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Open Thread #138
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{ 121 comments… read them below or add one }
Y’all see this?
Tough-talking punk vs. man off his meds. Med-less man wins by a landslide.
When I watched this video yesterday, I laughed my ass off. I mean, come on, “Epic Beard Man”? “I’m a Motherfucker” t-shirt? “He hit me FIRST!”? It had all the elements of a classic.
But when I checked it again this morning, I came across this video and an interview with the 67-year-old man and saw just how mental the guy is and it became less funny. I started to feel bad for him. He’s definitely unstable.
It also turns out this is not his first YouTube moment. He’s unfortunately in another video where he’s being tasered at an Oakland A’s game.
Here’s hoping that this new-found attention results in some help for the guy. Oh, and the lesson from the bus incident?
Let fucking things lie.
Worst ad (“CF”) in the history of television?
Asiana Airlines, currently running on CNN, et al. YouTube wouldn’t let me copy the link, but search for “Asiana Airlines Commercial 2009″ by the poster Jonogh (and others). It begins with terrible, horrible music, the sort of thing one expects to hear on public service announcements in the States. The images indicate nothing whatsoever about air or travel, until the lone voiceover, “It’s all for you. Airline of the year, Asiana.”
Really, putrifyingly awful. And why does Asiana hide its Koreanness? I encountered an Asiana cabin crew (women only) in a hotel lobby two years and thought I would die from sensory overload. Why don’t they show THAT in their ads? (Oh yeah, because they’re Korean and don’t want foreigners looking at their women.)
Clarification, please.
Taxes on expats to increase this year
In a nutshell, is it that we currently pay tax on 70% of our income, but from this year we’ll pay tax on 100% of our income, which, basically, means paying about 43% more income tax than we currently pay?
Robert – Have you seen any of the current BBC series on Art Deco Architecture? You can torrent them at eztv.it
Apparently, negotiations between the UAE and Aermacchi for the procurement of M-346 jet trainers have broken down.
http://www.upi.com/Business_News/Security-Industry/2010/02/17/UAE-eyes-South-Korean-T-50-jets/UPI-38991266416319/
I guess 2MB will be making his second visit to the UAE.
WeikuBoy,
I doubt that. I think it’s more likely that it’s Korean marketing ineptitude.
“In a nutshell, is it that we currently pay tax on 70% of our income, but from this year we’ll pay tax on 100% of our income, which, basically, means paying about 43% more income tax than we currently pay?”
Yes, to the first part, but the number will be more complicated than simply 100/70 = 43%. The percentage increase would in most case be higher since korean income tax is graduated, so by taxing you on 100% of your income you will also have a higher proportion in a higher tax band, and will in many cases your taxable income will be elevated into the next, higher, tax band.
This will be mitigated by the fact that the foreigner 15% flat tax option is still available till 2012 at least (previously you could choose between the two) but this might not be of any benefit to typical low earning teaching gigs. (I haven’t done the math yet to see the cut off point)
Those medical receipt and credit card / debit card spending receipts are ging to become all the more important.
I heard that in order to discourage spending one doesn’t have the Gov’t has also made the tax credit on debit card spending more favourable than that spent on credit card.
Looks like after 2012, and no more tax breaks Korean dual nationality just became far more attractive for those of us that love it here anyway…
re: #2 OhNO! I am travelling on Asiana in 9 days time.
Going to Osaka – hope I can pay $110 for a bowl of ramien – I really want to eat ramien every day there – because Japanese ramien always facinates me – much more delicious than Koreans shim-ramien in Korea.
But the weather predictions are going to be awful for me – its supposed to be raining everyday I will be there.
damnit, I will have to stay indoors the whole time to keep out of the rain.
p.s. – I have a question for anyone in the know how..
I booked a room at “Nissan Hotel Inn” for 4 nights visa agoda.com.
However, on my credit card the money has been taken from my credit card for the room fee.
But when I get to the hotel, it states that I will have to “present my credit card” and pay the hotel fee again.
To me that seems that I am paying for the hotel fee TWICE – because Agoda has already taken the money from my credit card.
I researched on the interenet regarding this and it states something about a “Hold” which should drop off after 24~72 hours. However, I booked this hotel room 96 hours ago and the money has been paid to Agoda and has not “Dropped” off my credit account.
