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!

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

And speaking of silly political messages displayed by Olympians...

Some people in the US of A are a bit ticked off that one Olympian, Leo Manzano following his victory in the 1500-meter running race, chose to wave a Mexican flag on his victory lap.

Well, he initially waved the Stars & Stripes, but then added the Eagle Devouring Snake (full disclosure: I don't know what the Mexican flag is called) on his second round.

I'm torn here. While a ROK Olympian got a red card from his medal ceremony for flashing a "Tokto is ours" card, is donning the Mexican flag a political statement? I could imagine a Korea-born US Olympian doing the same with the Taegukki, but I don't think that would go over well with some people either.

But then again, some people are probably mad the entire Olympics is in metric, so I have to ask if the Olympians are supposed to cater all their behavior to an audience that had next to nothing to do with their hard-earned victory.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/10/opinion/navarrette-olympics-flags/index.html

This succinct email was sent from my iPhone.

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2 comments:

The Sanity InspectorTuesday, August 14, 2012 11:11:00 AM
I miss the Dokdo Is Ours blog. I discovered it, as I do so many K-blogs, near the end of its run.
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AnonymousWednesday, August 15, 2012 7:59:00 PM
I don't know how to feel honestly. He's competing for one country then displays the flag of another country. That's just sort of weird for an event like the Olympics where you compete for a national team.

Still, I'm at least pleased that the Olympics refuses to recognize a delegation from Missouri.
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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.

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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.