Lee Myung-bak’s administration has granted a special pardon to Lee Kun-hee, the former chairman of the Samsung Group, so as to enhance the chance for South Korea to win it’s bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics. Just how can a tax-evading, convicted criminal help South Korea’s reputation in winning a bid for the Olympics? As the Justice Minister explained later at a gathered press conference “He can just do it; he has strange mental powers”.
(what the minister of justice actually said is here)
{ 50 comments… read them below or add one }
all hail President 이민박.
아줌마, 민박하세요?
I would have wanted to have seen more. I don’t savor the sight of seeing a man who built Samsung from cheap private labeler of consumer electronics to one of the largest technology companies in the world behind bars in jail coveralls, but I would have wanted to have seen more… like a suspended sentence… 200 hours of community service… or something like that.
Damn wheelchairs…
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_iivpRPHDshg/SGHbJC0SDxI/AAAAAAAAAqc/7XsRTdytkEA/s200/wheelchair_paul_pierce.jpg
Well, this is Korea, where seeing a chaebol chief behind bars is as rare as seeing a pretty Korean girl running around the streets in her underwear.
As Justice Minister Lee Kwi-nam explained later at a gathered press conference “He can just do it; he has strange mental powers”.
Did he really say that?
If he “can just do it”, then why didn’t he bring home the 2014 Winter Olympics? Or did those “mental powers” go into overload resulting in the games being pushed a couple of thousand miles west to Sochi? Which probably explains the “strange” part.
Kind of gives you an idea about the quality of the LMB administration.
In my somewhat limited experience, ALL Koreans have “strange mental powers”…
I think that’s part of the charm. And part of the disgust. But I can’t wait to go back. If I had ever been over there as English Teacher, I might feel different; but I really still love the country and the people…
Hmmm… maybe I have “strange mental powers,” too?
Methinks it comes in the form of a white envelope…
http://www.ctvolympics.ca/news-centre/newsid=20997.html
Funny how the cadre of sympathetic supporters of chaebol crooks and boosters of the “national interest” over the rule of law are usually the same dimwits lamenting the Korean Discount.
Never occurred to these short-sighted patriots that perhaps if they quit treating common criminals like national heroes, stop handing out pardons like candy, and prove to the rest of the world that they have at least a minimal level of interest in establishing a consistent pattern of punishment and deterrent, then that discount would likely diminish and with enough effort, slowly disappear.
And perhaps the disappearance of that discount would be of far greater value and importance to the long-term national interests than would a one-off debt bomb like hosting a Winter Olympics, the only value of which will be to send an uri nara tingle up the legs of Koreans, and which will do little else but waste public funds on building up an infrastructure that will be useful for 3 weeks, and then sit idle and empty for decades.
I don’t agree with you often IHBB, but a very good comment there.
yeah, ihbb should write for the hankyoreh.
Could you provide the link or source for this?
Yes, Elgin. Either provide a link for it or erase it.
Off-topic, but back in my Berkeley ‘daze’, I was told of a regularly arrested leftist protester of prankish mind who laminated a get-out-of-jail-free card from a Monopoly game, and upon being arrested yet again at some protest, he produced the official-looking card from his wallet and managed to get a laugh from the police . . . but still ended up in jail.
Well, I did admit that this was off-topic . . .
Jeffery Hodges
* * *
Okay folks, the Minister of justice did not say that Lee Kun-hee had “strange mental powers”. That was satire and it seems that everyone missed it or reacted in a humorless manner.
What the Minister of Justice *did* say was
Should I erase this satire then because I can’t provide a link to it?
yes. because korea is one country where something like that sounds realistic enough blurring the boundary of satire.
btw, i admit i gave myself 4 stars by mistake to my comment above. it’s lethal this star system. i was trying to close a tab and instead gave myself 4 stars. usually i don’t give anyone any rating.
Yes. If it was satire, it was POOR satire. And possibly legally actionable satire, at that.
Please think before you post, Elgin. Thanks.
Ouch! True perhaps but it is sad to think that the leadership of this good country has no confidence in their abilities and feel they must turn to symbols of corruption to achieve anything. Perhaps the real obstacle to Korea’s further development lies in this very sort of mindset. Should we need to wait until these sort of ideas die with an entire generation before we see real change and growth?
Yuna’s right, Elgin. Korea’s a country where that does sound realistic. I even asked my wife if she knew what Lee Kwi-nam had actually said in Korean.
I’d therefore agree that the satire needs to be deleted or made more obviously satirical.
Jeffery Hodges
* * *
For me it’s more than a discount. I don’t invest here anymore, because the Korean side is always unconstrained by the rules that apply to everyone else – and then some. Of course, Korea won’t miss my greenbacks much, but I know plwnty of other serious and well-funded investors who feel the same – inlcuding one multi-billionaire.
