Comments on: He Might Be UN General Secretary…

By: Won Joon Choe

Won Joon Choe — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:55:45 +0000

Christ! I meant “public servants,” not “servants”–though the latter designation is not too off-the-mark with Ban.

By: Won Joon Choe

Won Joon Choe — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:54:13 +0000

And finally, I cannot say I am proud of Ban. There are current and former Korean servants who are far more thoughtful and can certainly speak better English (e.g. Han Sungjoo), and I wish they could have “represented” Korea.

By: Won Joon Choe

Won Joon Choe — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:50:41 +0000

Oops. My last post was directed at post #10, not #12 (though they are to the same poster.)

Also, post #12 describing Ban’s “Mandela-esque quality” is also from way, way out on the left field–certainly not from the real world but a phantasmagorical world of lunatic Korean nationalism-making.

By: Won Joon Choe

Won Joon Choe — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:40:10 +0000

#12,

Ban as “eloquent”? You’ve got to be kidding me. He doesn’t even speak fluent, intelligible English. (And he doesn’t sound heck of a lot better in Korean.) He’s an unimaginative bureaucrat who got to where he is now because he was willing to spread his legs for Roh’s extreme leftist, anti-American cronies–instead of offering intelligent counter-points like his predecessor at the Foreign Ministry.

By: slim

slim — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:18:53 +0000

The rap at Turtle Bay is of an earnest and well-intended Ban hampered by frequently faulty English and suffering communication problems and other friction with the wider UN because his inner circle are all secretive Korean bureaucrats with their own management style. I report this with more sympathy for Ban than for the UN management style.

By: WangKon936

WangKon936 — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 20:01:56 +0000

# 17,

I too would also agree that it probably takes a man less passionate and more analytical to be head of the UN, given that the UN has no power and depends on the funds of member nations.

By: Netizen Kim

Netizen Kim — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 19:42:36 +0000

He does come off as an earnest, eloquent man. That’s not the rap on Ban Ki-Moon. It’s that he comes off as an earnest, eloquent, completely bland man, in a role where he’s expected to use a the supposed moral authority of the UN to impel international cooperation.

I don’t know of any UN General Secretary thus far that didn’t fit that description.

It’s easier to be a more “colorful” world figure if your name is Chavez or Kim Jong Il or George Bush and didn’t have to worry about offending the sensibilities of any and every nation in the world.

By: Siddhartha

Siddhartha — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 05:40:33 +0000

#11
At least he does have a corrput son who profit from the UN. Time to tell if he is effective or not..

By: JohnT

JohnT — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 22:33:10 +0000

You’re one to talk there draft dodger pawi.

By: Sperwer

Sperwer — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 13:43:52 +0000

His mom may or may not be very very proud of him but, hey, I am.

Well that’s certainly reassuring and a convincing argument that he’s using his position effectively.