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!

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Daily Kor for April 8, 2010

The big news is the sentencing of Aijalon Mahli Gomes. His eight-year sentence at hard labor should come as a surprise to no one, and it is not unlike the twelve-year sentence handed down to Euna Lee and Laura Ling, and we all know what happened there. The big difference is the $700,000 fine, which will muck up any smooth effort to get him out.

This should be a lesson to those who think that traipsing into North Korea with messages that Kim Jong-il should step down will somehow erode the power of the regime. They have already ground up Robert Park and spit him out, and they may do the same with Mr Gomes. And who knows what they will do with whatever money they squeeze out of Mr Gomes's supporters. It's time for the organizations that have encouraged Mr Park's and Mr Gomes's walkabouts to renounce and repudiate this tactic.

American from Boston who had resided in South Korea sentenced to 8 years in prison and $700K fine by North Korea for illegal entry (links here)
South Korean oil tanker seized by Somali pirates near Somali coast (BBC)

Foreign Ministry says crew is still safe (Yonhap)

South Korean sailors aboard doomed Chonan describe mystery blast (BBC, AP via WaPo, WSJ, Chosun Ilbo, Donga Ilbo)

Divers find second body from Chonan (Yonhap, Joongang Daily)

South Korea buys $1 billion to curb rise of KRW (Reuters)
Finance Ministry says economy-boosting measures will remain despite strong recovery (Yonhap)
Beijing considering allowing convertibility of yuan with Korean won (Yonhap)
Japan Self-Defense Forces on high alert after sculpture in Pusan's Taejongdae Park determined to be dagger pointed at heart of Japan (Reuters)

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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.

Monster Island (actually a peninsula)*

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Daily Kor for April 8, 2010

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