Elgin,
You may want to use the meta tag (Satire On) and (Satire Off) next time…
i mean. to be fair to r.elgin he wasn’t that far off:
Park Yongsung (head of Korean Olympic Committee) did say:
…..the pardoning means (for the pyungchang olympic bid) a thousand solidiers and ten thousand horses (the chinese 사자성어 to mean a great enforcement/boost)
박용성 대한체육회(KOC) 회장은 긴급 기자회견을 통해 “이건희 IOC 위원이 사면된 것은 평창유치위원회 입장에서는 천군만마를 얻은 것이다”며 환영의 뜻을 밝혔다.
he added LeeGunhui has serious influence/power second to none within the IOC:
그는 “이건희 위원은 IOC내에서 누구에게도 뒤지지 않는 상당한 영향력을 갖고 있다.
just for fun i add hankyoreh take on this (i looked it up inspired by ihbb’s comment) the day i read something like this diluted by 1/10 in chosun, i shut up on this.
Or just, you know, make it funnier. Then people will get it.
And it’s still 민박집 administration, by the way.
What makes anyone think the IOC will reinstate him? Oh right, it’s a totally fecken corrupt organisation as well.
#22 red sparrow
they are relying on a precedent
As a fairly regular visitor to this site, I’ve come to understand that its news/commentary posts maintain a pretty clear distinction between the facts and the opinions of the poster. That’s the regular M.O. here: post a news story, then comment away beneath it. So when you directly quote an official, even describing it is having taken place at a press conference, you are unfair to fault the reader for “missing” the satire or reacting in a “humorless” way.
In fact, your attempt at satire – which would not have been out of place at The Onion, which often imagines interviews and quotes as part of its comic arsenal – is entirely out of step with the manner in which everything else is posted here, and as such, it was misleading. When nobody – and I mean NObody – gets the joke, you should start to suspect that you are not the only human being gifted with a sense of humor, and that maybe your satire failed for reasons that sprang from it’s flawed presentation. Just a thought.
You are right yuna — I think LMB deserves credit, but articles like this is basically a media blowjob for the administration.
Er ummm, was I the only one who DID get the joke?
It’s quite clear from the “actually” in the postscript:
“(what the minister of justice actually said is here)”
?
That was added post-facto, rmeurant.
By this way, THIS IS THE THIRD TIME I AM TALKING ABOUT HOW THE NAME OF THE KOREAN PRESIDENT — the first three words of the post, no less! — IS WRONG IN THE POST.
@ # 25,
Why don’t the Donga just do it and call LMB the Korean industry’s Jesus?
Sad thing is that I still think that in terms of overall quality, Dong-A is probably the best newspaper in Korea.
As if South Korea’s reputation in the olympic movement could be further damaged after Kim Un-yong…
We all shed a tear for international finance capital….
You should be less subtle thekorean:
The president of Korea is 이명박, NOT 이민박… Myung or Myeong, NOT Min
(a.k.a. Extra! Korea)
@ #15
That’s a bit unkind, considering that he helps man the fort while you’re away, a fort that bears your name.
You could have phrased that more politely.
Of course, the other way to look it is that since the fort DOES bear my name, and it’s me — not the individual posting anonymously under the name Elgin — who would have to deal with the legal consequences of a poster rather ill-advisedly slandering — of all people! — the Justice Minister, my response was sufficiently polite, especially after said poster chided commenters for failing to get his “satire” and reacting humorously.
Nevertheless, thanks for your input, and if you ever need advice on how you should comment on your blog, don’t hesitate to ask.
anyway, the point is, the only guy with special mental powers in korean politics – as far as i understand – is the guy on granfalloon’s avatar.
is someone gonna fix the name or what?
Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaamn right Yuna. 430 and countin’.
Just to pile it on. Who the hell is Lee Min-Bak? Then again, he’s not the only one to make the 오타…
That’s super funny dda. +1 for you.
Absent is the awareness that putting a recently convicted felon in charge of their olympic bid (or whatever they have him doing) could possibly be counterproductive.
Are you actually suggesting that *you* are so dim witted as to think that a government official would make such a ridiculous statement!?? Some of you need to take a reality check, IMHO, though I think the minister of justice is setting a poor example in his rationale for why he supports such a despicable gesture from this administration. I am disappointed in him and his sense of justice.
Robert is also perfectly correct in stating that he is entitled to edit, delete or change anything he wants in *his* blog and I agree with him in this and have edited this entry according to his wishes.
I just wanna go on record and say that I generally like Elgin’s postings and think he does a good job overall…
So, it was all “satire”….. Although there was a part of me that doubted whether the Justice Minister actually said that, Eglin more or less got me there.
