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!

Monday, March 29, 2010

Daily Kor for March 29, 2010

The sinking of the Chonan is the obvious big story today as well, and we have testimonies from the survivors, but more questions than answers.

Officials say blast that sank Chonan split the vessel in two (BBC)

South Korea continues to search for survivors off Paengnyŏngdo in treacherous waters close to North Korea (NYT, WSJ, Bloomberg, Yonhap, Korea Herald)
President Lee urges families not to lose hope of more survivors (Yonhap)
Fallout over incident causes KRW to slip further (Reuters)
Seoul sees little fallout from incident (Reuters, Yonhap)
UN Secretary-General Ban Kimoon sends condolence letter over tragedy (Yonhap, Korea Herald)
US experts say mines could have caused sinking (Yonhap, Korea Herald)
US to join search for missing sailors (Korea Times)
Newspapers carrying

North Korea threatens action if South Korea and US do not stop tourist visits to Panmunjom (links here)
Declines in energy imports brings South Korea back to current-account surplus in February (Bloomberg, Yonhap)
Samsung signs $1.46 sales deal with major Chinese retailer Suning (Yonhap)
Korean pro baseball league kicks off 2010 season (Yonhap)
Hee Kyung Seo pulls to five-shot lead in Kia Classic (LAT)
Chronologists warn that March will disappear across the globe within 48 to 72 hours unless drastic action is taken (UPI)

2 comments:

RobertTuesday, March 30, 2010 12:37:00 PM
Never did care much for March, anyway.
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kushiboTuesday, March 30, 2010 12:46:00 PM
I prefer Smarch, except for the lousy Smarch weather.
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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.