Avalon hagwon franchise to take away passports, have daily health exams, and other bullshit measures to fight swine flu.

Here is some insane informtion distributed to teachers at Avalon English, a large hagwon franchise with campuses all over the country. From what I understand it is to be implemented at all campuses.

Guidelines regarding swine flu

Swine flu is a contagious influenza virus that has been spreading worldwide exceeding 12,000 different cases. Currently there have been 22 confirmed cases of swine flu in South Korea. The virus is spread from person to person though coughing or sneezing of people infected with the influenza virus. People may become infected by touching something with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose. Here is a list of symptoms.

1. Symptoms
Coughing, fever, soar throat, stuffy or runny nose, body aches,
headaches, chills, fatigue, nausea and vomiting

2. Reporting process
symptoms > report to campus director>report to the divisional
director> report to the HR dept>provide guidelines

3 Guidelines
* Do not travel abroad until further notice
* Do not go to public areas if possible
* Employees will have their body temps checked daily and results will be recorded
* Wash hands 3 times a day. Teachers must wash hands before and after class
* Classrooms will sanitized before and after class for safety measures
* Avalon transportation vehicles will be sterilized for safety measures
* Notice will be sent to parents regarding Avalon’s guidelines about the swine flu virus
* All head office employees must be aware of the guidelines to prevent swine flu
* Guidelines will be posted and students must be aware of the guidelines


4. Mandatory Instructions:
A. Daily body temp check ups

-All Avalon employees must get a body temperature check and report the results to the HR dept.
B. Instructions fro foreign teachers and staff members
-anyone that comes back form their vacation after May 25th must stay at home for one week
-New teachers and staff members must stay at home for two weeks in the month of May
-No overseas vacation and business travel
-FOREIGN TEACHERS AND STAFF MEMBERS MUST SUBMIT THEIR PASSPORT TO THEIR DIRECTOR UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE

C. We fully understand the ongoing situation and taking any safety measures to ensure and protect our employees and students from swine flu. Employees should not be too concerned over this matter. Company related information should not be leaked or exchanged to a third party member.

Well, when you presume to implement reactionary, dangerous, and potentially illegal measures, you can pretty much guarantee your policies will get out.

My favorite Roh Moo-hyun pictures.

News sites and bloggers have compiled collections of more candid photos of the late president, whose funeral was held today, though I haven't seen any that included this series:






This was originally on somebody else's site a couple of years ago, though I don't remember which one.

Korea Herald on the quarantined teachers.

The Korea Herald's "Expat Living" section has a lengthy article talking to the quarantined native speaker English teachers in South Korea. Also in the Herald, Roboseyo's Rob Ouwehand has a heck of a piece about these health checks and travel regulations that are going into place with alarming regularity.

President Roh's funeral today; expect some rough stuff.

Some are, at least; from the Joongang Ilbo:

Throughout today, police will have 200 companies of riot policemen totaling around 20,000 standing by in central Seoul to maintain security. Some 360 traffic policemen will man major intersections in the vicinity. Bongha Village and the Gyeonggi area will also have a massive police presence. Police will block Gwanghwamun from noon until 2 p.m. and have advised citizens to take public transportation.

The US Embassy is closed today out of respect for the funeral, and has also advised citizens to keep their wits about them. An excerpt:

The U.S. Embassy will be closed for all routine services on Friday, May 29, 2009, due to the funeral services for former Korean President Roh Moo Hyun at nearby Gyeongbok Palace and the City Hall area. We expect extremely large crowds, severe traffic congestion and possible disruptions, and a sizable police presence in the immediate vicinity of the Embassy. Embassy staff will be available for emergency consular services only.

The Embassy has no indication that the crowds assembling for the Presidential funeral services will pose any threat to Americans. Nonetheless, we always recommend as a matter of prudence that Americans exercise proper caution if within the vicinity of any large crowds. American citizens should stay current with media coverage of local events and be aware of their surroundings at all times. The Embassy will continue to keep the American community informed of any changes in the overall security situation.

The Herald gives an overview of what to expect from the funeral itself:

The official funeral will start as the funeral cortege carrying Roh's coffin enters the front yard of the ancient palace.

President Lee Myung-bak is expected to attend, as are other former presidents, several ministers, lawmakers and foreign delegates, plus Roh's family and close aides.

Lee Dal-gon, minister of public administration and security, will offer a brief personal history of Roh, followed by funeral speeches by current Prime Minister Han Seung-soo and former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook.

A video showing images of Roh, such as his inaugural oath in 2003 will be screened.

Starting with President Lee, Roh's bereaved family members and other guests will offer white chrysanthemums before Roh's portrait to pay farewell.

The official funeral service will end with a volley of firings.

A limousine carrying Roh's coffin will then move to Seoul Plaza in front of the city hall for a mourning event, which will start at 1 p.m.

After the service, Roh's body will be cremated at a crematorium in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, on the way back to his hometown village.

His ashes will be placed at a small temple where the memorial tablets of his late parents are enshrined for 49 days, before being buried on a hill near his residence.

And the Donga Ilbo tells us "Roh’s Funeral Committee to Be Largest in Korean History," double that of Park Chung-hee's in 1979. Those of you in Seoul, please pass along any on-the-ground reports you have.

(Updated again) American needs help in Seoul.

I came across this Facebook group this afternoon, for an American in Seoul named Matt Robinson. You may have seen Matt perform with the Seoul City Improv group, and he was teaching in Korea for three years. In short, he needs an operation on his leg or else he faces amputation or worse, and he will be evicted from Soon Chun Hyang University Hospital unless he can raise the necessary ten million won. Some excerpts from the group's FAQ, questions I asked on the wall, actually:

Matt has been battling a blood clot in his leg for several years. Recently, he had surgery on the leg, after which he got gangrene. Because of this, he now needs another surgery, which he was admitted into the hospital for 3 weeks ago but hasn't yet been scheduled for.

. . .

They haven't scheduled the surgery because Matt has no proof of payment. However, he can't leave the hospital because the IV they've had him on for the last 3 weeks is what is keeping him stable. They're only keeping him for another week to finish the medication they have him on now. After that, he gets the boot.

. . .

Since he's on tourist visa, he can't get insurance. The Korean Bureaucracy has cleverly devised a system so that tourists can't have insurance here.

Well, I don't like that last part, both the information and the tone, especially in light of a serious preexisting health condition. Nonetheless if you'd like to help out with a donation, the bank information is as follows:

account #:481-007433-01-011
Bank: IBK / Industrial / 기업은행

We all have our times of need, and it is big of us to help out when we can, so if everyone stops by the convenience store on the way to work tomorrow and donates a little, we can make a huge difference. Additionally, does anybody have recommendation for traveller's insurance, or something that would offer coverage in a case like this? Any insurance that would work in lieu of Korea's national plan?

Update: I didn't get a chance to talk to him this evening, as I was directed by one of the Facebook group's administrators, but there are further updates in the discussion board. Some excerpts:

The reason the medical bill is so high is much more complicated than has been posted. There are basically 2 things going on. Matt initially went into the hospital about 4 weeks ago. He had a serious bacterial infection which required very invasive surgery. The doctors told him that he had about a 50/50 chance of surviving. During the surgery, they had to remove a large portion of flesh. The surgery went fine.

However, Matt has another condition called deep vein thrombosis, for which he is taking medications. Due to complications from either this condition or the medication he was taking, the doctors were unable to follow up the surgery as they should have done. They had to wait for a couple weeks. Since the initial surgery, he has been left with a rather large open sore from where the infected tissue was removed. This is much too large to heal on its own. Because of the time that has elapsed, there is a very serious threat of further infection or even gangrene.

Sometime after the initial surgery, Matt's leg began to swell up. This was probably due to deep vein thrombosis and possibly involves a blood clot in his leg. This leg now appears to be quite a serious problem as well and may require surgery.

So at the moment, he definitely needs plastic surgery to close up the open wound. There is also a strong likelihood that they may need to operate on his leg to remove a blood clot. If he has surgery promptly, he has been told, he should be out of the hospital sometime in June.

. . .

As it stands, his hospital bill is approximately 10 000 000 won (the cashier didn't give me the exact figures). The cost for room fee and food is about 100 000 won per day. This does not include medication, examinations, doctors, taxes? and other poking and prodding fees. Considering that he had major surgery and has been in the hospital for 4 weeks with a lot of post-op care, you can see how the bill has climbed this high.

As the hospital considers the plastic surgery to be elective, and considering the problems Matt has had paying his existing bills, they do not seem to be willing to perform it unless he pays upfront. When he asked, however, they were unable to give him a quote on how much it would cost.

. . .

Matt was not teaching illegally. He recently finished another job and had come back on a tourist visa. He was looking for a new job when he had to go to the hospital. His tourist visa expires towards the end of June.

Second update: There will be an event held at Stompers Rock Spot in Itaewon on Saturday night from 7:00 PM. The EV Boys and Pet Rock will be playing, and donations will be collected.

A picture of the late former President Roh Moo-hyun, carved into the beach at Haeundae in Busan.

Three more flu cases; government to take precautions with returning students abroad.

Another teacher from the quarantine group has come down with swine flu, making her, according to the Joongang Ilbo, the 20th case reported from the 65-member CDI orientation class. The article also says a 22-year-old (19?) Korean woman returning from Texas voluntarily reported to a health center when she exhibited symptoms of the disease. The Korea Herald says a Korean-American instructor with the group also came down with the flu.

The Joongang Ilbo article continues to say the government will monitor the situation among students returning from studies abroad.

The ministry is taking “preemptive measures” before a flurry of Koreans studying abroad return home to spend summer vacation here, said Chung Eun-gyung, an official in the disease policy department at the Health Ministry, in a press briefing. She said the measures can be considered “an upgrade from existing ones.”

Measures will focus on explaining what Korean students who have been abroad - particularly those who were studying in the United States and Canada - should look for upon returning home, particularly if they become sick. She stressed that a person who either doesn’t submit quarantine forms or makes false statements will be subject to a maximum one year in prison or a fine of up to 5 million won ($3,939).

The ministry will run advertisements in three Korean newspapers and commercials on one radio station for Koreans in the United States during June 1?15 to encourage them to make voluntary reports to health authorities here within seven days after returning. Four radio stations in Korea already started running similar commercials yesterday and Web portal sites will carry banners on the cautions beginning June 1.

Again, I'm not saying there's no cause for concern among that orientation group, or no reason to worry that these teachers may have passed the disease on to others. However, remember their rate of infection is so high is because they were first living together during orientation, then healthy and sick were quarantined together. The foreign teaching community isn't more susceptible to swine flu, nor are foreigners---especially suspiciously Caucasian ones---more likely to transmit the disease than others. There is no reason for a school to interrogate its native speaker about his or her whereabouts or activities, or to tell him or her not to mingle with other foreigners.

Must read: NHRCK Report, "Discrimination Against Non-Citizens in the Republic of Korea in the Context of the E-2 Foreign Language Teaching Visa."

I'm pleased to post the report to the National Human Rights Commission of Korea titled "Discrimination Against Non-Citizens in the Republic of Korea in the Context of the E-2 Foreign Language Teaching Visa," compiled and filed by Professor Benjamin Wagner. It is 69 pages long, and if you click the box in the top-right corner you can expand to full-screen and read it online, print, or download it. This was released first by Gusts of Popular Feeling, which has a lengthy introduction; an excerpt:

As it became obvious there was a lot of interest from F series visa holders about the report, he decided to make the report public so people could see it for themselves, and explained this to the NHRCK. The reason for the delay was the fact that he had to combine three different reports into one 'final' report, and organize the 236 footnotes. This report has also been sent to the NHRCK and the Ministry of Justice. It should be pointed out that there continue to be documents sent back and forth, and that there is no definitive 'original text', and thus no 'final report.' This text will be updated as new research is added.

It accomplishes a couple of things for readers. First, it documents the most grievous and notable cases of the media and prominent individuals showering ignorance and hate on the heads of native speaker English teachers in Korea, whether it's a representative of the Foreign Affairs Division of the Seoul Police Department saying

American and Canadian English teachers think Korea is a land of opportunity [and a] perverted paradise [because] the majority of them find it easy to seduce Korean women and do drugs with them.

or a Ministry of Justice official saying

Drug use and other criminal activities carried out by foreign English teachers have been a social issue for some time, and have built up to dangerous levels in recent years.

or a proposed amendment to the Immigration Control Act that says

Nowadays, the number of foreigners working in Korea is increasing, but a good many have previous convictions for drug and sexual crimes or carry infectious diseases.

It lays out quite plainly and through statistics how these news reports, public statements by politicians and other figureheads, and rumors among the public are not only false, but outlandishly so. It debunks the widely-circulated beliefs that we are prone to criminal activity, drug use, sexual predation, or HIV transmission. It shows that the regulations did nothing to protect those they were ostensibly designed to protect. It says, on page 7, that

The E-2 visa policy requirements were designed to "protect children and young students," yet these protective measures are not applied to the majority of teachers who teach children (under-inclusive) and instead are often applied to teachers who do not teach children at all (over-inclusive)

and on the next page

The E-2 visa policy was never implemented to achieve any of its stated goals; rather, it was deigned as a "show" to pacify the Korean public by proving an illusion of protection through a discriminatory and extra-legal crackdown severely violating the human rights of non-citizen residents.

It not only documents these cases of ignorance and how they feuled public panic and led to new legislation, but it also, on a second front, demonstrates how the E-2 visa policy and the proposed additional changes---built as they are upon falsehoods, distortions, and statistics that do not exist---violate Korea's own laws and the human rights accords to which South Korea is proudly a party. It says, on the final page, as one of its six key recommendations to the NHRCK

Issue an immediate opinion stating the E-2 visa policy and proposed legislation constitutes discrimination and violates the fundamental human rights of non-citizens residing in the Republic of Korea.

Please read the initial post on Gusts of Popular Feeling for the background to this particular version. Now without further ado:

Nhrck Report 2

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Uncategorizable-Unca Business-Branding

Comments will be closely moderated here, and this space will not be used to debate or revisit any conversations already repeated on other sites. Anything off-topic or inflammatory will be removed.

A few more updates about teachers quarantined with swine flu.

Go ahead and browse the newly-minted "Swine flu in Korea" category if you missed any. Here are a few updates this morning:

* The Association for Teachers of English in Korea [ATEK] has issued a statement regarding teachers being quarantined with swine flu (HT to Hub of Sparkle); an excerpt:

Along with many Korean citizens, a number of non-citizen English language instructors have already been quarantined. It is important that everyone be treated fairly and in accordance with WHO guidelines. The WHO publishes a checklist for national authorities on how to contain the virus and offers information on handling quarantines.

We are in the process of contacting government agencies, the embassies of the countries that send teachers to Korea, and following up on all news of the teachers who have been quarantined. We are also investigating the legal right of foreigners to refuse to be tested or quarantined if they show no symptoms and have not traveled recently.

* On that point, law professor Benjamin Wagner and Roboseyo made a trip to the quarantine center. Benjamin has posted a comment about it on Gusts of Popular Feeling, so be sure to give it a read. An excerpt:

I interviewed people on whether there seemed to be any bias in the quarantine selection process, and the consensus seemed to be that there wasn't. There were Koreans who were allowed to go home, but there were also foreigners who got to go home. There were also Koreans in quarantine with the foreigners. The list I saw had at least 4 Korean names.

Some (most?) of the teachers had just arrived and the ones I talked said they didn't have homes to go back to so the facility made sense. But just as the 2 teachers who were explaining this to me finished, another teacher said, "I have a home I could've gone to!!!"

I was also concerned about how careful the health care pros were in following proper quarantine protocol so that individuals weren't put at a higher risk than if they'd been able to stay home. The WHO has good info on the swine flu here:
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/en/

It seems at the beginning the whole thing was a bit of a circus and the proper procedure wasn't really followed
http://www.who.int/csr/resources/publications/swineflu/ah1n1_checklist.pdf

But according to the teachers this wasn't out of any lack of concern for the teachers as foreigners, just plain old fashion negligence.

* On Tuesday Ratemyhagwon suggested collecting books, magazines, newspapers, and other items to help keep the spirts of those quarantined up. They are, after all, mostly new teachers and first-timers in Korea. They're keeping the drive going, and for information about how you can mail or hand-deliver items to be passed along, visit the latest update. A few of their suggestions for items you can donate:

Used paperbacks, Korean language study aids, DVDs, magazines, coffee or herbal tea bags, canned drinks, packaged snacks, pastries, junk food, W1000 face packs, hallmark cards (they already celebrated a birthday in quarantine!), Korean / English dictionary, disposable cameras, and [anything else you can think of]

* That's why Roboseyo and Benjamin Wagner visited yesterday, to pass along the first collection. Rob has written it up on Hub of Sparkle. An excerpt:

All my worst fears were alleviated, frankly: while the quarantine got off to a rocky start, they said that every day, people have gotten better at communicating, more on the ball, and more helpful. They reported that they have everything they need, and they’re pretty satisfied with their treatment.

They’re sad about the situation, and sorry if their situation is drawing heat on other foreign English teachers, but you know, it can’t be helped.

On the other hand, they seriously, sincerely, deeply appreciate the help and concern the expat community (and yeah, I’m using the c-word. The expat community) has offered up to them.

* And, one of those on the inside wrote a little about the visit:

Seriously, it’s indescribable how uplifting outside contact with the world is. Thanks again! You fine folks are the reason why the expat community in Korea keeps us coming back to this funny little peninsula.

