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!

Friday, July 15, 2011

Daily Kor for Friday, July 15, 2011

A quick edition of the Daily Kor (i.e., fewer sources than usual). And June Gloom is getting me down. At least my mortgage not going up (story #2) is something cheer me up.

South Korean court forces Apple to pay 1 million won (US$945) to plaintiff over secret iPhone tracking (WaPo, Reuters, Yonhap)
With a watchful eye on Europe and rising inflation at home, South Korea's central bank leaves key interest rate at 3.25 percent (AP via WaPo, Korea Times, Bloomberg, Yonhap, Joongang Daily)
IOC Chairman Jacques Rogge says North Korea will have no role in co-hosting 2018 Winter Olympics to be held in and around Pyongchang County (Reuters)

Rogge urges Tokyo to maintain its bid for 2020 Summer Olympiad despite South Korea hosting in 2018 (AP via WaPo)

In-coming US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen says threat of North Korean provocations "remains very real" as Pyongyang works to strengthen leader Kim Jong Il’s successor, urges Beijing to play "a leadership role" in restraining DPRK (AP via WaPo, Reuters, AFPS, Bloomberg, Yonhap)

Japanese delegation in Washington urges US not to provide food aid to North Korea (AFP)

Samsung-commissioned study says cancers at semiconductor facilities unrelated to work for Korean conglomerate (AP via WaPo, Yonhap)
GM Korea workers reach wage deal that ends partial strike (WSJ)
ROK Foreign Ministry slams Japanese counterparts after Tokyo calls for one-month boycott of Korean Air after flagship South Korean carrier flies around South Korea-held islets claimed by Japan in exhibition flight of new Airbus A380 carrier (Yonhap, Reuters)
Thor and Ugba declare victory against Scandinavian condo (AFP)

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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)*

Friday, July 15, 2011

Daily Kor for Friday, July 15, 2011

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