When I go to Osaka in one weeks time and pay the Hotel again with my credit card – to me it seems as if I have paid twice for the same hotel room.
Anybody out there – can explain to me whats happening?
thanks.
Anyone else sick of the SBS Olympic coverage? A seemingly-endless parade of commercial, interrupted from time-to-time by short track and speed skating re-runs.
It doesn’t help for 2010, but if you want to check you’re being taxed right by your employer…. in all the time I’ve been here I’ve never failed to get a nice “bonus” at the end of year tax settlement.
http://www.nts.go.kr/eng/help/help_53.asp?top_code=H001&sub_code=HS05&ssub_code=HSE3
No, but I will now. Thanks!
Anybody seen/heard the new version of “We Are the World”? Wow, it’s really fucking awful. To have involved so many talented artists and to get an end-product so superlatively terrible . . . it’s actually astounding.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Glny4jSciVI
craash:
I’ve booked lots of hotels, tickets, etc. that required me to present my credit card again simply to verify my identity. Maybe when it says “present your credit card,” they simply want an ID check. In any event, make sure you have a receipt of your payment.
tax base rates for 2009 (note there is a non taxable deduction from earnings before the tax base bands apply) you can download the full tax guide for foreigners (in english) in pdf format from the above link, last item in the menu on the left hand side (quick viewer >> income tax return guide)
up to 12 million won 8%
over 12 million won~up to 46 million won 17%
over 46 million won~up to 88 million won 26%
over 88 million won 35%
#15 Thank you Granfalloon
If presenting the Credit Card again is just to check the ID – then that makes sense.
I was really worried that I would have to pay again the second time.
test
This is only a test. Feel free to thumbs down and/or remove.
Yet another reason why Oakland is such a shit-hole. Funny video though.
Video of sekshi Gwyneth Paltrow cooking bibimbop:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rJ2JC5QXf4
Yummy. The food looks delicious too.
Did you know that Tiger JK and Tasha! are married with kids?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-ogyICDHbk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-M2v6O9S_S8
Nice couple, I didn’t know either were married till recently.
For those who don’t know who Tasha is, this video reveals a lot:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VD3r5C1h0gw
Quite refreshing to watch the Winter Olympics in Britain, which has relatively slim medal hopes but loves sport. Commentary is well-informed, they show the important sports and coverage is free of all those maudlin features that NBC fills the airwaves with or the full-on cheerleading and single-sport focus of the Korean media.
OMG
Tim Burton has made an Alice in Wonderland movie.
Throw everything out. We’re going to the moon.
– Don Draper
i’m sure most of you will join me in hoping korea wins gold on sunday. good luck, team korea!
This video is making its way through the Korean internet…..it is a serious beatdown involving a couple of teenage girls. A serious cat fight and the security guards merely look on.
http://tvpot.daum.net/clip/ClipView.do?clipid=21813172
@24,
Not me. As a proud American citizen, I’m pulling for the athletes from my own country. Go USA!
(You can relate to that, right Pawi?)
Just a quick update – apparently this took place in Seattle.
Yeah, I was thinking it looked like Seattle’s underground bus tunnel. Brutal.
@Robert Neff:
That video surfaced about a week ago in the US. The private security guards were following procedure by not getting directly involved and let the police handle it, probably to avoid lawsuits if someone should get injured by a security guard. The girls apparently had a history with each other, and the girl beaten in the video was accused of participating in a beating of one her attackers previously.
@Iceberg:
It was a bus terminal in downtown Seattle.
#10, craash, my guess is that you used a debit card as opposed to a credit card, right?
pawi: definitely, as my country this year has a Mickey Mouse team, i will root for the Koreans, hopefully curling will never become popular overthere
this ohno controversy that’s got the expat community up in arms isn’t manufactured by koreans. it’s manufactured by the expats themselves based almost entirely on one article. it’s not the koreans talking about ohno 24/7. it’s you guys. all started by some guy with a squeky voice. that’s why i’m hoping the koreans win in a sport i don’t give a shit about.
Mo TaeBum, the gold medalist for 500m speed skating and the silver for 1000m, ate chicken meat even at a pig bacon(삼겹살) party.
http://news.joins.com/article/320/4022320.html?ctg=1400
I decided to eat more chicken. If it worked for Mo, it will work for me.
No 삼겹살.