* On a post I put up last night I asked if any teachers have been asked questions or have been taken to the doctor on account of the swine flu scare. Please post your accounts there; ATEK is also asking you email them.

(Updated) KFDA investigation finds ice at some fast-food restaurants and coffee shops unsafe.

* Update: I converted the .hwp file to a .doc file and posted it on waygook.org. It's available here.

From the Joongang Ilbo:

The Korea Food and Drug Administration said it found potentially harmful germs and high levels of bacteria in iced coffees and ice at 11 well-known chains, including Starbucks, McDonald’s and Dunkin’ Donuts.

The recent investigation, conducted jointly with the National Council of the Green Consumers Network in Korea, involved 153 coffee and fast-food franchise locations nationwide.

Officials discovered that 18 of the locations investigated served drinks or used ice containing either harmful germs or levels of bacteria deemed risky to human health.

The food administration said it found, for instance, that the Hyperion Starbucks in eastern Seoul used ice contaminated with staphylococcus aureus, which is known to cause food poisoning. The ice also contained 12 times the maximum number of a certain type of bacteria allowable by law.

A list of the stores with unsafe ice is posted as an .hwp file at the bottom of this KFDA release. There are two local establishments with unsafe levels of bacteria: the Yeoseo branch of Dunkin Donuts in Yeosu, and the Wolgye branch of Tom n' Toms in Gwangju.

North Korea threatens war if ships are touched.

From AFP:

SEOUL (AFP) — North Korea said it was abandoning the truce that ended the Korean war and warned it could launch a military attack on the South, two days after testing an atomic bomb for the second time.

The announcement came amid reports the secretive North, which outraged the international community with its bomb test Monday, was also restarting nuclear fuel work that could make plutonium for an atomic weapon.

Defying international condemnation, the regime of Kim Jong-Il said it could no longer guarantee the safety of US and South Korean ships off its west coast and that the Korean peninsula was veering back towards a state of war.

. . .

"Any tiny hostile acts against our republic, including the stopping and searching of our peaceful vessels... will face an immediate and strong military strike in response," the North Korean statement said.

It said its military would "no longer be bound" by the 1953 armistice that ended the Korean war -- in which the United States fought on the side of the South -- because Washington had drawn Seoul into the PSI.

I was going to check out the KCNA site myself, but it's blocked here. Sure sabre-rattling goes on a lot here, and indeed most Koreans I've run into, who are presumably more used to this rhetoric than I am, let on that they're more upset about Roh Moo-hyun's suicide (or "suicide") than about North Korea, but nonetheless I don't want to be too flippant about these developments. The best source for news and updates on North Korea is and will be One Free Korea.

Post here if your school is asking you questions because of the swine flu scare.

I'm seeing a lot of this on Facebook, on the forums, and on other blogs.

Kimchi movie coming to the US.

An excerpt from the Herald:

A movie about Kimchi is filming by a Korean director, which will be released in Hollywood and in Korea at the end of the year, according to news reports.

"Kimchikhan" is a documentary, which introduces the history and benefits of Kimchi as a health food.

Shin Heung-sik, director of "Kimchikhan," said on May 26 that "The movie is intended to reveal to the world the superiority of Korean Kimchi, surrounded by fast food and junk food." He continued, "The movie is filming in Korea, the United States, and Japan as main stages and about 70 percent of the movie is completed."

Shin added that "Kimchikhan" is going to play in approximately a hundred theaters in the United States. The director is currently staying in Korea, filming scenes taking place in the country.

The director had originally planned to make a comedy movie about Kimchi. "Initially, the plan was to make a movie about an American cook who became Kimchi master in Korea," Shin was quoted as saying.

He said he decided to alter the genre of the movie from comedy to documentary to present the delicate flavor and health benefits of Kimchi.

An excerpt from his press release earlier in the month:

A fascinating story of health and the quest for longevity, the story transports us on an eye-opening trip to South Korea in hopes to change the basis of the food essentials we consume everyday. In the United States, the food the average American consumes is fast and satisfying to taste, but rarely gives the nutrients the body needs for a healthy lifestyle.

The food that all human beings need is one that is satisfying and tasty but also keeps our mind and body healthy.

Through this journey, the main chef in the story creates a groundbreaking new menu with an entirely different preparation and process for an ultimate green and healthy cooking culture to discover the 6th taste bud that is beyond the salty, sweet, spicy, sour and even greasy tastes. The story reveals the secret to the health effects of kimchi (a spicy cabbage dish) as well as many other Korean foods - which is fermentation.

The idea behind it is a “slow food” philosophy, which takes a long time to prepare and has an equally long positive effect on the body. These slow foods are known to revive the body and have powerful healing effects. The story takes us on an adventure, explaining the process through interviews and discoveries with renowned chefs, professors as well as restaurants in the United States, Korea and Japan.

The movie's homepage is here. I'm not going to deny that kimchi is healthy---today I was told it's the best medicine against swine flu---nor will I deny that Americans eat like fucking pigs. But I will bring up this excerpt of an article about the health benefits of kimchi:

Understandably, perhaps, dissenters on the topic of its healing power are circumspect.

"I'm sorry. I can't talk about the health risks of kimchi in the media. Kimchi is our national food," said a researcher at Seoul National University, who begged not to be quoted by name.

Among the papers not to be found in the vast library of the kimchi museum is one published in June 2005 in the Beijing-based World Journal of Gastroenterology titled "Kimchi and Soybean Pastes Are Risk Factors of Gastric Cancer."

The researchers, all South Korean, report that kimchi and other spicy and fermented foods could be linked to gastric cancer, the most common cancer among Koreans. Rates of gastric cancer among Koreans and Japanese are 10 times higher than in the United States.

Austrian concertgoers not safe from Dokdo campaigners.

Kennen Sie Dokdo? The Korea Herald said the "The Dokdo Chamber Orchestra" debuted in Vienna on Sunday. An excerpt:

Performing without a conductor, the group's performance was exceptionally praised by one of Austria's most revered composers, Eric Urbanner.

"It's such a rare occasion that you get to witness a performance by an orchestra with such great potential," he said.

The formation of the orchestra and concert is said to have been possible through sponsorship support from local Korean businesses and expatriates.

"I hope Austrians will get to know that Dokdo is part of Korea from these concerts" and added "we also formed this group in order to promote the high level of Korean Orchestras," Park Jae-hee said.

Can't find a source from that line from the Austrian composer, actually named Erich Urbanner.

Roh Moo-hyun memorial in Suncheon.

I've seen different numbers for how many memorials havce been set up around Korea for Roh Moo-hyun, though this government page says 197. It has 18 in Jeollanam-do, though because local papers only update once a week or so, I won't have pictures until later. OhMyNews has a nice gallery of photographs taken at the makeshift Roh Moo-hyun memorial outside of Choeun Plaza in Suncheon's Yeonhyang-dong. Turns out that actually one of my coworkers took them, as he's a regular contributor over there. Click on the slideshow there to see more. The article says 1,200 people signed in at the memorial on the 25th.

I visited myself after school on Monday, and snapped a few pictures. Out of respect, and because a photographer had his camera pointed at me the whole time, I didn't take any pictures up close, so I'll refer you to the OhMyNews gallery. Here's a few, mostly of the signage:











Roboseyo posted some pictures to Hub of Sparkle of makeshift memorials near City Hall in Seoul. I like all the cigarettes offered to Roh, a heavy smoker.

One local university vigilant in the face of swine flu: instituting seven-day quarantine for new arrivals and curtailing vacation plans.

This email found its way to me, and shows what one local university has planned to guard against swine flu.

Dear Instructors,

Recent developments relating to the swine flu (H1N1) and Korea have necessitated the email.

The Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology (MEST) announced on May 25 that educational institutions are to be vigilant in safeguarding against the spread of influenza.

This includes monitoring personnel, especially foreign nationals and others who have entered from abroad recently. Symptoms of H1N1 are acute infectious respiratory conditions, including a fever of over 37 degrees Celsius accompanied by nasal mucous, congestion, sore throat, or cough.

Teaching personnel exhibiting the above conditions are to be prohibited from carrying out their teaching duties and must be reported to the district public health center for treatment.

Entrants into Korea from areas with a relatively high incidence of H1N1 (namely, Mexico, USA, Canada, UK, Spain, Japan) are prohibited from reporting to their workplace (in this case, _____________________) for seven days after entry, until the H1N1 incubation period has passed.

These MEST directives are in effect until further notice, and the list of affected countries is subject to change. This will effect those planning to travel outside of Korea during the summer vacation period.

Instructors are expected to be here to perform their scheduled teaching duties and attend the August 28 Teachers Workshop, so travel plans must be adjusted accordingly. Already approved vacation time will remain as originally approved.

We realize that these MEST directives may cause inconvenience, but these are not normal times. Special situations call for special measures. We hope you are understanding.

Sincerely.

[Names withheld]

While I would love about a week to do nothing but eat take-out and blog right about now, I'm a little worried right now that the swine flu scare will interfere with my plans to visit Japan and the United States this summer before returning to Korea in September. Too bad there's no way to get the quarantine out of the way before traveling. That was a joke.

Text of the Junior Herald's "Intoxicated native English teachers."

Yesterday I mentioned that the Junior Herald, an English paper produced by Herald Media and aimed at teens learning English, had an article titled "Intoxicated native English teachers" with an excerpt:

...disgruntled 12-year-old student who requested *anonymity said, “I can’t believe my parents are working hard to send me to an English hagwon where a teacher could possibly be a drug user.” Another student said that she wishes the government would do a thorough background check on native English teachers prior to granting employment.

Today a reader has passed along the full text of the article. Direct your complaints to the writer, Yoo Bo-lam at bolamyoo@heraldm.com, or the editor at jherald@heraldm.com.

On May 8, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (서울경찰청) announced that they have *arrested a 38-year-old Nigerian English teacher on charges of supplying illegal drugs to teachers. On top of that, six other native English teachers were charged with *habitual illegal drug consumption.

Of the six teachers, three were Canadians, two were Americans, and one was a New Zealander.

The teachers have been teaching English at elementary schools or famous English hagwons in Seoul.

According to the police, the Nigerian teacher sold *hashish since the end of last year. The six teachers are suspected of having smoked hashish five to nine times at home and bars in Itaewon. Shockingly, some of them took drugs late at night and went to work and taught classes while they were intoxicated.

A *disgruntled 12-year-old student who requested *anonymity said, “I can’t believe my parents are working hard to send me to an English hagwon where a teacher could possibly be a drug user.”

Another student said that she wishes the government would do a thorough background check on native English teachers prior to granting employment.

The police believe that there could be more drug users among native English teachers in Korea. So they will continue to *probe the case.

The words with an asterisk are ones accompanied by a Korean translation.

David of Staypuff.net is a swine flu target.

David, and quite a few other teachers commenting here and on Dave's ESL Cafe, has been approached by his school ostensibly with parents' concerns over the foreign staff having swine flu. His paraphrase of his head teacher's remarks:

‘…because of this, we’re asking you not to interact and meet with any other foreigners for the unforeseeable future as they could be carriers of the disease…”

Found via Ruby Ramblings, a blog that's become famous because the author is currently quarantined, but looks to be pretty good in its own right.

Shinan county in the news today.

Today, if I correctly assume the article posted yesterday evening refers to Tuesday, some folks from UNESCO will decide if Jeollanam-do's Shinan county will become a protected biosphere reserve. In Korean here, from the Jeonnam Ilbo. I've always said that if I get a block of spare time---and I might later this year---I'd like to visit some of the more remote islands off the coast of Jeollanam-do, and those in Shinan county certainly qualify. With some Googling and Navering you'll find more about Heuksan-do, Hong-do, and Bigeum-do, the latter a favorite among foreigners in Mokpo.

Since we're here, I'll add this article, which I meant to post a few weeks ago but I was in a bad mood so I didn't.

The government will allow the construction of hotels and other tourist accommodations at seashores and on islands inside national parks from next year, the Ministry of Environment said Monday.

Parks that are popular holiday destinations such as Hallyeohaesang in South Gyeongsang Province, Byeonsanbando in North Jeolla Province, Taeanhaean in South Chugncheong Province and Daedohaesang in South Jeolla Province will thus be able to attract more tourists, it said.

The announcement follows public complaints that there were insufficient places for people to stay after visiting the parks.

People willing to set up lodging facilities will be required to file for an environmental inspection by the local administrative office.

I guess the scare accomodations on these outlying islands in Jeollanam-do could be prohibitive, but you just have to make do. Not everything needs to be a goddamn resort.

More on those English teachers quarantined in Korea with swine flu.

In addition to the updates I compiled last night on the foreign English teachers quarantined in Korea for swine flu (please read the updates), the Joongang Ilbo has an article in the paper this morning on the issue, titled "Foreign English teachers epicenter of new flu cases." An excerpt:

The Education Ministry yesterday ordered every education office to provide information on the number of foreign teachers who entered Korea after May 11 and report by 5 p.m. if anyone is currently showing flu symptoms. The ministry also made it mandatory for teachers who have just come from Mexico, the epicenter of the flu outbreak, and the United States to not start work until after seven days of arrival. Those affected include teachers at private language institutes as well as those who teach at public elementary, middle and high schools and universities

As of Saturday, the number of confirmed domestic infections totaled 10, including six teachers from the language institute. On Sunday, health officials confirmed that another 11 patients - including eight foreigners from the language institute and three Korean children from New York - had caught the new strain of flu. One more infection from the institute, a 24-year-old American male, was confirmed yesterday, according to the Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A 28-year-old female who departed from New York and arrived at Incheon International Airport yesterday morning via Japan was classified as a “presumed patient” and was under further testing as of yesterday afternoon. She and the 18 newly confirmed patients were hospitalized.

Chungdahm Learning, a Kosdaq-listed firm that runs two private English-language franchises, recently recruited some 70 new teachers from eight countries including the United States and Canada.

The new recruits stayed at the same residence in Seocho-dong, southern Seoul, during a training period from May 16 to 22. They were supposed to be dispatched to the company’s branches nationwide after the training.

I'm not going to write that it's outrageous or unfair to be looking at recently-arrived foreign English teachers as potential carriers of the disease. Nor do I think it's necessarily a "panic" to quarantine this group of teachers. After all, we just saw that some turned up with it, so people are right to be concerned about this orientation group and the people who came in contact with it. However, I hope the focus doesn't point exclusively at foreign teachers, or only at those who arrive at the US, since these newest cases are likely from passing through Japan. I can only imagine the number of exchanges between native speaker English teachers and Korean co-teachers like this one from Foreign/er will increase:

Her: "Joy! Do you have the H1?"
Me: "What are you talking about?"
Her: "The pig virus, do you have any symptoms?"
Me: "No." (serious and confused look)
Me: "Why?"
Her: "Somebody is asking, there are some cases."
And she proceeded to tell them something on the phone and then we continued class.

It's worth pointing out, too, that the numbers with the disease will seem a bit inflated because, well, they quarantined healthy teachers with those who were sick, thus guaranteeing the number of infected would increase.

I still think people need to be taking basic procedures to prevent the spread of the flu, because even though the papers have talked about hygeine, and have done so regularly, and even though the Joongang Ilbo has pieces that say stuff like

Washing one’s hands was regarded as a holy act of meeting with God and it was strictly abided by. Meanwhile, commoners in the Middle Ages didn’t pay much attention to washing. There was even a joke that if money was hidden under the soap, they would still never find it.

The new influenza outbreak that started in Mexico has spread to many countries but Koreans have thus far evaded infection. Perhaps this is because we, too, take our hygiene seriously. Nonetheless, we must not let down our guard. Germs and viruses reach far and fast with air travel these days, and nobody knows when a pandemic will break out. It is reassuring to know that today, as in the Middle Ages, we can help prevent another outbreak by washing our hands.

everyone is still coughing all over everyone else, still not washing their hands, and still going to work if they're sick. While I don't think it's wrong to look at new arrivals for the flu, from what I've read from inside the quarantine, and from what hygenic procedures we know take place here, it all has looked very thrown together, little more than panicking and rounding up foreigners with little idea of what to actually do. Even the Health Minister said a nine-day quarantine might not be effective:

Previously, Health Minister Jeon Jae-hee said her ministry will do all it can to strengthen inspections at airports since the disease is known to be carried in from overseas.

But she also admitted that the system may not be perfect because those within the incubation period of nine days may not be detected since they may have no high fever. ``All we can do at this point is to encourage people to make early reports and take medication and appropriate measures as swiftly as possible,'' she said.

For those just joining us, I'll direct you to the updates we read last night, to the initial post which has accumulated a lot of comments, and to the three blogs we know of run by quarantined teachers: An English Teacher Under Quarantine in South Korea, Ruby Ramblings, and Sparkling Chaos with Brian Dear.

I'm concerned for what this means for the teaching community as a whole, of course, for a community prone to frequent panics and accusations, but I also have personal concerns because I plan to visit both Japan and the United States this summer before returning to Korea.

Latest piece in the Joongang Ilbo, on Arirang and English-language media.

My latest column is in the Joongang Ilbo today, compiled from comments on the "Die Arirang, Die!" post. Thanks to Julian for the highlight:

Arirang TV makes me want to scream, smash the television set, chop my head off and then poke my eyes out, so as to ensure I never have to suffer the experience of seeing it ever again.

Another Gwangju student commits suicide after corporal punishment.

That's the direction the article is leaning, anyway.

A female student took her own life after receiving corporal punishment from her teacher.

According to police in Gwangju, the 13-year-old middle school student hanged herself and was found last Thursday in her room by family members.

The unidentified girl was ordered by her teacher to repeatedly crouch down and stand up as punishment because she did not read some assigned books.