Moving on. The LMB administration justified LKH’s pardon by stating that he can play a role in bringing home the 2018 Winter Olympics. Someone mentioned “white envelopes”, but knowing LKH, “envelopes” don’t get spread around if the old man thinks that if it won’t directly benefit him, his family, and Samsung. And my guess is those “envelopes” weren’t distributed during the last two bids, since holding the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang doesn’t exactly provide solid benefits for the old man and his empire.
Of course, now things have changed. By publicly announcing the reason for LKH’s pardon, not only is the government trying to justify an awkward situation, it may also have inadvertently given LKH the hint that this time he has to deliver. So assuming that the IOC accepts LKH into its ranks, I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of those “envelopes” are spread around during the next IOC convention in 2011.
Samsung also has breaking wind power news:
____________Start quote_________________
Samsung contracts for 1,500 MW in LM Glasfiber Wind Blades
LM Glasfiber (LMG) and Samsung Heavy Industries Co. Ltd., have signed a 1,500-MW contract for LMG to supply U.S.-produced blades for Samsung’s new 2.5-MW wind turbine, the companies announced Thursday.
The order, in addition to being noteworthy for its sheer size, is highly telling of a new turbine manufacturer’s aspirations. Samsung Heavy Industries announced its entry into the wind market in 2008 with the launch of a 2.5-MW wind turbine for the U.S. market. The company wants to become the world’s seventh largest supplier of wind turbines with a market share of 10% by 2015.
The announcement is also good news for U.S. manufacturing, as the blades that will be supplied under the agreement will be produced at LM Glasfiber’s facilities in the U.S.
“Samsung sees a large potential in the growing wind market,” said Mr. Han, executive vice president of Samsung Heavy Industries’ wind division. “We have chosen LM Glasfiber as the supplier of blades for our new wind turbine because of their strong global presence in all major wind markets, their extensive R&D capabilities and long proven track record, and we look forward to working with the leading blade supplier in this industry.”
__________________End Quote_______________________
Samsung also has breaking [wind power] news;
or
Samsung also has [breaking wind] power news?
(Not to knock the news!)
No wonder the price of natural gas is down these days…
R. Elgin:
I like your posts. Really, I do. But stop digging. I’ve heard Korean officials say much more outrageous things (check out the visage in the upper-right hand corner of this comment). By comparison, the quote you made up is quite plausible.
This doesn’t bother me, but two things do: 1. that you are still digging this hole. 2. that you didn’t need to use to use a misquote to make this particular joke work. For example:
The Justice Minister, who I guess believes Lee has strange mental powers or something, had this to say: (link).
OR
The Justice Minister, who seems to believe Lee has strange mental powers and possibly has a man-crush on him, had this to say: (link)
Same joke, nothing misleading. Lazy writing will get you a D in my class, but on the internet can get you a lawsuit. Keep up your good posts, and please be more careful in the future.
“Grand”, thank you for your suggestions and concerns.
Tell me though, do you not think that the notion that such an absurd statement (having “strange mental powers”) is plausible to some is an indictment of how specious and flawed the current administration’s reasoning is? What will they do if (and when) their Olympic bid fails? What price can they put on Korea’s reputation or what little public trust is left in the legal system, one that seems so unfair?
Elgin,
I would agree with where I think you’re going. It does say a lot that a “strange mental powers” comment seems plausible.
As for the actual Pyeongchang issue, well, I’ve been going back and forth. My initial reaction to this story was that, hey, say what you want about LMB, but he’s not stupid. He knows the Pyeongchang thing is dead in the water, but he’s using it to pardon someone to whom he either owes favors, or would like to have in his debt. At the cost of the legitimacy of his country’s justice system, yes, but since when has that ever stopped a Korean politician? (or others, for that matter)
Then I did some reading. Actually, I’m starting to think Pyeongchang may have a shot at winning the bid, for the only reason that in 2018, it will have been 20 years since Asia hosted a winter Olympics. Further, Pyeongchang’s competitors are European, and the 2014, though in Russia, are very, very close to Europe (not sure where they’re drawing the line these days). Would a winning bid be worth the sacrifice of public trust in national justice? Not sure. Not sure how much “trust” they had to begin with.
I’ve never been to Pyeongchang. I’ve heard that the city lacks the facilities for an KOTESOL conference, let alone a winter Olympics. But 8 years is a long time.
Good fucking gawd. The supposed intellectual community can’t even remember that “mental powers” don’t even exist. I’m a goddam unwashed mass, and I know that any kind of official statement, corporate, government, or otherwise, can’t make that claim. Why is my “faith” in humanity fading?
You must log in to post a comment.
{ 2 trackbacks }