I imagine now the chicken advertisers will be flocking to him for post-Olympics chicken CFs.
Too bad 삼겹살 trumps all other meats.
Toyota has a damaged image just as much as Tiger Woods does. After 8 million recalled cars total, they added more recalls to Toyota trucks and steering wheel problems to the Toyota Corolla. Damn… Well, Korean immigrants are still purchasing Japanese cars in quantity. Well, Honda also released a recall last week regarding close to a million cars as well.
Do Koreans still like Japanese cars? I don’t know why Korean immigrants don’t have faith in their own cars when Hyundai are high in quality and have good gas mileage. The newly re-designed 2011 Hyundai Sonata looks stunning. Hankook and Kumho make high quality tires as well. I hope Koreans will have more confidence in their own cars because I know for sure that Koreans make awesome TV’s, cell phones, digital cameras, air conditioners, appliances, computers, DVD players and so on. I think once Koreans start having confidence in their own cars, then for sure, Korea has reached 1st world status.
the ‘controversy’ about the fillipino market move doesn’t seen to bother the fillipinos as much as it bothers the westerner. go look at ‘buhay sa korea’ for the comments generated. some say the move might increase business by increasing tourists. others say that a priveledge is not a right. now, guess who comes rushing in to ‘educate’ the pinoys about all this? if you guessed a westerner, you’re right.
ah korea, the only place a westerner feel like a n…….
Although perhaps a bit of schadenfreude is unavoidable for some Koreans at Toyota’s woes, you can be sure there is a lot of seat squirming at the board meetings of most large chaebols. Senior management at these companies is well aware that the only concrete advantages they have over Japanese companies are price, and the audacity at times to fall back on the tried and true “old ways” that do indeed increase market share and the illusion of big success through big sales and growing market share. I do agree that audacity, vitality, energy and audacious ambition are also very important factors in succeeding – especially in competing with a sclerotic west. But just how many people outside of Korea are privy to what really lies in the shadows when you look beyond what is reported in operating profits? I imagine institutional investors are aware, but the stock market in this age hardly matters as an indicator of true performance beyond the next three months.
Sony sticks with Stringer, and Japan knows it future and very existence as an economic power lie in the west. It cannot compete with Korea in the short-midterm as a supplier of mostly commodity-like consumer electronics and components. And China’s day is coming (or has arrived as some already believe). I for one do not believe that in the end Korea will throw it fortunes in with China over the west. However, I believe we will have to pass through at least one more generation in Korea before the country can truly arrive at its much coveted first world status (whatever that means).
“relatively slim medal hopes”
slim, we’ve already won a gold, yey, and good prospects in the curling again.
it ain’t hynudai recalling EIGHT MILLION autos. price? nope, quality.
that’s something japan seems to be losing. of course, since korea is a first world country, i’m not surprised they’re passing them by.
#37 Pawi,
Could you at least link to these alleged concerned westerners. I’ve only read about this in the korean news (KT KH Digital Chosun…don’t remember which), and I haven’t met a single westerner whose even mentioned it, including those who work with filipinas(os). In fact haven’t heard anything about it from filipina(o) friends either.
Why would anyone be particularly concerned about the closing down of illegal street stalls operated by people in violation of their visa status.
Ahh, the things that fall into your lap sometimes,
“A 62-year-old Korean national, Bong Chin Sun, was arrested by Ubud Police on February 15 over alleged sexual harassment. The suspect, who owns a villa at the Abianbase complex, Ubud, Gianyar regency, Bali, was reported by three of his workers for harassing them. The workers said the suspect had committed the same offense against at least six other employees.”
I guess whitey is responsible for this too, hey Pawi? Not hatin the Minjeok here, just reportin the news!
Awarren,
Your encyclopedia may be 10-15 years dated.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_World
South Korea is in the first world.
Mo Tae-bum finished 5th in 1500m speed skating event. In other news, Baduk switches back to sam gyup sal for his growlies.
@ WangKon,
Any comments on this article below?
http://news.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2010/02/18/2010021801694.html
Actually, I think that Korea is in many ways a “first world country” as far as its political, social, and economic relevance is concerned. Of course, the 구호 and vision statements of some of the best Korean companies still chase this imaginary first class, advanced country or 초일류 status, and many Koreans themselves will admit that Korea has a far way to go.
http://www.theonion.com/content/video/nasa_scientists_plan_to_approach
Anyone know why there are approximately 100 cops with riot shields and lots and lots of angry people on the streets in Kyungni-dan (sp), about halfway down the hill from the Hyatt hotel?