Police say the teacher claimed that the level of discipline was far from harsh and there was no corporal punishment harsh enough to drive her into committing suicide.

The article goes on to reference the Gwangju student who killed himself earlier this month after getting hit 110 times across the feet for skipping study hall. But, while I have no doubt that a teacher is willing and able to give out excessive corporal punishment---we've all seen it ourselves---it's probably too hasty to lay the blame solely on the beating, seeing how, well, how regularly people chose suicide.

Even the Junior Herald is getting their hate on.

So Otto Silver passed this along to me. There's a piece in the latest Junior Herald titled "Intoxicated native English teachers." It's pay-per-view, but he forwarded the following excerpt:

...disgruntled 12-year-old student who requested *anonymity said, “I can’t believe my parents are working hard to send me to an English hagwon where a teacher could possibly be a drug user.” Another student said that she wishes the government would do a thorough background check on native English teachers prior to granting employment.

Nice. I can't believe I worked hard in college to go work in an English hagwon where a student could possibly be a little shit head. If anyone has an account, or has the print version, would you mind passing along the rest? Here's a photo they've run:



And beneath it in the "Teen Life" section, this photo:

Updates on the English teachers quarantined in Korea for swine flu.

There have been a couple new bits of information out about those English teachers quarantined in South Korea after some of these new arrivals tested positive for swine flu.

* On Roboseyo's post, one of the quarantined bloggers said, "I think it's actually about 70 teachers altogether, of which 30 are American."

* A commentor on my post---a Dave's regular and a frequent visitor here as of late---said he's also one of the quarantined. He's got himself a blog, too. In a subsequent comment on my site, he passes along some interesting info:

The bullshit thing is that, while there are some Koreans among us, most of the Koreans with whom we had contact are quarantined-in-place (at home.) It seems fairly xenophobic as Koreans have been getting infected just as easily as the foreigners. We didn't bring the flu from the US, it's likely (according to the epidemiologists) that we contracted this while transiting Narita. I for one, was in the transit area of that airport the same day that the Korean case (#5) was passing through there.

* Jason of kimchi-icecream got a little more information from the first blogger via email. The teacher has answered other questions on his site.

* One cause of concern with some commentors on my original post was that the teachers were permitted to hang out with each other, even though some may not have been infected yet. Looks like now they'll be isolated. Looks like now, too, anyone in contact with the potentially-infected teachers are being quarantined. That's how commentor Brian Dear got hooked.

* Here's an email that went out to EPIK teachers:

A friend of mine who works for EPIK got an email this afternoon saying:

"This is to let you know that ALL foreign teachers who enter the country after May 11, 2009 are required to do a home quarantine for 7 days before returning to school.

During the quarantine, you are required to stay home and wear a mask if leaving the house temporarily to run errands such as grocery shopping. At the end of the 7 day quarantine, you must visit a public health clinic for a final checkup."

* Rumor on the street is that CDI, a big chain of hagwon in Seoul, have closed for the week due to the threat of swine flu. Others have apparently closed as well, and teachers who attended a particular workshop in Yongin last Wednesday are being called in. [UPDATE: Here's some more information out of CDI, thanks to commentor Micromegas.

A new teacher came in for training at Chungdahm. Training doesn't happen at the school you're assigned to. Everyone who trains goes to the same place, a main office in Seoul.

Now, this new teacher apparently had swine flu. They didn't find out until after he started work at his CDI Branch.

When they found out, they decided to cancel all classes at all CDI locations. Until June 3rd. Meaning, I'm technically on vacation for over a week.

* Another thought that came up in the comments here is that the authorities might try and keep these bloggers isolated from the rest of the world, keep them off the internet. That would be a real shame because, after all, we wouldn't have heard hardly anything about this were it not for these bloggers.

* Is there some xenophobia shaping up? Another panic against foreign English teachers? Certainly swine flu is something to be worried about, but is this yet another reason we can't be trusted around children?

North Korea reports nuclear test, missile launch.

According to the outlets and the blogs, North Korea tested a nuclear device, for the second time, and launched a short-range missile. An excerpt from Reuters:

North Korea fired a short-range missile on Monday just hours after it said it had conducted a nuclear test, South Korea's Yonhap news agency quoted a diplomatic source as saying.

South Korean officials were checking into the Yonhap report that the North fired a surface-to-air missile with a range of about 130 km (80 miles) from its coast Musudan-ri missile range, from which it fired a long-range rocket in April.

Gwangju Together Day (GIC Day): May 31st

Gwangju Together Day, also known as GIC Day, will be held on May 31st. Contrary to what's written on the latest Gwangju News, it will take place at Chonnam University's Main Stadium. It is put on by the Gwangju International Center and will, as you'll see in the poster above, have a variety of activities, though one of the bigger draws is the foreign food. Check it out if your girlfriend won't let you go to the car show if you'd like to meet foreigners in Jeollanam-do who aren't English teachers. An Acorn in the Dog's Food has more about Seoul's Together Day held last Wednesday.

English teacher quarantined in Korea for swine flu has a blog!

This morning I posted that an American English teacher with swine flu was under quarantine, and this evening The Marmot's Hole wrote that a six others have it. Basically it was a group of thirty or so hagwon teachers undergoing orientation, the disease spread among them, and now they're under quarantine. The blog is pretty entertaining, and has grown out of a unique situation I'd say, so give it a look. If this post is to be believed, it doesn't look like the US Embassy is too interested.

Me: “Hiya! I just thought the Embassy should be aware that 30+ U.S citizens have been quarantined right outside Seoul for suspicion of swine flu exposure.”
Operator: “Okay, well it’s a weekend, and we’re closed. Monday’s memorial day, so could you call back on tuesday?”
Me: “You…you’re serious?”
Operator: “Is it an emergency? Cause if it is we have someone we can call.”
Me: “Um…let’s see, there’s 30 americans in quarantine for swine flu exposure. Basically, we’re arrested. It’s totally cool, don’t worry—we’ll call on tuesday—”
Operator: “Okay, thanks for calling.”
Me: “No wait—”

Oh, and via Roboseyo comes news of another blog.

Former president Roh Moo-hyun commits suicide.

Former President Roh Moo-hyun, who was the target of a highly-publicized corruption scandal, died by jumping off a cliff near his home. I opened my reader this morning to find this news, which I, too, thought was somebody's idea of a sick joke until I saw it repeated everywhere.

I won't be touching this myself now, but for nice round-ups of links, see Stafford on Hub of Sparkle, Matt at Gusts of Popular Feeling, and ROK Drop, as well as all over the local papers.

Gwangju wins, will host 2015 Summer Universiade.

The Gwangju mayor, in Belgium, reacts to the news.

I will devote a little more to this later, when the local papers can take some time away from the suicide of a former president. The Calgary Herald has a little from the Gwangju mayor:

Gwangju Mayor Park Gwang-tae wasn’t shy about bragging up the city’s prospects for victory over its rivals in Edmonton and Taipei City, Taiwan during the bid process.

“Gwangju outclasses Taipei in its rich experience in hosting large-scale, international events while being better than Edmonton in the number of modern sports venues,” he told the Korea Herald, an English-language daily. “We also excel over both Taipei and Edmonton in the level of government support and the citizens’ enthusiasm toward the games.”

He told the paper that “many civilians walk 2,015 steps every day in support for the bid while more than 150,000 citizens have volunteered” to help promote the bid.

Comments off, for the time being.

American English teacher quarantined in Seoul with swine flu.

So says the Korea Herald.

South Korean health authorities confirmed Saturday that an American living in the country has been infected with the new type-A influenza virus, in the fifth such case here, Yonhap News said.
The 23-year-old American woman has been quarantined and is being examined at a local hospital but appears to be in stable condition, Seoul's health ministry said.

* Update.

* More updates.

2009 Gwangju Fake Tits and Bug Eye Festival: May 29 - June 7.

The 2009 Gwangju World F1 & Supercar Show will be held at the Kim Daejung Convention Center from May 29th to June 7th. I went last year, and it was pretty surreal. There were maybe two dozen cars, each one with a racing girl or two making ridiculous poses as a semicircle of guys snapped pictures. You can find some from last year via a Naver search. I needed a diaper I think because I nearly pooped my pants each time a guy asked his girlfriend to take a picture of him with one of the models. Or when it was a family affair:



If you're in the area, what the hell, go. It's open from 10:00 to 18:00, but the 10,000 won ticket price might be prohibitive. However, the Convention Center is a short walk from Sangmu, where you can catch more from the Fake Tits and Bug Eye Festival between the love motels and massage parlors.

SNU professor on Gwangju News love motel non-story.

Earlier this month we saw the Jeonnam Ilbo make a stink about a photo spread in the English-language magazine Gwangju News about love motels with interesting facades. Basically the paper said that the Gwangju News writer had only been in Gwangju for two months, didn't understand Korean culture, and shouldn't be passing this misinformation along to other foreign readers.

Two days ago a Seoul National University professor wrote in the Korea Herald about the non-story. A couple of excerpts from Kim Seong-kon:

As soon as the magazine came out, however, our newspapers immediately began attacking the magazine, which soon enflamed the fury of readers who felt their pride was seriously damaged. Our newspaper reports wrote: "This photo essay introduces ungrounded rumors by stating 'love motels are also a rendezvous point for extramarital affairs.'" But is it not true that love motels are a favorite place for those who are having an affair? Korean reporters also criticized the opening remarks, which began: "In Gwangju, the neon lights of a love motel are never far from view. Young couples use love motels to enjoy a romantic night away from parental scrutiny." But is that not true as well?

Nowhere in the caption was a critique of love motels, and yet it did not mitigate the Korean readers' embarrassment. Reading the photo essay, many Koreans undoubtedly became discomfited and even furious with the fact that a side of Korean society that they wanted to hide from foreigners had been exposed by a foreigner and printed in a widely circulating English magazine. "The magazine should have declined such an embarrassing photo essay," wrote one reporter, "It will surely ruin our image." That was why people's anger was aimed at the people responsible for the magazine, and at City Hall, which subsidized the magazine but not at the writer herself.

I especially like his last set of points:

Instead of pretending that there are no love motels or reacting so sensitively to foreign criticism, we should instead try to build a society where no love motels are in business. When our society cultivates a high standard of ethics and a social atmosphere that properly restrains unbridled sexual dissipation, love motels will eventually go out of business. Meanwhile, we may get some comfort from the fact that young couples and people having affairs sneak into motels to spend brief but intense moments in other countries as well.

Therefore, we really need to have the capacity to boldly show our dark side to foreigners and generously embrace criticisms from them. It would be childish if we wanted only praise and compliments. We should be open-minded and able to laugh about foreigners' insightful observations into our culture and society. When our unchecked emotional response is unleashed, the outcome is almost always to our detriment. We should not try to hide things from foreigners; they know about our flaws and weaknesses more than we think they do. What are we trying to hide anyway?

More talk about merging cities.

In the paper there was more talk about merging some cities. Of local interest, Muan and Mokpo, and Suncheon, Yeosu, and Gwangyang. Regarding the former combination, as I've mentioned before the Namak New City project, which is the relocation of the Jeollanam-do capital from Gwangju to a village in Namak-ri, aims to have a new city with a population of about 150,000 in ten years. Many of those people would, presumably, come from nearby Mokpo.

I first wrote about the Suncheon, Yeosu, and Gwangyang merger back in October, 2007. It would create a new city with an area larger than Busan and Ulsan combined, but with a population of only about 720,000. It was supposed to happen, and the citizens approved it, but I literally haven't heard a thing about it since then. And I've written about other realignment proposals here, including a discussion to merge Gangjin, Jangheung, and Yeongam counties. I guess you don't really need all those administrative divisions in a country as small as Korea, and it's not like these divisions aren't realigned, like, every decade anyway. But still, they're gonna have to buy all new stationary.

2015 Universiade bid announcement festivities early Sunday morning.

As reported on GFN's "City of Light" this morning, the winning bid for the 2015 Universiade will be announced at 3:00 AM Sunday (Korean time), and as Gwangju is one of the three finalists---along with Edmonton and Taipei---there will be a gathering in front of City Hall from 11:00 PM Saturday through 5:00 AM Sunday. I will not be attending, but I'm sure I will be able to find plenty of pictures of citizens crying for the camera when I return.

Monday was Korea's Coming-of-Age Day.

Foreigners dressed up for the ceremony, from the Chosun Ilbo.

An Acorn in the Dog's Food told us that Monday, the 18th, was Coming-of-Age Day (성년의날) in Korea. He goes on to give a little history of the holiday held on the third Monday of May, but says that it's not a very big deal, which explains why we barely heard anything about it.

It's a bigger deal in Japan, though, for their Coming-of-Age Day each January. For a little more on that see Wikipedia, and for a look at some modern celebrations see posts from Danny Choo, Tokyo Times, and Japan Probe. I bring up Japan because when I first heard Monday was Korea's Coming-of-Age Day, it reminded me of something I read in Confucius Lives Next Door, an interesting little book by an American journalist in Japan that I've quoted numerous times. I like what T.R. Reid has to say about Japan's version, which I will excerpt below. The author has described the events of the day, and it picks up after all the solemn speeches have finished.

As the dark-suited officials on the stage stepped away to make room for the massive drums and speakers to be used by Marcia's band, I sat in the back of the hall trying to remember what my community had done to mark my arrival at adulthood. I turned eighteen at a time when American teenagers were being sent to die in distant jungles, which perhaps explains why the only official recognition I received was a mimeographed postcard from the Selective Service System, the official name back then for the draft board. The card didn't bother to congratulate me on my new status in society, but warned me that I faced arrest and prosecution if I failed to register for the draft within the next thirty days. That was Seijin-shiki, American style.

It would be romantic to the point of naivete to suggest that all the nineteen-year-olds in Japan that day came storming out of the local Seijin-shiki armed with a new determination to work hard, obey the law, and devote themselves selflessly to the overall society. But some of them probably did react that way. And all of those who attended at least were made aware that the community had expectations for them---that the society had certain values and that the values were important, important enough for the whole country to take a holiday, and for the city to hold a ceremony, and for their parents to sehll out big yen for the necessary outfits. The so-called Confucian values or Asian values on display at the Coming-of-Age Ceremony were no better than, and not much different from, the Judaeo-Christian values or Islamic values or humanistic values treasured in other parts of the world. But the Japanese, at least on January 15 every year, were doing a better job of emphasizing how much those values matter.

Anchor babies might not have advantage getting into Korea's international schools anymore.

Korean parents have been up to all kinds of tricks---buying residency in foreign countries like Ecuador, giving birth in the US or its territories, getting their kids adopted by American military personnel---in order to get their kids into Korean international schools or schools on US army bases, although this article says changes might be on the way.

The Ministry of Justice said Thursday that it will submit a bill to the National Assembly by July to ban dual-citizenship holders here from enjoying the same advantages as foreigners, including admissions to foreign schools.

The move is aimed at cracking down on dual-citizenship holders who take less legal responsibility and enjoy more privileges, the ministry said.

On the other hand, the minister of education just put forth a proposal to make it easier for Koreans to study at schools on US army bases.

Suncheon woman kills husband.

Late on the 18th in Suncheon's Haeryeong-myeon---which stretches from the Yeosu border to Suncheon's new downtown---a 42-year-old woman killed her 47-year-old husband after coming he argued with and repeatedly hit her while drunk. His body was found by their 18-year-old. The wife then tried to kill herself. The article, posted by a reporter whose blog always has tons of news stories from Jeollanam-do says that were four cases of familiy-on-family murders this week, and says that on the 11th in Changwon a man killed his wife and two children before killing himself, and on the same day in Chungju a man murdered his wife. It also makes reference to the story out of Yeongam county last week, where a man murdered his wife, stepdaughter, and niece.

BoA to play at SF Pride 2009.

Um, are you sure you understand what "limelight" means? Because opening up for Beyonce's sister isn't it. At a gay pride festival no less.

Forbes: Korea 6th most dangerous country to drive in.

Thanks to a reader for this tip, via the Korea Herald:

Korea is ranked 6th in the list of dangerous countries to drive by American business magazine Forbes.

The magazine announced the list of "Ten Dangerous Countries to Drive" on the basis of a May 19 report by the by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on road fatalities.

The OECD conducted a survey among its member countries, tracking both deaths per million individuals and deaths per million drivers in 2007.

Forbes used the result by averaging a country's ranking on each data point for a composite result.

Russia, recording 939 deaths per million cars, was selected as the most dangerous country to drive. Forbes cited Russian government's failure to regulate speed limit and loose laws against drunk drivers as major reasons.

Slovakia, Poland, Turkey, Hungary and Korea followed Russia.

. . .

Most of non-OECD member countries were not covered by the Forbes' list although developing countries like China, India and South Africa suffer the greatest number of traffic fatalities.

Forbes said that the economy in those countries is growing so fast, super-highways give people a culture shock. New vehicles appear on the road too quickly, thus increasing traffic accident rates.

For what it's worth, Korea leads the OECD in motor vehicle accidents, and in accident rate of pedestrians.

You shouldn't leave Korea the day after your contract.

On second thought I'll save the rant for another time, but I will say that Kelsey from Living Life Frame by Frame gives us another reminder that you shouldn't leave Korea the day after your contract because your school might try some funny business. It's a good idea to give yourself about a week to make sure everything is straightened out and make sure you get all the money you're owed.

Some amusing anecdotes from corporate Korea.

Die Arirang, Die!

