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, October 8, 2009

News links for October 8, 2009

US President Barack Hussein Obama to visit Japan, Singapore, China, and South Korea in early November; may try Korean food during visit (Reuters, Yonhap)
News Corp media mogul Rupert Murdoch visits South Korea and Japan in possible bid to create rival to Amazon.com's Kindle device (Reuters)
French special envoy to North Korea Jack Lang, currently in South Korea, announces plan to visit DPRK next month (AFP)
In wake of outrage over brutal "Nayŏng" rape case involving eight-year-old victim, Justice Ministry releases report saying 90% of parole applications were approved (Donga Ilbo)
Justice Ministry says convicted pedophiles may be required to wear electronic monitoring anklets for life (Korea Herald)
Pusan International Film Festival (PIFF) opens its nine-day run (Yonhap)
Health Ministry says Novartis Korea was illegally stockpiling antiviral treatment Tamiflu for employees and their families (Korea Herald)
In Seoul speech, British Business secretary Peter Mandelson predicts EU-ROK free-trade agreement would expand trade by €66.8 billion, or $98.4 billion (Joongang Daily)
To promote international adherence to unique digraphs of South Korea's Romanization system, VANK launches global effort to encourage English-speaking countries to pronounce "someone" as "소머네" (USA Today)

2 comments:

1994Thursday, October 08, 2009 9:30:00 PM
I enjoy the fake posts you have, Kushi. Good stuff. My pick for Seoul's new name: 덕도신도시
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kushiboFriday, October 09, 2009 8:19:00 AM
Fake posts?! What ever do you mean? :)
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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.