@25
Another US public transport fight video making its way around lately. Self defense? You be the judge:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RXXwoW0Lw0
Well beardy moves away to the other end of the bus, the other guy follows him down there and strikes the first blow…..turning a verbal pissfest into a physical one…doesn’t seem that difficult to call….not quite sure why he then wants sympathy as the “victim”.
Although the legal principle in the UK would be reasonable force…and beardy might be judged to have crossed the line…hence the home defenders in the UK who get jailed for shooting the guys in break into their home and threaten violence….
@Diggie & Arghaeri
Go back up to the first post of this thread and click on the links if you want more of the story.
Thanks, Iceberg the way Diggie put it as “another” I assumed it was a different event from the one I’d passed over at #1.
As you note he certainly seems to have a few problems, but in law each case is on its own merits, and previous problems or not, he moved away but nonetheless the other guy followed him and struck the first blow.
oh, pilsung korea! take that, ohno! oh—pilsung korea. oh—–pilsung, korea. oh——————-pilsung korea! on behalf of america, i commend you, team korea!
I’m in agreement. That’s what I meant by “let things lie”, which is what the other guy should have done.
I didn’t bring up the old guy’s problems to implicate him; rather it was an attempt to move beyond the bus incident. The guy plainly needs help, and if indeed he’s a Vietnam vet, I think he deserves it.
Pawi,
You’re funny, but not in the way you think you are.
#53 Agreed, and I sincerely hope he gets that help.
thanks, ice. as you know, i don’t give a shit bout short track. i’m more happy at how pissed off so many of you will be that korea didn’t lose.
of course, that guy in cholla is trying to muck shit up again by implying the koreans cheated. no wonder he’s getting the boot.
PILSUNG, KOREA!
By “you”, you mean…? Pretty broad brush there, Pawi.
The only thing that upsets me about Korea winning is that it means the U.S. – my country – didn’t. Beyond that, I also don’t care. Let the predictable comments commence.
i’ve been meaning to mention this but a few days ago, i had a full-on british breakfast. it was so tasty! you see, the british have a distinct culture all it’s own. others do not.
btw, i didn’t know this but baked beans actually originated in america.
sorry, ice. i didn’t mean you. i meant it in the generic sense.
how was the black pudding, pawi?
@39 Apologies, Arghaeri, I watched the skeleton gold in the wee hours. By relatively slim, I meant that Team GB is not a contender in a lot of the major Winter Games sports (skiing, hockey, speed skating…). And yet the BBC cover them informatively and with gusto in the way that other countries in which I’ve watched Olympiads past do not.
that was ok but not my favorite part. the others just left theirs. the rest was wonderful.
ps the look of it was kind of scary. that’s why i think the others left it. i thought it was alright. i don’t know, it tasted like a sausage with liverwurst in it or something. but the baked beans, tomato, thick bacon. yummy. i want to eat it again.
my birth here makes me american, arg. i can say what i want. i’ve given much more to my country than many of these ‘real’ americans have.
Just dried pigs blood, shouldn’t be any scarier than korean “soondae”, and maybe not the best part, but as its the part I can’t get here, its become the part I really miss.
I know you’re american, and yes you can say what you want, but rather hypocritical to claim Brendon as unable to comment on american issues cos he doesn’t live there while at the same time continuously commenting on korean issues when you don’t live there
and whilst decrying expats for commenting on korean issues when they’re not korean, but happy to comment on korean issues yourself when you are NOT korean.
Although now you mention real fat juicy bacon, as opposed the crappy thin crispy stuff, almost like bacon flavoured crisps (chips) they serve as bacon here in an all day breakfast, now you’ve gone an made me miss that too.
(sigh) arg, i made that comment because he says that to me about commenting about korea. that’s all. i understand the stupidity of the actual comment.
sorry to make you miss the english breakfast. i can understand why.