The Korea Times has a long article about how Arirang TV is struggling to compete against KBS World internationally. An excerpt:

Since its founding in 1996, Arirang Television has established itself as the country's premier international broadcasting service, providing news, entertainment, educational and documentary programs to 188 countries in seven languages, including English, Chinese, Spanish and Arabic.

However, Arirang is now finding it difficult to keep up with an oversized competitor in KBS, the country's biggest national network that is pushing its own aspirations for an international presence through KBS World.

KBS World, which provides local KBS programs with English subtitles and dubbing, was originally targeted for South Korean expatriates and ``gyopos,'' or foreign nationals with Korean ethnic descent. This differed from Arirang's objectives of becoming Korea's global public relations (PR) agent, promoting positive images of the country's life, culture and economy in different corners of the planet.

However, KBS World has since expanded its coverage to nearly 20 countries since its 2003 debut and has been pushing around Arirang in major pay-T.V. markets in Asia and North America.

Arirang once reached to more than a million households in the Philippines, but that number was halved after KBS World took hold in the country's major cable networks.

Arirang has been in Cambodia since 2001, but with KBS World entering the market in 2006, it now has a miniscule presence in Phnom Penh. Hong Kong was a similar story, where KBS World won the rights to be slotted among the ``basic'' cable channels, thus securing larger exposure, which came at the expense of Arirang, available only in more expensive packages.

The day I lost Arirang TV from my cable package was a happy one, and having watched a little KBS World in Taiwan and Vietnam, I can say I'd be glad to have it on my TV here or back home. A big part of our collective disappointment with Arirang is that foreigners expect more from the lone English-language station in Korea, not simply cheerleading, dull interviews, English-education programming, or documentaries on brown people living the Korean Dream. But the article reveals, in a look at whether KBS will end up absorbing Arirang, that we were wrong to expect anything else.

Does Korea really need a fully devoted PR channel, rather than discarding the training wheels and leaving regular broadcasting corporations to provide the country's multilingual extensions?

Interestingly, the majority of policymakers, television officials and academics who spoke with The Korea Times answered with a definitive ``yes.'' Not many of the experts believe that KBS alone has a prayer of competing with the likes of the BBC and NHK in terms of financial power and the breadth and quality of programs for the global audience.

``It would be weird if countries like Britain or Japan had their own PR channels, considering the influence of the English and Japanese languages, but you really can't say that people around the world are that much interested in Korea,'' said Song Jong-gil, a mass media professor at Kyonggi University.

``Thus, a PR channel like Arirang clearly has an important role. It's similar to how companies try to sell their products overseas ― if the buyers don't come to you, you go to them.''

A KCC official, who wished to remain anonymous, agreed that it would be highly unlikely for government officials to give up on the idea of having a channel to ``properly'' introduce the country to the world.

. . .

``Operating a promotional channel for the country is all about purpose-oriented programming, with the predominant focus on improving the country's image and brand value. It's more than just making subtitles or doing English voice-overs over your regular programs and sending them out, like KBS World does,'' said Arirang's Lee.

``It's similar to the difference between PR and journalism. Considering its status as a public broadcaster, KBS would be able to treat the job of promoting the country only as an `additional service,' and reluctant to invest too much money and personnel. The limitations will be very clear,'' said Lee.

It closes with a quotation from "the team leader of Arirang's innovation and policy planning division":

``We still have a lot to do, as the image of Korea is not always positive, especially in some Asian countries where people have unpleasant memories of their countrymen being treated poorly as migrant workers in Korea in the past. And countries such as China and Japan are putting in more efforts to strengthen their international channels, and we can't afford to fall behind.''

Or you could take steps to not treat foreigners poorly as migrant workers in Korea, or buy their young women as mail-order brides, or force your culture on international audiences in the same manner that you've come to resent the US doing. Is it wrong to think an international audience would be more interested in the services of a network than an extended promotional video? I know I'd rather watch news and subtitled soap operas and authentic media---and if they had movies, that'd be awesome---than kimcheerleading, but am I in the minority among foreigners in Korea? Among international viewers? Do others really care either way?

Foreign nannies gaining in popularity because of their English, Chinese.

The Korea Times says that foreign nannies are becoming more popular because parents realized they could teach their children foreign languages.

. . . English was the main reason why [the woman profiled] hired a non-Korean to take care of her son after school, clean her three-bedroom apartment and do some light cooking.

The program is similar to the western au pair system. An au pair is a foreign national domestic assistant, working for, and living as part of, a host family.

Kim says her son has become much more comfortable with English after interacting with the Filipino domestic help, who spends about 10 hours per day at her house.

``She speaks a little Korean, but I specifically asked her to speak in English to my son,'' said the mom, who is starting to get worried that he would experience linguistic confusion from getting exposed to too much English before learning Korean fully.

Despite some concerns that may rise, education-frenzied mothers like Kim are becoming increasingly open to hiring foreign helpers to get the best of both worlds.

``The demand is enormous,'' said Kim Seok, who runs an Internet site (www.nannyjob.co.kr) that helps connect parents and jobseekers. He explained that Filipinos are most favored because of their English fluency, but Chinese caregivers are also growing popular with moms wanting to teach their kids Chinese at an early age.

Han In-kyung, manager at Family Care, a job placement agency, added that aside from the language benefits, non-Korean workers are cheaper to hire.

Korean housekeepers typically gets paid 40,000 to 50,000 won per four-hour standard shift, but their foreign counterparts receive about 50,000 to 60,000 won for an eight-hour workday. Live-in ``au pairs'' are also less costly.

Found via Extra! Korea. The article says there are some 4,000 foreigners working as nannies here. I very much appreciate not having to take care of some rich lady's kid ten hours a day for half of what I get paid now. It sucks to see these women, who are considered second-rate alternatives to native speaker English teachers, are getting paid half as much for twice as much work. If you browse the Nannyjob website you'll see that these women are charging (or getting, hard to tell) around 10,000 won per hour, or 50,000 won per day, or 1,100,000 to 1,500,000 won per month. But in spite of the long shifts and comparatively little money, this line of work could provide a way for mail-order brides to get out of the house, an opportunity they might not have otherwise. It's just too bad they're getting low-balled for two skills so highly valued by busy, wealthy parents: housekeeping and English teaching.

Chinese nannies are sort of popular among the wealthy and snooty in the US; more on that here, here, and here, though you probably could just google it yourself.

I think all the war metaphors in sports are in bad taste, and I think broadcasters and sports fans should quit calling an Alex Rodriguez home run an "A-bomb," especially since his teammate is Hideki Matsui. Not that atomic bombs shouldn't be offensive to everyone, it's just, dude, come on, the name's not that clever, just think of something else.

Gwangyang's famous person in the news.

East Windup Chronicle brings us news via another site that Gwangyang's own Chae-yeon has released a music video that's been banned from the networks.



I watched it, the beat's all right, but the video is pretty boring. She rubs herself a little, shows some cleavage, drinks some beer, does a love shot, writhes on the couch, and wears a short skirt and a dominatrix outfit at times. So I guess not that far off from a night out with the student teachers.

Not the first time she's had a run-in with censors. In 2004 the video for 둘이서 was restricted to 10 p.m. or later for showing her bare back, and I guess she's always been considered a little racy.

She's kind of cute, so I'd hit it a little. She's old---30, or 210 in Korean years---so I have a pretty good chance. I also decided a while ago that if I ever get a touchdown against Gwangyang, I'm doing that 둘이서 dance in the endzone.

Another post about Korea's "Ghost Airport."

This short BBC segment on Yangyang's "Ghost Airport" has been posted many other places recently, including East Windup Chronicle, Monster Island, and first at The Chosun Bimbo.



The report says 11 of Korea's 14 airports are operating at a deficit. In a country the size of Korea---smaller than Pennsylvania but with four times the population---I am surprised by the number of airports, and that new ones are being bulit to replace old ones. There are airports planned for Miryang and for Busan's Gadeok-do island, though I can't tell if it's an either-or situation, as a new airport there would serve southeastern Korea. There is also a domestic airport supposed to open in 2009 in Uljin county in Gyeongsangbuk-do; it was supposed to open in 2003, actually, but apparently nobody wants to fly there.

The one in Yangyang, Gangwon-do, is there for tourists looking to hike and ski, and replaced the one in Sokcho and, correct me if I'm wrong, Gangneung. There's also a domestic airport in the city of Wonju, Gangwon-do. Somebody wrote on Dave's:

They built this airport anticipating mass tourism in Gangwon-do, but it never materialized. While Koreans come out to Gangwon-do, it's only a 3 to 4 hour drive from Seoul and then you need the car to get around so flying to Gangwon-do makes little sense. I understand Yangyang airport used to operate flights to Tokyo, Jeju, Seoul, and Busan which would be extremely convenient for those of us teaching in Gangwon-do, but too few foreigners travel Gangwon-do to adequately support daily flights.

The airport is also there, I guess, to assist Pyeongchang county's perennial Winter Olympics bid. In case it doesn't reopen, or become privatized as the report suggested, a few months ago Brian in Gangwon-do was thinking of creative uses for that space.

There was a new international airport that opened in Jeollanam-do in 2007, Muan International Airport. Built to replace the airports in Gwangju and Mokpo, it, too, was full of face-palm moments. It was under construction for eight years, delayed for four, and when it opened it only opened in quotation marks. The highway between Gwangju and Muan didn't open until the following year, meaning people couldn't get to the new airport, which was built as part of the Namak New City plan to relocate the provincial capital from Gwangju to Namak-ri in Muan county. A lot of flights were still handled by Gwangju, which still flies to Jeju and Seoul. A Korea Times article from November, 2007, has more about Muan's "incomplete opening":

``Muan airport will lead development in Gwangju and South Jeolla Province. It will also improve the nation's air logistics together with Incheon and Gimhae airports,'' President Roh Moo-hyun said at the opening ceremony of the airport.

All international flights that operated at Gwangju International Airport near Muan were supposed to operate from Muan, and Mokpo Airport was to be closed with domestic flights there being moved to Muan.

The ministry expected to run 42 international flights per week on six routes by five airlines and eight daily domestic flights on two routes once the airport opened.

However, for the time being only nine international flights per week by two Chinese carriers and seven domestic flights will operate, as the two national flag carriers _ Korean Air and Asiana Airlines _ decided to keep their operation of four weekly flights to China at Gwangju airport until next June.

The decision was made due to the ministry's inconsistent policy. The construction of a highway connecting Gwangju and Muan has not been completed and thus the difficulty in accessing the airport was evident, consequently the government allowed international operation at Gwangju airport until the end of constructions in June.

With only half of the international flights operating in Muan and the other half at Gwangju, customs and immigration facilities and cargo terminals at Muan are also unlikely to be fully operational. Moreover, the airport lacks restaurants and convenience stores as no companies have applied to do business there due to the small number of flight operations.

Suncheon is served, I guess, by Yeosu Airport, and there are shuttle buses to it throughout the day. I read an article that said Yeosu might temporarily serve as an international airport when the 2012 Expo comes to town. Gwangju is only about an hour away by bus, and there's a subway stop for the airport there, so that's just as convenient I guess, and in my opinion it makes sense for the region's largest city to maintain its own airport. However, because I often have another 24 to 36 hours of travel time between Korea and Pittsburgh, I'm happy to take buses while I'm here. They're certainly more roomy than economy class seats, and I find it much easier to take a bus to Incheon airport than mess around with domestic flights. One year my school told me I had to fly the whole way home, so I took a bus from Gangjin to Gwangju, flew from Gwangju to Gimpo, took a bus to Incheon, stayed the night in Incheon, and flew out in the morning. When you add up the transfers, the check-ins, and the waiting, to say nothing of trying to carry luggage all over the place, it ended up being about 256-times more irritating than simply taking a bus all the way to Incheon. Business travellers may have a different perspective, but I'm happy living only a short nap away from Seoul.

Former Korean baseball star accusses other players of doping, of getting drugs from foreign players.

Shades of Jose Canseco here, from the Korea Herald:

A retired slugger on Tuesday claimed in his recently published autobiography that some South Korean athletes in the pro baseball league have used performance-enhancing drugs, according to Yonhap News.

In a bombshell announcement that could deal a serious blow to the reputation of the popular baseball community, Ma Hae-young, former infielder of the Busan-based Lotte Giants, insisted that he had personally witnessed his fellow players resorting to banned substances to artificially boost their performance.

"I witnessed some players habitually taking strictly banned steroid pills," Ma said in his memoir released on Tuesday. "Foreign players have been believed to use banned drugs and Korean players were no exception."

"They are under big pressure to yield good results."

The 38-year-old, now a sports commentator, wrote his autobiography titled "True Color of Baseball" after he retired from the field last year.

He goes on to say that Korean players got the drugs from the foreign ones.

"I remember clearly drug use by Korean players," Ma, the 2002 Korean Series MVP, told Yonhap. "They received the banned drugs from foreign players who had access to the pills."

Eight clubs have two foreign players each in the league.

"But the number of cases is less than 10. I am sure that they have not used the drug for extended periods but just tried it out of curiosity," said Ma, refusing to identify the players.

The KBO decided to start drug-testing foreign players; it has been testing Koreans since 2007. That last part is a little ambiguous, though, seeming to contradict what came earlier in the article about "habitual" usage.

North Korean official Choe Sung-chol executed, MBC reports, held accountable for "wrong" South Korean policies.

From the Korea Times:

North Korea executed its point-man on South Korea last year, holding him accountable for instituting ``wrong'' South Korean policies during previous liberal governments, Yonhap News Agency, and MBC, the nation's second largest broadcaster, reported Monday.

The news agency said that Choe Sung-chol, former vice chairman of the North's Asia-Pacific Peace Committee, who disappeared from public sight early last year, was reportedly executed last year for his ``wrong judgments'' on Seoul.

The execution is widely seen as a sign that North Korea has moved toward a hard-line policy after South Korea seemingly halted a decade-long engagement policy toward Pyeongyang.

. . .

Choe, also a deputy director of the Workers' Party inter-Korean department, came into the public spotlight in 2007, when he escorted Roh throughout his visit to Pyeongyang for a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. Choe is known to have played a key role in arranging the summit

Citing another informed source, MBC said the North Korean government held Choe accountable for the unwanted impact of its dependence on the capitalist South, which has grown with economic exchanges.

He initially represented the North Korean delegation to the Red Cross talks with the Kim Dae-jung administration, and then further expanded his role as the chief inter-Korean policymaker during the Roh era.

South Korea's Unification Ministry has yet to confirm the report. The Herald says that in spite of rumors that Choe was sent to work on a chicken farm

a number of sources privy to North Korean internal affairs told Yonhap News Agency that Choe was executed last year to shoulder the blame for inter-Korean relations, which changed drastically with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak's inauguration.

Choe left office around the time Lee became president. The Joongang Ilbo has a little more about that.

Choe Sung-chol, deputy director of the United Front Department of the North Korean Workers’ Party, was in charge of Pyongyang’s South Korean affairs until early last year. After he lost the job, Yu, head of the Korean Buddhists Federation, was appointed to the post, the source said.

“Yu succeeded Choe in March last year,” the source said. “Choe was once deeply trusted by [North Korean] leader Kim Jong-il, but he stepped down because he had failed to accurately assess the outcome of the 2007 presidential election in the South, the Lee Myung-bak administration’s North Korea policy and the outlook for inter-Korean relations.”

The source also said corruption scandals involving the overseas North Korean assistance committee under the United Front Department played a role in Choe’s sacking.

South Korean scientists make world's first swine flu vaccine, they claim.

From the Joongang Ilbo:

Korean veterinary scientists said yesterday that they have succeeded in developing a human vaccine against the A(H1N1) influenza virus that has alarmed the world.

They say the vaccine against the virus, which was initially called swine flu, is the first in the world and it should be available to humans in four months. A research team led by Suh Sang-hee, professor of veterinary science at Chungnam National University, said that through genetic recombination of genes extracted from the standard H1N1 virus they have developed a vaccine that is non-infective and can be mass produced.

The breakthrough came only 11 days after the team received samples of the virus from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and began research, according to the university. It generally takes around three months for a vaccine to be developed.

The article notes the Korean Center for Disease Control has yet to verify the researchers' claims. It looks like the team's leader, though, has some impressive credentials.

[Suh Sang-hee] is an established figure in international influenza research, having produced a vaccine against the highly pathogenic avian flu strain last October. He was the first in the world to identify the human cause of the avian flu influenza, which claimed six lives in Hong Kong in 1997. Also, he is the only scientist in Korea who has won official approval from the U.S. CDC, enabling him to obtain highly virulent flu virus samples for research whenever necessary. He said he is willing to provide the vaccine to Korean and world health authorities as well as pharmaceutical firms free of charge. The U.S. CDC has already made such a request.

Gyeonggi couple busted for recruiting 57 prostitutes for Japan.

From the Korea Times:

A 47-year-old man, identified as Kim, was arrested for brokering the passage of 57 women to brothels in Japan, the Gyeonggi Provincial Police Agency said Monday.

Another woman, Jeong, 44, who lives with Kim, was booked without physical detention for violation of the anti-prostitution law.

They ``hired'' the 57 women, mostly former prostitutes, from Dec. 1 to March 31 through an online ad for overseas prostitution and brokered the passage of 49 of them to 13 brothels in Kawasaki, Japan, police said. The remaining eight worked at a brothel run by Kim. They are suspected of having reaped more than 200 million won in illegal gains.

With online ads promising a monthly income of more than 20 million won, they picked 57 after receiving photos of the applicants via e-mail and conducting phone interviews.

