments earn stupid responses.

I speak proudly as Korean who can trace their ancestry back 17 generations…

Congratulations. What do you want, a cookie?

NOT as a bigot on either the Communist’s side or as a extreme right-wing American

Whatever you say, tough guy.

You clearly misinterpret my protestations as Communist rants. Please withdraw your insulting insinuations. I speak proudly as Korean who can trace their ancestry back 17 generations, NOT as a bigot on either the Communist’s side or as a extreme right-wing American (dare I assume as you may be?).

Ok - will someone please explain to me how it is that the American Military are allowed such privileges? The land that they occupy in Seoul is prime realestate yet to my understanding the US government doesn’t pay the Korean government a single cent for occupying this space.

I am apalled at the way some of these GIs speak to the local people and in the Confucian mindset of Koreans, to speak to an elder in this fashion is particularly unacceptable. They live seemingly free in Korea; the least these invaders could do is respect the culture.

I’m sorry, I think you’re looking for the KCNA.

I am apalled at the way some of these GIs speak to the local people and in the Confucian mindset of Koreans, to speak to an elder in this fashion is particularly unacceptable. They live seemingly free in Korea; the least these invaders could do is respect the culture.