****
‘“Ohno didn’t deserve to stand on the same medal platform as me,” Lee Jung-su told the Yonhap News Agency after he won the 1,500-meter gold. “I was so enraged that it was hard for me to contain myself during the victory ceremony.” Ohno never fired back. ‘ the new york times
will brian be doing a piece on the yellow journalism of american newspapers? where’s all the outrage of the expat community for shoddy reporting? it’s just as i suspected: hypocrites whose real aim was to denigrate koreans.
i’m glad you’re being booted out, bri. you deserve it.
#68, you are not an American, but just a symptom of what is wrong with letting your ilk into a developed country. You should fuck off back home.
aaronm: none of your choice, he was born American, he’s an American citizen and he has all the rights to stay, even if he has views you despise….isn’t multiculturalism such a beautiful thing ?
Sorry pawi didn’t mean to rush to your defense but i coould’t resist
oh and Ohno is a fuckin thief who doesn’t deserve to stay on this planet
thank you, gangpe. that guy has a special hate for me and i really don’t know why. you’ll notice i never respond to him directly. listen, i love america but i love koreans too. the people of sk pose no threat to the us and yes, if we went to war w nk, i’d volunteer to go and help bring that evil to an end.
ps you can bring your ratings up if you just would be willing to take a shit on the yemaek.
Well here’s what you all are waiting for, another k-pop related link:
http://www.youtube.com/user/alikstae?blend=2&ob=1#p/u/22/PPr88yifg9g
This guy specialises in mashups, an approach i don’t generally like (most of them sound cacophonic) but he does the job very well.
particularly i recommend the 2NE1 and Big Bang’s hit Lollipop, i don’t know the music he mashed it with, but the final result sounds a bit nu-rave and totally fucking catchy.
I also suggest the mashup of 2NE1′s i don’t care and Backstreet Boys’ straight through my heart, weird as it sound this has for some reason a distinct old italo-disco sound, esp. the beginning.
Now after i caused you guys to take a good puke by mentioning 2NE1 and Backstreet Boys in the same sentence, i will finish telling you that 2NE1 is also currently my favourite band, now that you know i’m certain your life is better
pawi: lol i will never spit on a place and people who so far have been just nice to me, from every point of view.
Concerning ratings as my ancestors used to say:” Lots of enemies, lots of honour”
my k-pop link of the week post has been censored, life is such a bitch sometimes
oh well…
pawi, that’s the second time in a row that guy jumped on you when you mentioned you were an American. I wonder what makes his knee jerk like that.
Never mind. It was a Sri Lanken demonstration, doesn’t appear to have gotten too hot.
Please return to slagging each other off on race, short sport, and all your other Marmot’s hole weekend merriment.
@50
Wow, watching the bearded white guy cry about his mom and seeing the black guy get beat up gives me this sort Buddhist compassionate sense for the both of them and the thought that violence is senseless and ignorant.
What you call violence some other people may call it justice
Funny how this rating thing continues to get under your skin.
Newsflash: your abysmal ratings aren’t due to your defense of Koreans — they’re the result of your abhorrent personality.
tf, i just ignore the haters.
I like Ohno. He is just doing the best he can. And, he is good at what he does. He came from a broken home and made something of himself.
” Apolo Ohno was raised entirely by father Yuki who had immigrated alone from Tokyo at the age of 18. Yuki dropped out of accounting studies at Seattle City College in favor of the less cerebral profession of cosmetology. He opened his own Seattle beauty salon and enjoyed enough success to party hearty with other young hairdressers. He was 36 before marrying Apolo’s mother. The marriage ended within a year, putting Yuki in the unfamiliar position of having to provide mothering and a stable home for his infant son. To make ends meet Yuki had to moonlight at a second salon. That left many unsupervised hours for Apolo. His after-school mischief with friends became worrisome. Yuki got him involved in swimming and in-line skating, then after watching a short-track race from the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Games, he hooked Apolo up with the sport in which he would make his mark. He was so surprisingly good, in fact, that father and son set their sights on qualifying for the 1998 Nagano games. ”
I salute Ohno. And, his father. The oriental father and son pair shows Americans that Asians are responsible people. Good people.
Respect to his father for working his ass off to raise him but i still stand by my view that Apolo is a douche for what happened in 2002. And on top of everything he’s also a pathetic coward: declining to participate in the 2003 skating world cup in Korea out of security concerns ??? PLUUUEASEEEEEE what he thought, the Koreans were going to lynch him ?