Same news, different day. This time around, say police,

"A stronger yen against the dollar and the harsh crackdown on prostitution here are leading to rises in the brokering of prostitutes to Japan."

The busy sex trade in both countries predates the current economic crisis, though it's interesting that a 2005 Chosun Ilbo article gives the same reasons for prostitutes going abroad:

“It seems that since the Special Law on Prostitution went into effect, the number of pimps and prostitutes going abroad is skyrocketing,” a police officer said. “But we don’t have the full picture since most leave the country ostensibly for tourism.”

Dedicated web groups are awash with advertisements drawing prostitutes abroad. A typical post on one such site boasting no fewer than 1,430 members - cafe.daum.net/zonesogeso - read, “We know that in Korea these days, unemployment, the recession and the Special Law on Prostitution make it hard to earn even half of what you made before. Try a new start in the U.S. W8-10 million a month in a bar, W18-24 million a month in a massage parlor guaranteed. Advances possible. We take care of visas and bad credit.”

In March, police busted a Korean prostitution ring of gay men and transgenders sent to Japan, and the article says the pimp had HIV and had sex with some of the men he hired out.

I'm not familiar enough with Japan to know if there's a fetish for Korean women. I know that in February, Korea Beat translated an article that said there are some Japanese websites that provide instructions for finding prostitutes in Busan to, wait for it, take advantage of the strong yen. My subsequent, um, research showed that there are tons of Japanese websites that offer the service of Korean women. In Korea, a lot of the women pictured on those prostitute trading cards are Japanese, but I suspect this is a result of both lazy image searching and a wish to avoid depicting Korean women in such a role when a foreign woman will do. In spite of the advertising, I highly doubt, for example, that a massage parlor in Gwangju's Unam-dong has as large a supply of Japanese women on hand as their cards and posters would indicate. Or on lap, whatever.

2009 World Tea and Home Deco Fair: May 22nd - 24th.

The 2009 World Tea and Home Deco Fair will be at the Kim Daejung Hall of the People in Gwangju from May 22nd through 24th. I have no doubt this will be lame, but I'm just putting it out there. I'm sure, like many of the other international exhibitions held in Gwangju, this one will feature the best products from all over Korea.

May 18th.

Gusts of Popular Feeling has a post on some of the activities commemorating the anniversary of the Gwangju Massacre, which began on May 18th, 1980. He also links to the many he has written before on the topic.

In spite of the solemn occassion, last year people channeled the spirit of the uprising into Mad Bull Shit. This year, the cause some chose to take up was the arrest of truckers' union protestors. Turns out that police don't like it when you attack them with bamboo spears.

Talking some more about those Ulsan teachers, methodology.

My latest piece is in the Joongang Ilbo today, pieced together from comments on the posts "12% of native speakers in Ulsan not retained" and "Ethically unqualified teachers talk about corporal punishment." I wrote on a similar theme for the Korea Herald last week.

If I title this "sexy elementary school cheerleaders," people who have my blog on their sidebar will drop me.

Some elementary school students (1, 2, 3, 4) dancing at a competition in Seoul on Sunday.






Because why have attractive women dance around in miniskirts when you can use small children? Well, elementary school girls might be a little young, so for you guys who like older women, they also had middle schoolers.

This is beating a dead horse, but you know how Dave's is supposed to be the top site for teachers in South Korea? Yeah, well, if it's inaccessible 25% of the time, perhaps it's time to find a new one.

Hey Park English applicants.

First of all, some of you really need to learn how to include a proper photo for your job applications. Secondly, Park English just spammed me your application information. It's not my place to endorse or warn against a recruiting agency without getting paid, but maybe some of you might want to consider using a recruiter who, um, doesn't send your applications to strangers, or doesn't post your pictures and qualifications online for anyone to browse.

The headline of an attached advertisement has the headline "What's in your future after graduation? How Would You Like To Travel & Teach in South Korea?" Elsewhere on the website it says:

Why Korea?
-Annual salary of US $24-35K at 30 hrs/wk
-Renewable 12-month contract
-Gain international experience while enriching students lives
-Safe, modern country with the highest investment in private education in the world
-Intriguing language, rich culture and central location for continued travel in Asia
-Great ongoing positions available year-round
-FREE furnished housing, FREE round-trip airfare, paid holidays, health insurance coverage, etc.
-Save up to $15K/year

An emphasis on travel, money, and perks like free housing and airfare, but nothing about teaching. I'm not picking on Park English, because you'll find these types of lines on any recruiter's webpage. But, it goes to show that you can't entice people to come here with talk about travel and money, and then complain that they don't come here to be serious about teaching.

I brought up more hyporcisy on a Gusts of Popular Feeling post, linking to something I put up in February about Wall Street Institute. They were running this commercial a few years ago.



The gist is, I assume, that studying English at WSI is fun and happening, though it's a curious theme considering how we often hear it said that English teachers troll the nightclubs looking for easy Korean women. Foreign-looking men or native speakers are conspicuous in their absence.

Another Denis Kang commercial.

There's another Denis Kang commercial making the rounds on Korean TV.



Kang, a Korean-French mixed-martial arts fighter born on St Pierre of Miquleon and who moved to Canada in 1988, is known here as the "Super Korean." Even though his blood is only half Korean, the commercial says, the flag he waves is the same as yours. Which I suppose is encouraging in a grudgingly-more interracial Korea, if a little ugh-worthy.

The following commercial was in circulation on Korean TV for a while, too.



An excerpt:

Nobody has a choice of where they're born. The passport is just a piece of paper. What's real is in here. I'm still Korean. Nothing can change that.

I'm not going to get involved in how Korean he may or may not be, or how selective the editing there was. I just wonder how well comments like those, or Michelle Wie's father saying

the only thing about her that’s American is her passport, she is “definitely” Korean.

or Daniel Henney appearing in face-whitening cosemetics commericals go over when they're not said or done before a hometown crowd.

Prime Minister apologizes to Hansen's Disease patients quarantined on Sorok-do.

From the Korea Times:

Prime Minister Han Seung-soo offered a formal apology Saturday to sufferers of leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease, living on Sorok Island where patients have maintained an isolated and repressive life for decades.

It was first time for a sitting prime minister to visit the remote island off the southwestern Jeolla coast and apologize.

Han said, ``It took so long for the nation's prime minister to meet people with leprosy. On behalf of the government, I offer deep apologies and condolences to the patients and their families who had unspeakable suffering amid social discrimination and prejudice.''

The prime minister made the remarks in a speech he delivered during a ceremony to mark the Day for Leprosy Patients at Sorok Hospital on the island.

The island---one of the places students at my schools visit each year for their spring picnic---in Goheung county gets written up in the local papers about once a year, and receives outside attention every so often. I collected a few recent articles in a post last July. Here's an excerpt from a 2005 article by James Card:

One of the buildings open to the public is the grim place where Japanese doctors performed experimental autopsies and they forced vasectomies on the male patients in order to "cull" the island's population. In the drab operation room, a bare light bulb dangles above a stone cutting table and on the wall hangs a poem by a former patient, mourning his fate and the fact he will never have children.

This is a sharp contrast to the nearby hospital. Organized like most modern hospitals across the country, the patients are getting the treatment that they deserve. Currently there are 750 patients on the island; some are active while others are hospitalized. Patients are free to leave the island with doctor's approval.

As for people coming to the island, a nurse said, "Ten years ago it was impossible to come to the island but now with increased awareness about Hansen's disease, the island is open to visitors."

Other articles show that the families of those quarantined on the island have been trying to get compensation from the Japanese government. An excerpt from a 2005 Korea Times article, available last July via Empas:

Under a court ruling in 2001 that concluded that the state wrongly maintained its isolation policy, the Japanese government was ordered to pay compensation to former Hansen's patients.

However, the Japanese government is maintaining that its compensation policy does not cover the people kept in sanitariums in Japan's former colonies.

Some other atrocities have been recounted here, and there's another lengthy profile on the island and its inhabitants here. However, as in other issues that intersect with Japanese occupation, cruelty hasn't been the exclusive right of the Japanese. The Korea Times article continues:

Activists such as Park and Chae are urging the government to set up a state-run panel to investigate the lives and experiences of Hansen’s disease patients and compensate for past human rights abuses.

In one of the better known incidents, 26 cured Hansen’s disease patients were killed by local residents of Bitori Island, South Kyongsang Province, in 1957 after they attempted to resettle there. However, the attackers received prison terms of less than three years or were released with a suspended sentence.

More recently in 1992, a resettlement village in Chilgok, North Kyongsang Province, was raided by police after a local newspaper wrongfully reported that Hansen’s disease patients kidnapped and murdered five Taegu school boys who were missing at that time.

Although the missing school boys were found dead and buried in a different location ten years later, neither the police or the media outlets that reported the incident issued an apology.

``The country’s 17,000 former Hansen’s disease patients and their 50,000 family members have suffered under various types of discrimination over the past years. It is time for the government to look beyond just the medical aspects of the issue and come up with comprehensive plans to improve the social conditions of these people,’’ said Chung Keun-shik, a sociology professor at Seoul National University.

In 1984 Pope John Paul II visited the island and washed the feet of some of the inhabitants. The text of his remarks are here. And in 2007 a bridge from Sorok-do to the mainland was opened. Newspaper articles from the time made it seem as if the bridge would be metaphorical as well, connecting the rest of Korea to this painful history and perhaps expediating efforts at compensation and accountability; see the NYT and Joongang Ilbo articles for more, or take your pick from Google.

For those who don't know where Sorok-do is, here is a very unscientific look, via Google Maps.





As an aside, I just learned that part of the bridge collapsed in August, 2007, killing some of the workers.

How about some whale chobap?

A chef displays some whale chobap (sushi) at the Ulsan Whale Festival (울산고래축제). I first heard of this three minutes ago via East Windup Chronicle. Ulsan does, as Shinsano says, have a conflicted relationship with whaling. It is illegal, one the one hand, but it has been a part of the city's culture for quite a while, dating back to some cave paintings. Here's a picture of a reenactment from 2007.



It comes from a Joongang Ilbo article from January, 2008, which is my favorite example of this ambivalence. The opening paragraph:

Eating whale meat here can be an unsettling experience.
The International Whaling Commission banned commercial whaling worldwide in 1986. That means, according to law, restaurants in Ulsan are only allowed to serve whale meat that has been caught “by accident” in fishing nets or washed up on shore already dead.

The informative piece on Ulsan's history as a whaling port closes with recommendations for whale restaurants.

For whale meat, check out Wonjo Gorae Matjip (052-261-5060), or The Original Whale Deli, which charges 30,000 won ($32). The better known whale meat restaurant is Gorae Halmaejip (052-265-9558), or Whale Grannie’s House. The menu includes whale stew.
A cheaper option is to buy whale meat in Joongang Market in central Ulsan, but be ready to compromise on sanitation.

For the record I don't have any problem with hunting whales for meat; certainly no worse than slaughtering them for oil, as the US once did, and provided the hunting is done responsibly among species that are not endangered, I see no difference between hunting whales and other wild animals. With regards to whaling in Korea, and certainly in Japan where it gets much more heat from the international community, I see the objections largely because the practice is rendered exotic to and by westerners, as a backwards and barbaric practice that is supposed to be less civilized than the hunting done in their own countries.

In some ways it's no different from dog meat in Korea, and indeed the title and the opening picture of raw meat is a much more sensational introduction than, say, a cave drawing would have been, and is the kind of thing people are looking for when they hear of whaling in Korea. I would be lying if I said I didn't have a soft spot in my heart for dogs over other animals, but my objection to eating dog meat, and this objection is echoed by many other foreigners, is because of the way these animals are treated and tortured. However, when people look down their noses at Asians for eating dog---and all Asians eat dog, or so the ignorant stereotypes would have you believe---it's because these animals are considered part of the family, unlike the chickens, cows, pigs, deer, fish, or other animals we consume in massive quantities. Although Wikipedia has a fairly sizable run-down of the arguments for and against whaling, I suspect in the minds of many people, it doesn't get down to anything more sophisticated than "those people eat whale?!?!?"

Man arrested in Yeongam for killing wife, stepdaughter, niece.

I saw this story in Korean before I saw it on the Korea Times homepage.

According to Yeongam Police Station in South Jeolla Province, the 43-year-old man, identified as Lee, raped and strangled his 20-year-old stepdaughter at his home on Tuesday around 7 p.m. At about 11 p.m., he killed his wife in his vehicle, while parked in the vicinity of the restaurant where she was working.

Around midnight, Lee also raped his 18-year-old niece at his house and confined her along with his biological daughter, with their arms and legs bound.

The Korean article says that today Lee led police to the body of his niece---listed as 17-years-old here---some three-and-a-half kilometers away in Samho-eup. She was found in a shallow grave with her hands and feet bound with tape.

Yeongam county is in the western part of the province, bordered by Mokpo to the west, Naju to the north, and Gangjin to the south.

Here's a story of extremely shoddy journalism, in which a Dublin university student invented a quotation, put it up on Wikipedia, and watched how mainstream media sources picked it up and ran with it. HT to reader.

5 Korea blogs you should be reading but probably aren't.

Everybody reads Korea Beat, The Marmot's Hole, and Roboseyo, but there are a few others that you really should include in your daily routine.

1. Ask the Expat. Done by the guy from The Morning Clam and the administrator of the massive "ESL Teachers in Korea" Facebook group, he answers the questions he gets about living and working in Korea. He's not only thorough but prolific as well, with 25 posts in the 27 days he's been around.

2. Extra! Korea. A new start-up from "Troll_Bait" of Dave's ESL Cafe, it helps fill an important void of news coverage since Robert Koehler has been increasingly absent from The Marmot's Hole.

3. An Acorn in the Dog's Food. The half-assed armchair sociology of the Korean blogosphere is extremely tired, and it's refreshing to read an informative blog with a lot on temples and travel. The key word being informative, Paul also posts on current events and culture from time to time.

4. Monster Island! (Actually a peninsula). "Kushibo"'s blog, and if he comments on your site you've probably seen him link it eleven times a day. A rather, um, controversial member of the blogging community, he is insightful and well-informed, and I think the only one-man blogging show who posts more than I do.

5. Chris in South Korea. Chris travels somewhere new each week and blogs about it. In between he has tons of photos, stories, and commentary on news and culture.

I'm sorry to those listed, I'm not implying that people aren't reading you now. I just mean more people should be. The five here have an average of only 22 subscribers through Google Reader, if that's anything to go on.

I know my own name.

Just to let all of you know that, despite some evidence to the contrary, I'm not stupid. I know how to spell my name. The reason it says ""전라남도 여수시 영어교사 Brain 블로그, 한국문화, 역사, 뉴스, 축제 등 수록" under my blog's title is because that's how Naver described my site in August when it first put a description under my blog in the search listing. Note the quotation marks and the attribution. I think it's an interesting thing to put atop the blog, and unless you're The Marmot's Hole or Roboseyo you don't have one, so that's why that's there. By the way, not only is my name not Brain, but I'm not a teacher in Yeosu, but what can you do.

Chunnam Dragons play Ulsan in Suncheon on Sunday.

There's a pro soccer team in Gwangyang, the Chunnam Dragons, and they'll be playing a "home" game at Suncheon's Palma Stadium on Sunday the 17th at 3:30 PM. The team will be coming back to Suncheon on June 20th against Jeonbuk.

Fifth anniversary of this ruling.

From the Joongang Ilbo:

The Seoul High Court yesterday overturned the conviction by a lower court of a 49-year old taxi driver who had been charged with the rape of a 19-year old U.S. female soldier.

The man had received a 10-month prison term in the original trial after being convicted of luring the newly-arrived servicewoman from Incheon International Airport to a hotel near there where the woman said he raped her.

The woman reported the incident to U.S. military authorities, who asked for assistance from Korean prosecutors.

The appeals court ruled that the woman had shown no evidence of having refused the man’s advances, and that he used “not enough violence to constitute rape.”

Foreigners to get drug-tested, if they play in the KBO.

The Korean Baseball Organization has said that foreign players in the league will be subject to drug testing, although it hasn't been decided when or how the program will start. The league has tested Korean players since 2007

but exempted foreign athletes who strongly refused to be the target of the drug screening.

Perhaps there's more to it than that, but as we've seen time and time and time and time again in North America, baseball players can't be trusted to be clean, and they really have no leg to stand on with their objections.

As the Herald and the Joongang Ilbo both point out, Daniel Rios is an example in Korea. He had five decent before recording 22 wins in 2007. He then signed with Japan, and tested positive for anabolic steroids in 2008.

This isn't related, but I was interested to read East Windup Chronicle demonstrate that the papers can be just as ignorant when it comes to covering foreign players as when they're covering foreign teachers.

More talk about the TOEFL in Korea.

The Educational Testing Service [ETS], which produces the Test of English as a Foreign Language [TOEFL], is in the news a lot recently after it held a press conference last week for Korean journalists.

ETS last Friday invited correspondents from Korea to its headquarters in Princeton, New Jersey to explain current issues such as test fees and interpretation of test scores. Scott Nelson, who is in charge of PR at ETS, said the organization is "adjusting" all test fees including for the popular TOEFL, which costs US$170 in Korea, and the result will be out by the end of this year.

That Chosun Ilbo column calls the service and the exam "controversial." There was a so-called "TOEFL crisis" here in 2006, about which the New York Times had an interesting article. An excerpt:

The crisis erupted last year, when the company changed testing methods. In September, partly in an effort to tighten security and discourage cheating, the testing service switched to a new Internet-based test that would be given simultaneously throughout the region, about four times a month, and then discarded. Previously, the test was given as many as 50 times a month, as local demand warranted, from a bank of questions.

