Monster Island (actually a peninsula)*

Pearls of witticism from 'Bo the Blogger: Kushibo's Korea blog... Kushibo-e Kibun... Now with Less kimchi, more nunchi. Random thoughts and commentary (and indiscernibly opaque humor) about selected social, political, economic, and health-related issues of the day affecting "foreans," Koreans, Korea and East Asia, along with the US, especially Hawaii, Orange County and the rest of California, plus anything else that is deemed worthy of discussion. Forza Corea!

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Korea news links for October 11, 2009

Much of today's Korea-related news is coming out of the trilateral summit in Beijing, with the leaders of South Korea, Japan, and China meeting to discuss economic cooperation, how to deal with North Korea, and environmental issues. The Pusan International Film Festival (PIFF) is also generating some news, including reports that actress Jeon Doyeon (전도연/全度妍; chŏn toyŏn) has been honored with one of the highest artistic awards offered by France (see also here).

Leaders of South Korea, Japan, and China, at trilateral summit in Beijing, say they will explore the idea of a free-trade pact, inching their countries closer to economic integration (CNBC, Xinhua, Yonhap)
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao tells ROK President Lee and Japanese PM Hatoyama that North Korea wants to ease tensions with Seoul, Tokyo, and Washington (CNBC, USA Today, Reuters via WaPo, WSJ, NYT; related story at Bloomberg)
At summit, Wen, Lee, and Hatoyama pledge to enact Copenhagen climate accord (Bloomberg)
Hatoyama backs Lee's "Grand Bargain" on dealing with North Korea (Donga Ilbo, CCTV, Korea Herald)
Military Manpower Association plans to implement longer military service for "draft-dodgers" while providing more scrutiny for those who seek exemption (Korea Times)
Top celebrities at PIFF are lining up to speak out against digital theft (Yonhap)
WebTV (aka IPTV) marks one millionth subscriber nine months after launch (Chosun Ilbo)
South Korean retailers predict Michael Jackson and Jackson Five costumes to be Halloween season's best sellers (Yonhap)

2 comments:

The Sanity InspectorMonday, October 12, 2009 3:48:00 AM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6LRR7VEFPk
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kushiboMonday, October 12, 2009 7:56:00 PM
That was quite interesting. The guy doing it, though, appears to be Black himself, but those mannequins... creepy looking in a blackface sort of way.

But good entertainment, though.
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Ask Kushibo.

My Google/Blogspot data shows that a lot of the 2 million people who have landed on my site (yes, that's the real number) are looking for cultural information on Korea (e.g., “When did Syngman Rhee die?” “What did the Indians bring to the first Chusŏk?’ etc., etc.), as well as practical or historical stuff.

That got me thinking that, hey, I have a master’s degree in Korean studies and a minor in Japanese studies, I’ve lived in Seoul far longer than most foreans my age (whether they're kyopo or non-kyopo), I teach introductory courses on Korea and its cultural trappings and history, so why not offer a free service where I attempt to answer people’s questions, point them in the direction of where they can get them answered, and/or offer my regulars (that’s you!) a chance to take a stab at some of this stuff, too.

So if there’s something you’d like to know from a “contrarian scourge,” click on ASK KUSHIBO and just ask a succinct question in the comments section below.

Oh, and play nice. Please don’t make me regret this.

九十五大怪獣란? 쿠시보의 몬스터 아일랜드란?

Pearls of witticism from 'Bo the Blogger: Kushibo's Korea blog... Kushibo-e Kibun...
Now with Less kimchi, more nunchi. Random thoughts and commentary (and indiscernibly opaque humor) about selected social, political, economic, and health-related issues of the day affecting "foreans" ("foreigners" in Korea be they kyopo or non-kyopo), Koreans, Korea and East Asia, along with the US, especially Hawaii, Orange County, and the rest of California, plus anything else that is deemed worthy of discussion. Forza Corea!

* Monster Island (actually a peninsula)

The name of this blog comes from a line in "Lisa on Ice," a beloved episode of The Simpsons, perhaps my all-time favorite television show (even though for several seasons there, it really did suck). Lisa is imagining being sworn in as president, but at the last minute, it is discovered that she failed P.E. (physical education) and she is thus "sentenced to a lifetime of horror" on Monster Island. "Don't worry," the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court confides in her, "It's just a name."

Fast forward to Lisa and other prisoners running in panic through a tropical jungle, chased by Godzilla-like creatures, including a monster turtle and a monster firefly.

"He said it was just a name!" Lisa screams to the man next to her. While he, too, runs for his life, the unidentified man calmly says, "What he meant is that Monster Island is actually a peninsula."

Anyway, I thought in some ways that punchline summed up modern-day Korea in a nutshell. For many people—foreigners and Koreans—the ups and downs and everyday travails of the Republic of Korea make it as precarious as a Monster Island would be (and with the DMZ being the only land border, it really is like an island). But it actually is a peninsula. Okay, it made sense in my head.

So as you can see, despite the hits I get from people looking for Japanese tentacle porn, it has nothing to do with anything salacious as that.