Even if you disagreed with his 1500m gold at Salt Lake, dismissing Ohno as an inferior skater is simply a bold-faced lie. His record speaks for itself. No other short-track skater neither has as many Olympic medals as he does nor his longevity. Especially when you are involved in a sport as volatile as this (as the 1500m showed us), I believe consistency of results illustrates the quality of the skater. I thought Ohno’s performance during the semifinal was absolutely fantastic, and it was a great illustration of his skills. Obviously, Koreans were pulling for Sung Si-bak during that race, but they can’t deny that Ohno deservedly belonged in the final with that semifinal performance. No other skater has had as many top-3 finishes in the Olympics as Ohno, and that is a record that should be respected. Lastly, as the results have shown us, no other skater except for Ohno can compete with the Koreans.
Well, I guess now people can’t be too P.O. at Lee Ho-suk for his silver medal performance. That’s good.
#71 gangpehmodernist
this guy aaronm has issues. he’s an Australian living in Indonesia with his Indonesian wife. in the comment thread here: http://thejakartaglobe.com/home/death-toll-from-indonesian-holiday-more-than-300/331273 he refers to Indonesians as “monkeys.” so in his mind he’s married to a monkey and living in a nation of monkeys. that’s enough to give anybody issues.
Sounds like he had some valid cause for concern gangpe. Several thousand death threats might make anyone think twice about visiting the country the threats originated from.
# 86,
That’s disappointing. Australian men seem to have a bad habit of getting a foot stuck in their mouths.
It was the same during WWII. American and British POWs usually focused on the ill treatment they were getting when they were interviewed. Aussie and (to a lesser extent) let their racial disdain for their oppressors be abundantly known, even to a point where their comments had to be censored by the Allied High Command.
I mean (to a lesser extent Kiwis).
Awarren,
I don’t think we are disagreeing or anything. I guess even in the definition of “first world” there is a range. Korea is probably in the lower rung, at this point, of the “first world” definition. You also have to remember that Koreans, internally, have a rather low opinion of themselves. Plus, the Chaebol bosses are middle aged or older men for whom 3rd and 2nd world status is a living memory so they still think in that mode although the actual reality is a bit different.
Korea has come a long way economically even in the past 10 years. I wouldn’t say all their products are on the commodity rung of the product sphere. Korean ships, for example, cost more than Chinese ships, but are higher quality and have more bells and whistles and that’s how they compete. Korean white goods are consistently the most expensive products in department store appliance departments and Korean TVs are at parity or more expensive than Japan TVs. Sure Korea has a long way to go, but to say that they are at least a generation away (30 years or so?) from the upper rung of the first world makes it appear that your information is a little dated.
Regarding your article, yeah, it appears to be about the fall of Toyota and the lesson that Korea is following the same path? If that’s what this author is trying to say, I don’t agree with that. I mean, from the Toyota debacle valuable lessons can and should be learned but it’s certainly not a forgone conclusion that Korean companies will flame out like Japanese companies. There was a very interesting article in the Korean Herald talking about how Korea needs a new development model and that the Japanese development model has run its course and will eventually be a dead end. Korea needs to emulate and aspire to new growth models if it still wants to expand. That I can agree with. Can’t find the article at this current time.
wangkon: in my opinion Korea enjoys a much higher standard of living in terms of goods and services they can buy than the Eurozone, including the northern fringe. What Korea probably still can’t afford to do is taxing to death her citizens to cater to every wanton need of a voracious nanny state, so social protection is very low comparing to Europe and probably even to the US, but if you compare the basket of goods bought by a middle class Korean family comparing to a typical French or German one, Koreans would come across as more well off
Wow… look at the difference between Samsung’s super AMOLED screen vs. traditional LCD screen.
http://tamspalm.tamoggemon.com/2010/02/10/samsungs-super-amoled-technology-could-be-unveiled-at-the-mwc/
Apple is thinking about putting a super AMOLED screen in their anticipated iPhone 4g… but there is only one manufacturer on the planet currently able to make AMOLED screens of the proper quality, power usage, and size criteria for Apple… Samsung.