But the abrupt reduction in the number of times the test would be offered meant that, from September to December 2006, they were prepared to process only about 20,000 tests in South Korea. The testing service had initially expected that it would be able to allocate 64,000 test slots for South Korea in all of 2007. This was so far below demand that, in April, a senior vice president of the testing service’s international division, Paul Ramsey, told reporters in Seoul that an additional 70,000 slots would be created for South Korea in 2007.

And apparently there were some issues in 2008 with an unreliable internet. I can understand Koreans' frustration. South Korea has the highest number of internet-based TOEFL takers in the world, and should deserve better, you'd think, as such steady customers. However, one reason for implementing that type of test is because Korean students and test-takers generally can't go more than three seconds without trying to cheat. I'm stuck with the consequences of that now, as I'm trying to take the GRE in a country that only offers it twice a year; compare that to Japan, which offers it several times a week.

South Korea ranks as among the worst nations at English test scores, which is kind of amusing considering English education here revolves around teaching to the test. In spite of the nominal attention to "communicative competence" in the national curriculum, there is no denying that the Grammar Translation Method is still in favor, and native speaker English teachers frequently have their classes cancelled for tests or test preparation. Last summer the IELTS showed South Korea ranked 19th out of 20 countries in English ability. And South Korea ranked 107th in the world in ibt TOEFL scores. These low averages are no doubt because so many people are taking the test.

That is something that has always confused me about English education and testing here: it's almost an entirely self-contained. I mean, people are taking English tests to get into domestic high schools, to work at domestic companies, and to study at domestic universities, and the perception of English proficiency---not actual English proficiency itself, because it's all memorized for the test---is a domestic status symbol.

Anyway, in December I posted about Korea's decision to unveil a domestic test to replace the TOEFL and the English portion of the college entrance examination. Well, one way to avoid ranking at the bottom of tests is to simply stop taking them. Here's a bit of an article I quoted back then:

The government will introduce a state-certified English proficiency test from 2012 to improve practical English skills of students and eventually replace TOEFL and other foreign exam material.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology announced this and other measures to help reduce the amount of money people spend on private cram schools and language institutes.

The new test, tentatively named the State English Aptitude Test, will be modeled on Japan's Eiken English test, which has earned international recognition.

``We believe as long as we can develop a quality test, many overseas schools will accept it,'' Education Minister Ahn Byong-man said Thursday.

If you will it to be so. It was mentioned briefly in this article today from the Times, via Chris in South Korea, which says ETS will introduce an English test for hagwon teachers. It makes perfect sense to have an easier exam, at least for domestic use, because as you can see from the college entrance exam, the English portion is unnecessarily difficult. And it bears repeating that what's on these tests is not the English language, but rather English as a subject . . . or perhaps that should be English in quotation marks.

The thing about the Education Minister's remarks is that there's no reason for a new Korean test to be accepted internationally on the same level as the TOEFL. As we saw last December, Japan's Eiken is only accepted at 290 universities in North America, most of them in the US. And if you browse the list you'll find that none of the universities are big brand names, and would not be the types of schools TOEFL-takers would want to go to anyway. Certainly nothing wrong with, say, Slippery Rock University, and a Korean who is just going abroad for the sake of a couple lines on a resume might appreciate spending a fraction of the price; but then again a fraction of the price doesn't boost many egos. I'll just quote what I wrote back in December, because I like it and because you probably won't click through:

The Eiken is accepted at 290 universities in North America, according to Wikipedia, though only six of those schools are in Canada. Browsing the list of institutions that recognize it I see that they're community colleges or lower-tier public and private schools, and in Pennsylvania's case none of the big names like Pitt, Penn State, UPenn, Allegheny, Grove City, Carnegie Mellon, Temple, or even my alma mater accept it. The listed schools are perfectly fine institutions that will provide a foreign student with a valuable study-abroad experience---or an American degree to augment a resume---and probably save plenty of unassuming Japanese students the headache of trying to cram for an inappropriately difficult exam. But the TOEFL, on the other hand, is the most-used test of English proficiency in the world and is necessary for the top public and private schools in the country. It's not a good idea to become even more localized when the purpose of taking the test in the first place is to study internationally.

As for what will happen with these tests, I don't really care. I'm a little uncomfortable about Korea creating its own practical English exams considering there is so little proficiency in practical English now. If teachers who profess themselves experts at grammar and reading are so weak in those subjects, I shudder to think what will happen when they're in charge of practical English. I'm sure academics, though, will marvel at a country taking control of a foreign language like this, especially since Korea has essentially done that by making these international English exams a domestic yardstick. I do know that so long as there is English, Koreans will find a way to waste money on it. If a domestic exam is used for most of the domestic test-takers, and the TOEFL is only used for those with international ambitions, of course the South Korean average will increase, which is what's extremely important anyway. In spite of articles like "Koreans Need Not Be Disappointed With TOEFL Scores" and implorations from ETS researchers like

"As of today, we don't have a test that can measure a national-level English proficiency"

it is still common to find paragraphs like the following, from the Chosun Ilbo:

ETS admits to being very sensitive to the Korean market. When the introduction of the Internet-based TOEFL in 2007 resulted in total chaos in Korea, ETS in June that year established a Korean office. The average score of Korean Internet-based TOEFL takers was 78 points last year, as against 66 for Japanese. But Alina von Davier, an R&D staff member at ETS, said it was inappropriate to make simple comparisons of TOEFL scores among different countries to gauge the level of English skills.

Anything stand out to you?

Holy Fucking Shit, Vanilla Ice writes to the Korea Times.

This is a new low. Robert V. Winkle of Dallas, TX, shares his thoughts on teaching.

After having trouble applying my undergrad medieval history degree to get a steady job in Dallas, Texas, I thought I could give it a try teaching English in South Korea.

I left Korea after only three months. I couldn't manage the job since I came in this tough economy ― with my weak qualification ― but I'm still glad I got out of that poisonous hagwon (cram school) atmosphere.

An especially embarrassing moment for the Times, if they even feel embarrassment at this point, and very fine work by the folks at Dokdo Is Ours. (HT to reader)

The battle for parking at Outback continues.

We have an Outback in Suncheon (shut up) and it looks like it's again the site of a little dispute. I don't know many of the details, but from what I've heard the parking lot around the restaurant is owned by another person or group, and they're prone to bouts of displeasure. Last year they erected a huge tent that stretched nearly the whole lot and was occupied by a few florists as a way to keep customers out. Now, as you can see, there is cement around the lot with objects like stakes and steel rods sticking up so as to prevent anyone from parking. There is still space under the restaurant, but the lot is inaccessible.




Pardon the quality of the cellphone pics.

Money going to "anti-private" public schools.

The government will give money to 400 schools next month as a way to increase their after-school programs and decrease the money spent on private education. From the Korea Herald:

The government will designate 400 schools as special 'anti-private' tuition institutions, next month as part of efforts to enhance public education and curtail private tutoring costs, officials said yesterday.

Selected schools will receive an average of 350 million won ($281,350) for the next three years, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said.

With the money, heads of each school can give incentives to teachers, hire auxiliary teachers or administrative staffers, develop educational programs, give financially support students and enhance school facilities, the ministry said.

The ministry said the schools will aim to reduce their students' monthly costs for private education by 50 percent within three years and increase students' and parents' satisfaction with school education to over 80 percent also within three years.

. . .

The ministry plans to increase the number of the schools "free from private education" to 600 in 2010, 800 in 2011 and 1,000 in 2012.

Municipal and provincial education offices will recommend schools to the ministry, which will then designate 400 schools next month. The schools will begin operating in July.

The Joongang Ilbo also has the story, but reports a different monetary figure, probably from ambiguity in the usage of "annually" and "average." An excerpt:

The ministry will check twice a year at the subsidized schools to see if spending by parents on private instruction shrinks. Its goal is to halve the amount of money parents with children at these schools spend on private tutoring in three years. If the subsidies are not having much of an effect at a particular school, the government will withdraw its support.

The 400 schools represent 3.5 percent of the total number of schools in Korea, which currently stands at 11,153.

Both articles say private education costs an average of 233,000 won per month per student. Here are some more figures about what Koreans spend on tutors and cram schools.

Boseong green tea covered in the LA Times.

Taken on May 9th at the Boseong Green Tea Festival.

The LA Times continues its good Korea coverage as of late with a piece on Boseong green tea and the famed plantations.

The Boseong region is to green tea what the Napa Valley is to wine. There are hundreds of tiny producers in the area. Visiting the plantations, I was struck by the pungent aroma of the leaves even before I caught sight of the fields. But it was the view that took my breath away. The soft rolling rows of tea plants stretching up along the hillside stood majestically in the morning fog.

Tea plants grow like shrubs; they're cultivated to grow only waist high for easier harvesting. If left to grow in the wild, the plants mature into tall trees.

Even with the plants at a comfortable height, green tea harvesting (like any farm work) is drudgery. I watched rural women, their hair tied up with scarves, their skin tanned a golden brown from hours under the sun, picking each leaf by hand, one by one, placing them in their plastic baskets.

Since higher-quality tea plants grow in higher elevations (the slower growth makes for a better flavor), the plants climb up the steep slopes of Boseong's hillsides. The lower rows were the most popular, while only the hard-working few climbed to pluck from the highest-growing leaves.

It also has some information on where to find green tea from Boseong in Los Angeles. If you can't read Korean you'll have to look for the 보성 logo:

a green circle with a swirly white design that looks a little like a diagonal, upside-down eight or a stylized pair of green leaves

I went to the Green Tea Festival last weekend, had a nice time and took a bunch of pictures; I'm very behind, though, and quite busy, so the one atop the page---and the one in the banner---will have to suffice for now.

South Korea has two unis in Asia's Top 10; Chonnam National #88.

QS.com ranked two South Korean universities---Seoul National and KAIST---among the top ten in Asia, and a total of 17 Korean universities made the top 100. Those two were also ranked among the top 100 in the world in 2008. Gwangju's Chonnam National University is 88th in Asia. Yes, I know I'm really reaching to make it of local interest.

More rankings and data available here, including a top 200 list which puts another 29 South Korean universities up there. Chosun University is tied for 151st. The Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology is ranked first in "Papers Per Faculty," and is 15th in "International Students Review," though those categories are not explained.

The GlobalHigherEd blog---brought to my attention by Woland---gives its take on these Asian rankings:

The ranking process and product places ‘Asian universities’ into direct competition with each other, it reinforces a very particular definition of ‘Asia’ and therefore Asian regionalism, and it services an imagined emerging Asian regional education space.

All this, whilst appearing to level the playing field by invoking regional sentiments.

The Joongang Ilbo also evaluates and ranks Korean universities, though I haven't found much data from it. In 2008 Chonnam National University didn't crack the top 20, and in 2007 and 2006 it was number 19 in the nation.

Japanese professor in Seoul speaking to support Korea's claim to Dokdo.

Here is an interesting letter in the Joongang Ilbo from a Japanese professor at Sejong University; an excerpt:

As a scholar who has studied sovereignty issues relating to the Dokdo islets, I need to find a perfect way to make not only Korea but also Japan, the United States and the entire world accept the fact that Dokdo is Korea’s territory.

That is not an impossible task.

We need to persuade one country after another, step by step. I felt a strong wish to pursue this goal, even if I only help a little. The wish came to me on the way up to the temple, and by the time I walked back down it had become a concrete thought.

Unbelievably, my wish eventually started to materialize into reality.

My first step was to get approval to give lectures to Japanese students who had come to Korea to study. The initial lecture focused on the history of relations between Korea and Japan; the next covered the Dokdo islets.

After listening to my lecture about the islets, Japanese students said they did not know much about the issue before, but could now understand why the islets could be Korea’s territory.

I felt proud and fulfilled.

In September, some 120 Japanese will visit Korea in order to listen to my lecture.

My university has earned a permit to open a research center on Dokdo and planning for the opening ceremony is under way. Requests to hold lectures, presentations and seminars in the United States and Australia came in as well.

My title is ambiguous; is he a professor of Japanese, or a Japanese person employed as a professor? Both, but as this piece from Arirang shows, Dr. Yuji Hosaka is a naturalized Korean.

Fascinated by Korean culture, he listened to Korean radio broadcasts in the '70s and studied the Korean language.
In 1988 he came to Korea to get advanced degrees and began to think more about Korea-Japan relations.
Today he teaches about Korea-Japan history, politics, and, the Dokdo dispute.
His students say they like his approach to teaching.

He wrote a rather lengthy piece on the Dokdo dispute for the Korea Herald last fall, and found a 19th-century map "proving" that Dokdo is Korean.

Looking at the big pitcher.

This is three weeks old, but there's a 6'8" 207-pound pitcher named Jang Min-ik at Suncheon's Hyocheon High School who is turning some heads. From the article, written before a high school baseball tourament in late-April:

Jang has been garnering a lot of attention from the pro scouts for his height alone. And although he’s still a little raw, he has the potential to make it big at the next level.

“He’s a player worth taking a chance on,” [SK scout] Huh said. “If developed properly, he can become a top-notch pitcher. Players with such height often lack balance, but Jang is flexible for his size.”

More information about 1998 murder of American teacher in Suncheon.

Matt of Gusts of Popular Feeling has dug up an archived messageboard post giving more details about the 1998 murder of an English teacher in Suncheon. An excerpt:

On Sept. 7, 1998, a Korean man walked into Sunchon Boys High School, located in
the South of Korea near Kwangju, and asked if there was an American teacher employed there. Due to a lack of security or concern by the Korea staff, the inturder soon found the American teacher.

The man engaged him in a brief conversation, then proceeded to stab him in the back as he was walking away, going down the stairs from the second floor. The victim, Scott James Kennedy, 33, from North Dakota, died upon arrival at a hospital in Sunchon.

When interrogated, the attacker said that he murdered Scott because he didn't want Americans in Korea teaching Korean children. It was also noted that he said foreigners should not be allowed to hold jobs here while many Koreans are unemployed.

Actually, I heard earlier from someone else that the victim was a woman and that the murderer was a graduate of that high school. I had only heard bits and pieces of this story, of varying degrees of veracity, and have been trying to get more information for the past year. However, with the high turnover rate of not only foreigners here but also of Koreans in public schools---they're out every four years, if I'm not mistaken---so far little has turned up.

The message was posted on a board called "English Teachers Attacking Corrupt Koreans," so that's certainly a filter on the details. Nevertheless, it's more information than most of us had yesterday.

In the paper again talking about methodology, media bias.

A piece I wrote this morning turned up on the Herald site this evening. The opening paragraph:

We recently read that 12 percent of native speaker English teachers in Ulsan were "expelled" from their jobs. The report said that the teachers were let go because they had "methods ... inappropriate for teaching students in English." It is certainly the district's or the school's prerogative to hire or fire whomever they please, and there is no doubt some that deserve to go. However, the information and the way it was reported reveal two big problems frequently seen in media coverage of teachers. It is consistent with a trend to portray foreign English teachers in an unfairly negative way, and it begs the question why Korean teachers' methods are, as a whole, not under similar scrutiny.

The article, titled "The media bias against foreign teachers," looks at the issues I raised on two earlier posts: "12% of native speaker teachers in Ulsan not retained" and "Ethically unqualified teachers talk about corporal punishment." The chief point in the column, which you've no doubt already read by now, is that a few asshole foreigners call into question the methods and qualifications of the entire group, while the well-documented cases of excessive corporal punishment and, we can infer, other teaching styles among Korean teachers, do not bring about similar investigations of improper methodology or behavior to the group.

When judging the performance of native speaker English teachers, one needs to be a little more sophisticated than making generalizations about methodology or culture. And as a teacher myself, I am bothered that as a group our methods are constantly questioned while the frequent stories of Korean teachers behaving badly do not warrant judgments on the group as a whole.

I will be a regular contributor over there, and have some interesting ideas on deck, so stay tuned. I'm sure I'll get more cold shoulders in the office for trying to create public discussion on these topics but, well, somebody should do it.

I also turned up in the Joongang Ilbo today, and my latest column is finally online. The formatting is messed up, though, so there's no need to rush over there and read it. It's based on the post about the riots in Seoul on the one-year anniversary of the initial protests against the import of American beef. Again, if you're wondering what the point of the column is, read the introductory remarks I made here and here.

English-language magazine Gwangju News in trouble for writing about love motels.

Thanks to GFN's Michael Simning for this link from the Jeonnam Ilbo, which draws attention to a short piece in this month's Gwangju News titled "Love Motel Facades in Gwangju." You can read the piece online as a .pdf file (scroll to pages 18 and 19). As you'll see the piece is a few photos of, well, love motel facades in Gwangju, with a few captions. One part that attracted attention is:

In Gwangju, the neon lights of a love motel are never far from view. Young couples use love motels to enjoy a romantic night away from parental scrutiny. Love motels are also a rendezvous point for extramarital affairs. Like beauty pageant contestants, love motels decked out in exotic attire vie for attention along the Gwangjucheon waterfront.

The rest of the piece is about as unobjectionable as you can get. However, some aren't happy that the magazine for foreigners has covered this topic. An excerpt:

해당 기사를 작성한 사람은 미국인 밀리암 호씨. 하지만 그는 광주에 온지 두 달밖에 안 된 것으로 알려졌다. 한국문화에 대해 제대로 이해하지 못한 외국인의 눈에 비친 광주가 아무런 여과 없이 광주를 소개하는 영문 잡지에 실린 것이다.

