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 25, 2009

Korea news links for October 25, 2009: No nukes is good news

It's a slow news day, being Saturday in the West and Sunday in the East. We have North Korean envoys meeting their counterparts in New York City to talk about who knows what, while at the same time the Blue House is insisting that no way, no how will there be a North-South presidential summit that will be little more than a photo op. Those days are gone, Lee is telling us. Oh, and there are two more shopping months until Christmas. Anything Wii-related is fine.

North Korean envoy Ri Gun meets American counterparts in New York City (BBC, Reuters, YTN)
Blue House reiterates that it is not considering or in consultation with Pyongyang for a summit in the near future, restating that it will not participate in a summit unless assured that a meeting between their leaders will produce significant progress: "...it is our government's unchanging stance that we will not hold an inter-Korean summit that will simply end in a meeting of the leaders" (Yonhap)
Park Geunhye reiterates her support that Sejong City project should go ahead as planned (Joongang Daily)
Kia Tigers win Korean Series in game 7 (Korea Times)
South Korea promises to gradually double its aid to ASEAN members by 2015 (Xinhua)
Generator #5 shuts down at nuclear power plant in Yŏnggwang due to control rod malfunction (Yonhap)
Lawmakers call for leniency for disgraced cloner Hwang Woosuk (Korea Herald)
Halloween Attire Manufacturers Association of America agrees to "whore down" children's costumes this year (USA Today)

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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)*

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Korea news links for October 25, 2009: No nukes is good news

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