Wangkon: i read somewhere LG was working on bigger amoled screens for possible near future use on tv’s
Ideally, Apple will want to get the screens from LG or a Taiwanese manufacturer, but I’m not sure if any of them can make a AMOLED screen that will match what Samsung already has ready to go to market. So, if your Apple, you have a choice. You can buy Samsung’s screen and help support a company that’s gunning for you or you can wait until LG or someone else creates the proper AMOLED screen for your smart phone. Again, lots of people have AMOLED technology but only Samsung has the best screen made for a smart phone. LG and the Taiwanese companies are happy with their Google Android and Window’s Mobile niche. Samsung is not, hence their declaration of their own OS smartphone platform.
is anybody following the hit carried out by mossad? the plot is thickening and is better than fiction. of course, israel’s going to get away with it since israel doesn’t have to follow international law. we all know why.
@@@
korea won’t be following the japanese because the koreans believe that if they don’t watch their back, everything they’ve worked for could be taken away tommorow. the japanese never had this kind of attitude. they were just too sure of themselves just like they were during the imjin war.
@@@
what does ‘amoled’ mean?
this rating system is proof the place is populated by those looking for revenge. tsk, tsk, tsk….
In other news, the 41st President (or so he thought, almost) Al Haig has passed away at the tender age of 85.
http://www.amconmag.com/article/2010/mar/01/00022//
Innnnteresting.
Wow….I find it absolutely remarkable that Canada with its 193 people competing has only 9 medals so far compared to Korea’s 9 medals with 46 athletes. Their home judges must be really fair and honest people.
In a real sport:
USA 5
Canada 3
Hee hee hee hee hee!
And ‘Merica just beat them in their own sport 5-3.
It could be that Canadians simply lack any form of talent. I tend to believe that theory, based on my interactions with English teachers here in Korea. Imagine a nation of such folks.
That’s rich, coming from a lawyer not even talented enough to practice law in his native country.
Ooh, zing! Canadians are so easy to bait, insecure as they are.
The Epic Beard Man and Seattle Bus Tunnel Beatdown videos are Exhibit A and B in the case against funding more public transit in American cities. Most suburbanites moved out to the suburbs to get the hell away from such people and are leery of schemes to make it easier for them to come raid suburban neighborhoods and prey on suburbanites’ fat, weak little children. The popularity of the SUV is in part due to the nagging thought in the back of the suburban driver’s mind that one day he or she may have to mow through a mob of bus-riders and other urban denizens.
@ # 95,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Active-matrix_OLED
Apple has shied away from AMOLED screens because past screens used a lot of power, didn’t show well in direct sunlight and didn’t incorporate capacitive touch technology.
How about this for an iPad display. 3D without glasses;
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2359931,00.asp
Cool… but:
1) How much power does it use?
2) Can it incorporate a capacitive touchscreen?
thank you, wangkon. i hope they fix this problem because sometimes it’s hard to see the screen of my itouch in sunlight. i know you can increase the brightness but it uses so much power, it may be out in an hour and half or so.
****
gangpe, i know i’ve said in the past that i can’t get into k-pop but so many of you post links, i’m starting to actually listen to the crap. the level of sophistication is miles away from the time i actively listened to korean tunes.
anyway, since you like k-pop so much, might i link to a song i can’t get out of my head? it’s by 40 year old beauty om jung hwa and is called ‘disco’. ms om looks fantastic for her age and the song is just catchy. my only complaint is, i wonder if they couldn’t be a bit more conservative with their dress. sorry if you’ve already seen it before.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvVwQGTQYP0
Pawi: thanks for the link ! Great song, generally the Big Bang boys always work on good stuff.
yes k-pop has become incredibly sophisticated, both visually and production-wise. Well it fascinates me cos it seems like a big mashup of Western influences but elaborated with a distinctive local approach, i’m not totally sure but i think it is the rythmic structure that differs from Western pop music, it is just awesome and very creative.