Which says basically that the author has been in Gwangju for only two months and doesn't understand Korean culture. She is transmitting this misunderstanding to other foreigners in a magazine that's supposed to introduce Gwangju to its readers. Christ Almighty, grow the fuck up. I said that, not the article.

See, this is one reason why there is a rush to set up proper tourist hotels and "World Inns" to make it easier to hide these ubiquitous love motels from foreigners who might infer something about Korean culture. Though the big issue here of course is a foreigner writing about this topic to an audience of other foreigners (I nearly lost my job last summer for things I wrote in the Gwangju News). Actually, I don't think foreigners need any help noticing all the motels, so it looks like Koreans were uncomfortable that we know what they're there for.

The piece in the GN was really only to talk about the interesting facades on a lot of these motels. That's hardly objectionable, and you'd have to be a total dunce not to notice them, or to notice how lit up downtown and Sangmu get at night. Of course concerned journalists and citizens are worried that embarrassing truths might get out about adulterous Koreans, but they would have been better served writing a letter to the editor, because I daresay I have a larger readership than the magazine, and this Jeonnam Ilbo dumbassery is out in the open now. As my readers here know I very much love love motels, and have half a mind now to write a piece about them for the next issue of Gwangju News, both to taunt squirmish readers and as a show of support.

In case you're curious, a Naver search turns up 478 motels in Gwangju and another 821 in Jeollanam-do. Boy, people sure do love to, um, "travel."

Controversy over "Sea of Japan" in New York.

This little article is full of holes, but worth mentioning anyway. An excerpt:

Japan reportedly is urging education officials in New York City not to use the name "East Sea" when referring to the body of water between Korea and Japan.

According to Korea's Yonhap News, Korean-American activist groups have requested that New York schools use the term "East Sea" instead of "Sea of Japan." A Japanese official based in New York said in a letter to education officials saying the request is based on claims that are factually unfounded.

More from KBS:

In an interview with Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency Thursday, Choi Yoon-hee, the head of a Korean parents’ association in New York, said she came across a letter the Japanese Consulate-General in New York had sent to Chancellor of the New York City Department of Education, Joel Klein.

In the letter, the Japanese agency said the request made by the Korean community that both the East Sea and Sea of Japan labels be used in U.S. textbooks neglects historical truth and would only trigger unnecessary confusion and international conflict.

Choi said the Japanese agency’s claims were absurd as the key point of the Korean community’s request is to correct historical distortions.

Choi said she plans to send a letter to U.S. President Barack Obama, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and Chancellor of DC Public Schools Michelle Rhee to promote the fairness of using the two terms.

In other Sea of Japan news, a professor here took out an ad in the New York Times asserting that the proper name of the Sea of Japan is "East Sea."



Source.

More from the Korea Herald:

It is not the first time that Seo bought ads in the newspaper. Last July and August, he spent millions of won on full-page advertisements about Dokdo and the East Sea in the NYT and the Washington Post.

The most recent ad points out the NYT's "mistake" when it labeled the East Sea the Sea of Japan on a reference map for an article concerning North Korea's rocket launch.

With the ad, Seo inserted a map that the NYT used for the article, but alternated the label "Sea of Japan" with the correct East Sea. At the bottom of the ad, Seo stresses the historical aspect of the name, saying "The sea between Korea and Japan has been called the "East Sea" by numerous countries for 2000 years and an island called "Dokdo," which is located in the East Sea was recognized as a Korean territory. These are historical facts that are not exchangeable."

In the ad, Seo said "the most well-known newspaper firms such as the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post never called 'East Sea' as it name according to my research for Asia related articles for last 10 years."

He explained his motive for the action, saying "I wanted to correct errors by global newspapers, which are the most read papers among numerous countries' government, firms, press and international organizations."

I've written about the Sea of Japan naming dispute several times. Here's an excerpt from my last post on the topic, which brought out some interesting comments:

As I've argued before, the name "Sea of Japan" is and ought to remain the English name for the body of water. Some 95% of Koreans, according to a survey last year, believe the name should be the "East Sea." Koreans do, of course, call it 동해 in Korean, and nobody is suggesting it be changed to 일본해 in Korean. However, the established and accepted English name is Sea of Japan, and Koreans shouldn't stick their noses into other people's languages. Moreover, and what realy induces eye rolls and forehead slaps is that people are advocating replacing the Sea of Japan because it supposedly reflects Japanese imperialism and is a product of, so they say, aggressive lobbying by Japanese politicians. The alternate name suggested, though, is even more disgustingly ethnocentric and nationalistic because the sea is, after all, to the immediate east of Korea.

The idea that people have been calling it "East Sea" for 2,000 years is ridiculous, because people haven't been using English to refer to Korea for that long. In another earlier post on the topic I also gave my thoughts about these activists, who certainly score all kinds of points at home, but who will end up alienating people overseas. English-speakers resent being told to change their language and history to reflect a foreign country's view, and do not like being shouted at by foreigners. By Koreans' constant harping on issues like the Sea of Japan or the Liancourt Rocks---two issues of no importance to anyone not Korean---they come across as the aggressors, rather the opposite effect they are looking for.

Neglectful Korean parenting makes FAIL blog.

From Living Life Frame by Frame and Dave's comes this.

Some Boseong green tea certified organic.

The tea produced at 18 tea fields in Boseong county---called "The Most Beautiful Place in Korea" by the Herald's "Expat Living" section last week---has been certified organic, which could mean an increase in international exports. However, not all the tea from Boseong can be so designated; from the Chosun Ilbo:

Green tea from Boseong County has won an "organic" certification from the Control Union World Group in the Netherlands, which means it is now officially additive-free and natural for the purposes of the European Union, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Japan Agricultural Standards.

After careful screening, 18 out of 19 green tea farms that applied were granted certification. The farms account for 11 percent of the green tea growing farms in Boseong, where there are currently 1,363.

Nokdong Maritime Fireworks Festival: May 14th through 17th.

The Nokdong Maritime Fireworks Festival (녹동바다불꽃축제) will be held in Goheung county from the 14th through the 17th. There's a program here (click the 행사일정 tab), in Korean, which indicates that the "multimedia fireworks show" will be held each night at 9:50. The photo comes from this article. Buses regularly between Suncheon and Nokdong.

At the Yeosu Tall Ships Festival.

I went to four different festivals from May 3rd through 5th, but am still trying to upload the pictures to prove it. The first one I went to that weekend was the Hampyeong Butterfly Festival; the next day the Yeosu Tall Ships (여수국제법선축제) Festival and the Turtleship Festival (거북선축제).

They ended up being right next to each other at the New Harbor (신항) next to Odong-do, and that was the only reason I wandered around the Turtleship Festival. The tall ships were neat, but the Turtleboat Festival was pretty lame and there was nothing of interest, making me wonder, as I often do when I think of festivals, why they even bother with the charade of calling it anything other than a chance for old people to listen to music and eat raw fish.

Anyway, a few photos from the warm spring day. First, there's a Turtle Ship to the left, some tall ships to the right, and Odong-do showing up in the middle.



That's a solar-powered turtleship that would periodically ride around the harbor. It's the same one that debuted last fall. Below is the Koreana, a Korean boat 41 meters long.



The Nurimaru, 49.5 feet long.



People could walk around the ships. I enjoyed that part, though I lost my footing a few times. Here are a couple pictures taken from the Nurimaru.




A tent with Dolsan Gat Kimchi, a mustard kimchi that's a regional specialty. It says "Oh my gat!" You'll recall "Oh my God!" made my list of the ten most hated English phrases in Korea in 2008. It has a strong chance to make this year's list.



Loads of tents with stuff to look at and stuff to eat.



There was an exhibition of bonzai trees and food art. Here are some watermelons.



The Nadezdha, a Russian vessel and the longest on display at 109.4 meters.



There were loads of Russian sailors on the ships and walking around the festival site. They were an attraction as well.



I heard this brute bossing the sailor around in shitty English.




The turtleship shot water out its mouth and would shoot smoke out its back, but I'm not really impressed with violence or biological warfare. There were musicians playing and dancing around the ship.



There was a battleship as well, which I toured. The tent to the right is where I found the Dok-do enthusiast.





Between the battleship and Odong-do was a collection of fishing boats. Along the water women had set up small restaurants selling fish and alcohol.




There's a small park and observatory on the hill behind Odong-do, and halfway up I took this picture. Odong-do is a popular tourist spot in Yeosu, and the little island that was just given the nickname "The Big O" by people who don't speak English.



Very fortuitous tombs.




A look at the festival site.




This garden must have the best view in the city.



Another picture of the turtleship. The guys on GFN's "City of Light" were wondering if at this festival they'll have a reenactment of a naval battle, but that's at the Japanese Murdering Festival held in Haenam and Jindo each fall.





A kite some 300 meters long according to the guy.



And walking back I passed this church shaped like a smurf's hat. I think it's supposed to be a whale or a sperm.



Heck of a view, though.



A bunch of other photographs in my Flickr gallery.

"Best Night in Korea" hotel plan didn't get noticed, didn't work.

The Korea Times had an article two weeks ago about the government's plan to make more tourist hotels. A lengthy excerpt:

This is exactly the situation the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism were waiting for when they jointly launched a domestic hotel chain, ``BENIKEA,'' to win some market share back from established foreign brands such as InterContinental, Hilton, Hyatt and Novotel.

However, just two years into its existence, it's hard to tell whether BENIKEA, which is short for ``best night in Korea,'' is dead or alive. Perhaps the most telling indicator of its health is that it's Web site (www.benikea.com), which accepts reservations for member hotels and has been a central part of promotion efforts for foreign travelers, hasn't been operating for the last two months.

The Korea Tourism Office (KTO), a sub-organization of the Tourism Industry that's been managing the BENIKEA project, is now reportedly considering pulling the plug.

``BENIKEA hotels basically failed to differentiate themselves from motels,'' said Geum Ki-young, a researcher from the Seoul Development Institute.

``The services, facilities and prices were never competitive and a brand image for BENIKEA never existed, and this easily explains the crisis.''

Foreigners have constantly griped about Seoul's high accommodation prices. The city's five-star properties charge about 300,000 won (about $223) per night, a rate that rivals those in Tokyo and Hong Kong, two of the world's most expensive hotel cities, and significantly more than hotels in Shanghai, Taiwan and Singapore.

At the other end of the spectrum are the cheap but often trashy motels, many of them infamous for their poor amenities and shady atmosphere, built for sex-seeking locals rather than foreign travelers.

BENIKEA hotels were supposed to exploit this gap in the hotel market, providing clean and comfortable facilities without the unnecessary frills at about one-third of the prices of rooms at luxury hotels.

The plan was to convert a number of motels and budget hotels to BENIKEA tourists hotels, requiring them to meet certain quality standards and tailor their services for foreigners and charge 30,000 won to 50,000 won per night.

But currently, BENIKEA so far has only 36 member hotels, making a mockery of the government predictions for 300 properties by the end of 2010. And the quick read on the list proves that it's failing to find its niche market.

With the lack of interest becoming apparent among budget properties, BENIKEA began accepting luxury hotels as members to maintain its pulse, thus falling out of the price range of many cost-conscious travelers.

About 10 of the 36 BENIKEA hotels are four-star properties, including the old President Hotel in front of the Seoul City Hall and the Crown Hotel in Itaewon, and these hotels account for more than 40 percent of the 3,867 rooms provided by BENIKEA properties.

Hmm, last week was the first I'd heard of that. I do remember reading that during the 2002 World Cup Korea made some "World Inns" to avoid some of the stigma attached to the ubiquitous love motels. Last week the BENIKEA website was under construction, and this morning it wasn't working at all. On the English-language section of the KTO website the section for budget accomodation is quite limited (with only three options in Jeollanam-do and two in Gyeonggi-do).

You really can't go wrong with motels, though, especially since they're one-half or one-third the price of "tourist hotels" and come with way more perks and amenities. As I said in a longer post on motels and hotels, these tourist hotels have one big advantage: they often turn up in English-language searches. You run a search for Suncheon hotel and you come to pages for the Suncheon Royal Tourist Hotel, which charges 90,000 won per night. That's nearly three times what you'd pay at a motel on a weeknight, but unless you're familiar with Korea or really looked into the matter---and found out that there are more motels than grocery stores---you wouldn't know any better.

It seems like there would be a market for hotels that cater to English-speaking foreigners and tourists. Sure, most of us can find motel rooms under most circumstances, but how many times have you wanted to book something in advance? How many times have you wanted to check out the rooms online? How many times have you wanted to get information from the front desk in English? Or get some breakfast without finding a Family Mart? I stayed at the Toyoko Inn---a chain of Japanese hotels---in Busan's Jungang-dong in January, which ended up costing 60,000 won for a double room. Being a Japanese chain it of course catered to the huge number of Japanese tourists in Busan, and offered Japanese-language service and tourism information, in addition to the sort of rooms Japanese had come to expect as well as a free Japanese-ish breakfast in the morning.

I think opening an English-language version would be a hell of an idea, though "Western" and "English" have historically translated very poorly in Korea. As it stands there's little justification to paying $100 - $150 per night at a low-end tourist hotel.

I think I jumped the shark. I put up a banner ad across my posts, which means if you get sick of looking at my boring pictures you can instead stare at the most popular woman in Korea.

Goheung rocket to be named "Naro." That's it?

Well, I guess that's okay. They didnt choose "Rocket Propose," "Korea Up! Up," or "Touch To The Happy Space" or whatever else we've come to expect a nickname to be. You'll remember they had a naming contest open to the public to find a name for the rocket, to be launched from Goheung county and be the first space object launched domestically.

The name is taken from the Naro Space Center, a launch site built in Goheung, South Jeolla, and was selected through an online process that began in late February, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said.

“Because the space center embodies Korea’s aspirations to explore the stars, the ‘Naro’ name has been deemed as being appropriate for the rocket,” a ministry spokesman said.

I kind of liked my "우주 like to go to space?" A Gwangju resident won the contest, and will get three million won.

In the Times this evening, talking about Park Nam-sheik and English teachers.

Much to my surprise the Korea Times this evening ran the piece I wrote on April 23rd after reading International Graduate School of English president Park Nam-sheik's comments on native speaker English teachers. To refresh your memory:

The president [Park Nam-sheik] stressed that a teaching license doesn't mean competence as an English teacher. ``Schools should open their doors more to those who can speak English well. Still many teachers are opposing to give opportunities to English teachers without teaching certificates to teach students at public schools,'' Park said. At the same time, he was very pessimistic about the increasing number of foreign English teachers from the U.S., Canada and the U.K.

``Most of the native English speakers don't have much affection toward our children because they came here to earn money and they often cause problems,'' Park said. ``If we need native English speakers, it would be better inviting young ethnic Koreans who have hometowns here. Also, we have to invite qualified English teachers from India, Malaysia and the Philippines as English is not a language only for Americans and British people.''
``Above all, we should produce qualified teachers who can replace native English speakers. I can assure you our school will produce such teachers,'' he added.

You can re-read what I and another teacher wrote in response here, or check it out on the Times' website here. A lengthy excerpt:

There is no evidence whatsoever that native speaker teachers lack affection for students. Ironically, this ``affection'' is often taken to mean beating students in order to encourage them to study harder.

But on the contrary, teachers like myself and many others spend hours each week preparing for our regularly scheduled classes, for conversation clubs, and for teachers' workshops.

Without the benefit of proper textbooks or teachers' guides, we develop material that is both educational and entertaining.

We teach our classes entirely in the target, foreign language, and we do not fall back on speaking Korean or letting a CD do the talking for us. And let's not forget we do this while adjusting to life in a foreign country.

Furthermore there is also no reason to say we often cause problems. Actually, when we read stories about teachers behaving badly, it is not native speaker teachers but rather Korean teachers who accept bribes, beat students, sexually abuse minors, or participate in anti-government rallies.

Just as it would be irresponsible to suggest that ``many'' Korean teachers cause problems, it is inappropriate to do the same for foreign ones.

There is, as I often say, a profound ignorance about what we do in the classroom. Perhaps the biggest challenge we face is creating a classroom environment that encourages learning in a way so contrary to the traditional Korean style.

People think we ``just talk'' or simply play games with the students, but in reality we try to create lessons that give students a chance to use the language they've studied for years.

We have the difficult task of bucking not only the system of passive rote learning and obedience, but also the stereotype that foreign teachers are clowns or zoo animals.

And there are further challenges we face that people don't seem to think about. There is no curriculum in place for us, no plan for our purpose in the classroom.

Sometimes we are simply there to repeat a few lines of text, sometimes we team teach with experienced Korean teachers, or sometimes we teach entirely on our own.

And sometimes all three in the same day! We are contractually paired with co-teachers who, it must be said, rarely come to class or show interest in participating.

We are given little direction beyond ``do whatever you want'' or ``teach them speaking,'' and we are often unable to understand the school's textbooks because the teachers' guides are in Korean.

It's true that putting so many native speakers in public schools can create some headaches. Korean administrators often don't understand what's written in our contracts, and foreigners are often ignorant about the workplace culture of Korea.

These are some of the ``problems" Park is perhaps referring to, but if schools are hiring foreigners, and if foreigners are working in Korean schools, it would behoove each party to be understanding of each other's perspective.

Rather than taking the easy way out and blaming native speaker teachers ― who were, after all, recruited and hired at the behest of both the government and consumers ― Park and others would be better off finding ways to meaningfully involve them in the curriculum.

My piece hits quite hard, I think, and I'm both pleased and surprised to see it in. It, or rather that it was rejected by the paper originally, was the impetus for my article last week on ten common misconceptions held of native speaker English teachers, and the future work that will grow out of it. And I know, I'm not photogenic.



