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!

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Daily Kor for March 10, 2010

It may be a testament of how things have changed from the Roh administration to the Lee administration that two North Korean asylum seekers could top news, sort of. Although the Roh administration did take in thousands of North Korean refugees — more than all other administrations combined — they also tried to downplay the issue in the media and public sphere to the detriment (even death) of some of the escapees. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

North Korean loggers seek asylum at ROK consulate in Vladivostok (links here)
As ROK-US military exercise continues, North Korea vows to bolster nuclear arsenal (Bloomberg, UPI, Yonhap)

China appoints new ambassador to North Korea (Bloomberg)

South Korea provides twenty tons of skim milk powder to DPRK (People's Daily, Yonhap)
President Lee declares war on corruption among educational officials and public servants (Yonhap)
Government to give automobile tax incentives and other benefits to families with three or more children (Yonhap, Korea Times)
Afghan deputy foreign minister comes to Seoul, voices hope for ROK reconstruction team (Yonhap)
Russian authorities arrest two people in stabbing of South Korean student in Moscow (links here)
South Korea defeats Netherlands, 2-1, in field hockey World Cup but fails to get semi-finals berth (AFP)

Inha University historian credits Koryŏ-era seafarers with introducing Pilgrim attire to the Puritans (Donga Ilbo)

4 comments:

AlexWednesday, March 10, 2010 8:07:00 AM
Would really like to read no. 9 on the list, if it is in English. But the link doesn't work??
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kushiboWednesday, March 10, 2010 8:10:00 AM
Check out the last story in the other Daily Kor posts and see if you detect a theme. :)
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AlexWednesday, March 10, 2010 8:29:00 AM
Damn, I was ready for a nice laugh!
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kushiboWednesday, March 10, 2010 8:42:00 AM
I was hoping you'd have a nice laugh anyway.

Here's a serious one, then: the English word silk has it's origins in the Korean word for 'thread' (실; shil or sil).

But it would be funnier if the Pilgrim's hat could somehow be traced to the chŏn'gojonggat (전 고종갓).
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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.

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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.