Ms Om is a joy for the eyes, i noticed how beautiful Korean women in their 40′s often are, comparing to whites in the same age group (sorry guys let’s try to be objective). Better diet, healthier habits and i think in general a higher level of interest toward their own appearance help boosting the contribution of an already valid gene pool
The following website details the Asian-American woman chosen to be the new “La Femme Nikita” and how many Americans are really watching speed skating (not many out of a population of 320 million–basically a whopping 7%): http://www.cynopsis.com/editions/cynopsis/022210/
gangpe, i’m glad you liked the song. i remember when korean music was so unsophisticated that they sang on stage with a fake microphone. you knew it was fake because ‘the cord’ only went to their knees. back then, there was no glamour and no elegance but i would argue there were good singers who sang wonderful songs that had little sophistication. as for ms om, i was surprised to see how well she looks for her age. i understand she probably had plastic surgery but you can’t plastic surgery a body like that. the lady’s been around awhile.
two more things:
first, a bit of trivia to impress your korean friends: the first korean record to sell a million albums in korea was cho yong pil’s 창밖에 여자 back in 1979. the song was on his comeback album he made after being banned from singing for smoking marijuana. everybody back then knew that song.
two, i’ve always been a fan of eros ramazzotti. the guy’s just talented. i remember buying his first cassette somewhere in the 80s. i listened to it all the time in my car. the italien language is just made for music.
have a good day, gangpe.
ps from your choice of gravatars, i’m thinking you like fighting!
# 88 wangkon936
what I want to know is, what is this Australian human doing in Monkey Land (Donkey Kong Country?)?
is he a primatologist ala Jane Goodall studying the monkeys and their ways?
is he striving to eradicate anti-primatism and working to bring about World Primate Peace by taking a monkey wife and enlightening and developing all of Monkeydom?
or perhaps he was tricked into taking a monkey bride. i have heard of people being tricked into intimate relations with men dressed up as women throughout southeast Asia (ladyboys). it is possible that he was tricked into relations with a monkey pretending to be a female human.
who knows. but i wonder why he had to go to Monkey Land. i do believe they have zoos in Australia where one can enjoy the monkeys.
i hope he is careful though. intimate contact with monkeys is believed to be how Ebola and HIV were transmitted to humans.
@ Wangkon and Yuri
I praise the Almighty Lord everyday for having created Australia and New Zealand, at least my beloved Italy is not the only serious contender for the title of Trailer Park of the West
Pawi,
Samsung has solved the problems in a fully market deployable screen. They are the first to be able to do this which is fueling speculation in a lot of Apple blogs that it will be used in the iPhone 4g. If Apple wants to have a high quality AMOLED screen that doesn’t compromise anything and get it out by Christmas 2010, they will have to go with Samsung, otherwise expect the 4g to come out after Christmas or with an inferior AMOLED or traditional and bland LCD screen.
i hope kim yu na doesn’t win the gold so the korean people will get off her back. it’s just figure skating, korea. even i find the korean people’s behvior a bit sick. let her be. congradulate her no matter what the outcome. poor girl.
If that were to happen, it would most likely happen in Hartlepool.
Pawi: if i’m not wrong Mr. Cho was mentioned in Joint Security Area, if i remember correctly 이병헌 (coolest motherfucker on earth) brings one of his tapes to his Northern friend, i’ll definitely impress my relatives with my knowledge
I remember once you mentioned you regret the times when Korean singers looked like men, well it’s a common problem:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jfu21GbY34E&feature=channel
This is in the BS (below shit) category…i think they should make a song with Brown Eyed Girls
Yes back in the past not everything was worse, there’s a lot more style in today’s world and very little substance. I miss the world of my early childhood sometimes.
And well fighting is a big part of everybody’s life, it is something inherently part of our nature
PS
Mr. Ramazzotti is a good singer but i like faster, more rythmical music hehe
ganpe, i wonder why evrybody everybody thinks ‘jsa’ was such a good movie. of course, i only watched it one time and i’ve discovered that most great korean movies need to be watched twice. i have that movie somewher. maybe i’ll watch it again.
speaking of good korean movies, might i recommend ‘kung-nyo’ (궁녀)?
though the movie was a hit, i think it was under-rated. people complained that the ghost part of the story was confusing. i thought the same thing too but when i watched it again, i realized that the director was very clever in the way she left clues to explain that angle. if you decide to watch, be careful to watch for a scar on the face.
as for mr ramazzotti, you’re right. his music is kind of mellow.
as for negative ratings: yeah, i wear their disdain for me as a badge of honor. i only mentioned it because i noticed your ratings are often in the negative. i do hope your good impressions of korea will last. you know, koreans can be in your face in a heartbeat.
i hope you have a good day, gangpe.
@ pawi and gangpeh,
You two need to get together and chat over an espresso.
Another ” Canadians Behaving Badly” story
http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100223/ellis_trial_100223/20100223?hub=Toronto
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