Or am I? Nonetheless I'd encourage you to read what I had to say on Friday about the Times and their noticeable shift in direction recently.

Six foreign English teachers busted for pot.

News like this won't help dispel the notion that we're all potheads. I fight the good fight by staying clean, leading by positive example, and sometimes taking it to the media. Others might want to do their part by punching the teeth out of any foreign teachers stupid enough to use drugs in Korea. An excerpt from the Herald:

Among those charged were three teachers from Canada, two from the United States and one from New Zealand, all of whom teach English at private institutions or elementary schools in Seoul. Police also arrested a Nigerian man, whose name has been withheld, on suspicion of providing marijuana to the six suspects.

According to police, the drugs were supplied to the suspects by the Nigerian dealer and were imbibed in and around their residences in Itaewon, a neighborhood populated by bars and other late-night establishments. They added that some of the suspects smoked the banned substance before heading to class in the morning.

"The suspects are believed to have routinely used the drug from a young age," a police official said. "We have to tighten visa controls for foreign teachers with medical and criminal records."

According to The Marmot Hole's translation, here's what one of the Canadian teachers said in the Korean-language report by YTN:

“I’m Canadian, and in Canada, our concept of hash is different from here.”

Like ROK Drop I have to wonder what the point of further visa controls would be if teachers are doing drugs in Korea. Perhaps they will screen visa applicants for drugs in their system prior to arrival? I kind of like what one of his commenters has to say:

If Korea deems marijuana use to be unacceptable, they should simply do a hair test upon arrival as a condition of employment and visa approval.

This assumes that anybody who is foolish enough to smoke marijuana in Korea was already a user before arrival… a percentage which probably comes close to one hundred percent.

Anyone who fails the test can be simply deported.

I also wonder what evidence, if any, they have to support the claim that they taught while under the influence. That's an allegation that often turns up when news of drug-using teachers breaks, and I wonder if it simply boils down to the notion that smoking pot once is one time too many.

Suffice it to say I'm done with the Times.

I've been considered a "contributing writer" with the Korea Times since August, 2008, but had appeared in the paper earlier than that. It was never made clear what that meant, but hey, it was nice to have something to do with my time besides teaching. I had something in the paper every now and again, and it was nice to reach an audience I wasn't hitting by just writing on my blog.

Two weeks ago I sent some emails to the editor about the garbage that had appeared in the paper lately: Jessica Kim, Haydn Sennitt, Jon Huer, and some of the fake letters. You'll remember I wrote a rebuttal to Park Nam-sheik's ignorant comments, but it and an even better one were rejected. I then sent in a piece that addressed some of the garbage and turned it into a bigger discussion of the role of the English-language media in Korea. The paper was clearly not being responsible or responsive to the needs of the native speaker English teachers among its readership, though I of course know that's not the target demographic.

That, too, was rejected. The editor then asked me to write a report for internal circulation among staff, in which I was to list the strengths and weaknesses of the paper through the eyes of an NSET, and suggestions on ways the Times could better serve this demographic. I put it together in a few hours, but heard no follow-up. The editor also suggested I turn some of my concerns about NSETs into an enumeration of ten common misconceptions held of us by Koreans. My idea to turn it into ten full-length articles was rejected several times. To repeat what was written to me, and what I posted on Facebook: "In journalism, we refrain from publishing the same subject in a series."

In any event, though, the reception to the list was pretty good, but I was a little surprised by the comments at the bottom of the article. I had written the editor last year suggesting they remove the comments option on the website, but to no avail, and it was one of the suggesetions I made in the report. Yet when I checked the article after a weekend away I saw there were 300-some comments, most quite nasty. But the emails I got from Korean readers were quite the opposite, and I was happy to speak with an audience I've never had on the blog.

I was again promoted to "contributing writer," even though I was given the title in August. The same day, the editor caught my piece in the Joongang Ilbo, the weekly column I had been doing since late March. He said I would have to write exclusively for the Times. I agreed because the stuff I had done with the Herald had heretofore been sporadic, and I wasn't sure how much longer the JI column would continue. I was interested, too, in getting paid for my writing when my teaching contract expires in August. When Matthew Lamers at the Herald contacted me about writing more about misconceptions of native speakers, I declined, saying I would write exclusively for the Times from now on.

This morning I sent a proposal for a piece providing some balance to the atrocious piece "12% of Native English Teachers Dismissed at Schools in Ulsan," wrong on a number of levels. It, too, was rejected, with another reminder that I was not to write about English teaching. By that point I had made up my mind to not confine myself to a single paper, especially one that wouldn't let me do my thing. First and foremost I'm a teacher, second I'm a blogger, and one who has made a decent-sized name for himself writing about issues in English education in Korea, among many other topics. To not permit me to write on this topic, all the while letting other pieces in, is frustrating to me and dishonest to my regular readers, who want something with a little more punch. It would also unfortunate were I not able to engage Korean readers on topics we both find interesting, and from perspectives they might never have considered. I had more dialogue with Koreans on these issues this week than I think I've ever had before.

What prompted me to email my decision in a tone more strong than I had intended this morning was the Jon Huer piece that just went up. I won't link to it, I won't deconstruct it, I won't comment on it other than to say that a paper that continues to allow hit pieces on us, and refuses to allow rebuttals of equal size and strength, clearly is not committed to its native English-speaking audience. I will continue writing the weekly piece in the JI, and will write regularly for the Herald's Expat Living section on issues I think we'll find interesting and instructional. I'm excited to reach out to other teachers and foreigners here who have not yet talked with me or read my blog, and I'm even more excited to reach Korean readers who, to my surprise, have responded to several of my latest pieces with enthusiasm.

I can't continue to write for a paper that is so habitually offensive to a portion of its audience, and that refuses to give voice to the group that is the target of so much of its negative coverage.

Kimchi Jjigae among the world's spiciest foods.

So says ForbesTraveller.com, anyway. From the slideshow:

What make the dish-slash-condiments so potent are the dried red chili peppers which form a near lethal combination during pickling process with the piquant cabbage.

Why would you agree to go to Dokdo?

Looks like EPIK has rounded up a group of native speaker teachers to be paraded around the Liancourt Rocks and, most importantly, to be photographed being paraded around the Liancourt Rocks. Not only that, they have to write a five-page essay on it. Why would anyone agree to participate in this? These foreigners will be used as evidence of the worldwide community's support for Korea's claim to the disputed Liancourt Rocks in the Sea of Japan. Do you really want to be a pawn in an issue so sensitive that Koreans want go to war with Japan over it?

Last fall they got 87 native speaker teachers to go. We read the account of one earlier.

When we arrive, we aren’t allowed to get on the boat right away, first we all stood in a group and the cameramen filmed us talking, just shooting the breeze, about the blah weather, and the fact that we likely wouldn’t even be able to set foot on Dok-do because the waves would likely be too choppy surrounding the island. After a few close-ups we were let onboard and the crew led the way to our cabins. Each room had 3 bunk beds and our names were on the doors, boys on the left and girls on the right. After claiming our spots and mingling in the hallway while a few were interviewed on camera (What do you think about Dok-do island? Do you think you will have a good visit to Dok-do? Do you feel Dok-do is an important issue?) we were called on deck for the funniest part of the trip…little did I know it was to be one of the last times we’d smile on board this ship. They gave us name tags with the now famous motto: Dok-do is Korean territory, and a picture of our flag so we could all see what country we were from, and then we were rounded up in front of the giant Dok-do banner (it travels) and instructed to wave our flags and say, in Korean, that Dok-do is Korean territory. Are you picking up on the theme? They were going to air this footage on t.v and we were all reasonably sure that we would be forever banned from entering the country of Japan after this little display went public.

Anyone who knows anything about Koreans will know this trip will be nothing but a propoganda exercise. Why get involved? Here's what I wrote about not participating in a Dokdo essay contest run by the Korea Times:

I believe that getting involved in a war of words on this unresolvable topic runs antithetical to the spirit of openness and cross-cultural understanding many of us came over here to experience in the first place.

If your motivation for going is to score some points in the office, take it from me that goodwill can dissipate quickly anytime you do, oh, anything.

(Updated) Gwangju student kills himself after 28-year-old teacher hits him 110 times.

Disgusting news out of Gwangju.

The 16-year-old student, identified as Lee, was found hanging from a tree in a playground early in the morning in what appeared to be a suicide.

On Thursday, the teacher, 28, struck him on the sole of his foot 110 times because he skipped two hours of self-study classes. She was recently hired as a regular teacher after having worked on contract for several years.

That's not corporal punishment, that's bullying. The teacher should be fired, plain and simple, as should anyone else who demonstrates an inability to control their anger and lead their students without beating them to death. If you're going to make a big to-do about rooting out underperforming and unprofessional native speaker teachers, you damn sure better take a look at who else you're allowing in your schools.

* Update: I knew I saw a longer article about this somewhere. Extra! Korea linked to an earlier article. An excerpt:

The teacher is known to be a daughter of the school principal. She began to work full-time this year, after teaching part-time for a few years previously at the same institution.

The school, just like many other Korean high schools, requires students to study in school until 10 p.m. on weekdays.

After the punishment, the deceased told some of his classmates that he would kill himself "in a joking manner," the police said.

After returning home that night, the student chatted with his friends online and watched television, before he went outside.

Students in the school told the investigators that the degree of punishment the student received actually "wasn't too harsh" compared to the "usually very harsh punishment." The police are further investigating the case, focusing on how much influence the punishment had on the student's decision to kill himself.

In another fine piece of editing those paragraphs are repeated twice in the article. So, since she is the principal's daughter we can assume nothing will happen to her and that she won't even be subjected to the harshest of harsh punishments: a transfer.

Korea 3rd in OECD in deaths of children; Jeollanam-do first in Korea.

South Korea ranks poorly in yet another area measured by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

The National Statistical Office (NSO) said Wednesday that an average of about 8.7 out of every 100,000 children aged under 15 lost their lives in 2005 in traffic accidents, drowning and other incidents. The top two were Mexico with 13.6 and the United States with 9.2. The average was 5.6.

Traffic accidents accounted for 42.7 percent of the total, followed by drowning at 20 percent. Murder and suicides took up 8.7 percent and 5.3 percent, respectively. Boys accounted for 64 percent of the total.

``The cases of child deaths have declined over the years thanks to better road safety and other social infrastructure. But many children here are still killed in car accidents and from other causes. The data also found that kids from low-income families are more likely to encounter various hazards,'' an NSO official said.

Jeollanam-do is first among administrative divisions, with 12.2 deaths per 100,000.

Other data from the OECD has shown South Korea has the highest suicide rate, its people work the most number of hours (are at work the most I should say), has the highest rate of new TB infections, has a private sector that spends the most on public education, has the largest public school class sizes, is first in elderly poverty, ranks last in health spending, leads in motor vehicle accidents, and leads in accident rates among pedestrians. South Korea, according to the OECD Factbook 2009, is the least happy, and in a category that could go both ways, has one of the lowest birthrates in the world.

On the flip side, South Korea has the lowest obesity rate among OECD nations, the highest level of household internet penetration, is expected to recover the fastest from the current economic crisis, pays its public school teachers the second-highest salaries, has given us the greatest cultural inheritance of everything in the world, and ranks among the top in some academic areas that I don't have time to look into right now. In many of the articles and posts I linked to---sometimes on my own site to give context and revisit older news---you'll find other rankings vis-a-vis the OECD member nations. For example in the article about private sector spending on public education:

Despite high education costs, Korea topped the OECD countries in population that has attained at least upper secondary education among those 25-34 age range. However, the percentage of parents who were satisfied with education quality was lower than the OECD average.

The report also found that Korea had a high ratio of students to teaching staff in higher education institutions. Korea ranked third in annual tuition for state-run universities at $3,883 following the United States' $5,027 and Japan's $3,920. In the case of private universities, the U.S. topped with $18,604. Turkey came next with $14,430 followed by Australia with $7,452 and Korea with $7,406.

However, Korean professors were paid more than the OECD average salary and their working hours were shorter than those of faculties in other countries.

All of this points to one thing: even more than foreigners love to say Korea is "not developed" or "third world"---it is developed, dumb ass, and it's not third world---Koreans love to see how their country compares statistically with others.

Dok-do enthusiast in Yeosu.

Came across this woman at the Yeosu Tall Ships Festival on Monday, who let me photograph her jacket.




Ah, the Liancourt Rocks. Never off-topic in Korea.

Student teachers sexually harassed.

This is several days old, but I'd thought I'd post the story about the student teachers sexually harassed by four teachers at their assigned public school.

According to the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education, the four teachers invited the college students to an evening drinking outing on April 6. Later that night, they also suggested them to go to a singing room, which the college students rejected.

Then, the teachers told the college students that they wouldn't get good grades on their on-the-job-training unless they'd join. At the singing room, the teachers sexually harassed the students that included touching their hips and hugging.

Three days after the incident, the students handed in a letter, detailing the incident and asking the male teachers to be punished.

An official with the provincial educational office said, "Most of the allegations proved to be true. The teachers involved will face stern punishment."

As Extra! Korea notes, "hips" is how Koreans mistranslate "butt." And I think "punishment" is another way of saying "might get a talking-to, maybe" considering how common this sort of behavior is. Anecdotal evidence and observations tell me that, and a survey---I know, I know---that found half of women get harassed at these mandatory drinking parties helps the case.

Lee was not the only one having such an unpleasant experience ― according to a survey by a recruitment company Saramin of 729 female employees, 52.3 percent, or 381, said they have experienced sexual harassment at drinking sessions. Some 39 percent said they have been harassed not only at drinking parties but also during work.

When multiple replies were allowed, the surveyed women said they suffered from physical contact such as hugging (74 percent), dirty jokes (41.7 percent), jokes about their body shape or appearance (30.7 percent), pressure to serve drinks to men, and questions about their sexual experience. Twenty-one respondents even said male senior staff or co-workers asked them to have sex with them.

About half of the harassment was from immediate superiors, followed by top managers and co-workers.

Korea should make Naked English.

This morning I read on East Windup Chronicle that Naked News is coming to Korea:

While Naked News plans its inaugural Naked News Awards for later this month, the company is quietly gearing up to roll out a South Korean version of its program.
“This is pretty big,” Naked News founder David Warga told XBIZ. “It will be filmed out of Seoul, Korea, and will include Korean news and presenters.”

I took at look at the free video on the website, both because I like naked people and because I had never seen the programming before. After watching the borderline-attractive women, and listening to the slow English and its unnatural delivery, it occurred to me that it's not that different from what you find on the English education programs here. Korea should make Naked English, and not simply because Son Jong-min is out of work. Koreans love porn (they spend more on it per capita than any other country), love gawking at foreign women, and love making it look like they care about studying English, so this is a hell of an idea. Remember, it's my idea and I thought of it first. I think.

Avoid writing "Japan" and smack it in the face at the same time.

Here's some more awesome writing from the Times:

A request for the extradition of Kim has been made to the Japanese authorities after it was discovered he was in hiding on the other side of the East Sea.

It's from April, but CaptPorrige just brought it up today.

2009 Chosun University Rose Festival, May 15th - 17th.

The 2009 Chosun University Rose Festival (조선대학교장미축제) will be held from May 15th through 17th in the rose garden at Gwangju's Chosun University (the one with the Fortress of Solitude on the hill).

When he said "slap all your troubles away" this isn't what I had in mind.

I'm in a better mood today, thanks in no small part to the video my brother sent me last night.

Ethically unqualified teachers talk about corporal punishment.

In the Times there's an article on the debate over whether corporal punishment should be made totally illegal. A couple excerpts:

Late last month, the Incheon District Court sentenced a female elementary school teacher who hit two of her second grade students more than 80 times in October last year for not having done their homework to eight months in prison suspended for two years. It was one of the harshest rulings handed down on a teacher involving corporal punishment. The teacher is appealing the sentence.

According to court documents, the teacher hit a boy, identified as Kang, and a girl named Na for not having done their homework. When they had done it, she called them liars and caned them, which required them to undergo two to three weeks of medical treatment.

The Incheon Metropolitan Office of Education suspended the teachers' license for just three months.

. . .

However, some people still support corporal punishment. They claim that it is the only way to maintain discipline because so many students no longer listen to their teachers anymore.

Others say caning doesn't work anymore.

``These days, kids are so wild that you cannot even dream of hitting one,'' an elementary school teacher in Seoul, confided. ``The children often threaten us that they will call the police and sometimes make video records and upload it on the Internet. These days, we don't know who is in charge,'' she said.

It calls to mind a book written last year by a Korean English teacher talking about how hard it had become to control students. An excerpt from the Korea Beat translation:

"Once class starts it’s a disaster. The kids giggle over their cellphones. So the teacher takes them away. One of the kids looks at her with hurt eyes and says, ‘I’m going to call the police’. The student gets angrier as the teacher goes on with the lesson. The students write the answers on the blackboard, one by one. Carrying the chalk, the student says to her ‘fuck you’ [in English]. All the students start laughing uncontrollably. The student has a wide grin at doing such a great thing. So she just had to go on. The teacher whacks the kid on the head. ‘Screw you!’ the kid says [in Korean].”

For the record I'm not against some corporal punishment in schools. I think back to when I was a student, back when corporal punishment was gone, and now some twenty years later I could definitely sympathize with one of my old teachers wanting to give my punk-ass a swat.

However, that's a bad example because corporal punishment isn't effective when teachers hit students for being punks. I think one reason students fight back against the teachers, either physically or with cell phone cams and message boards, is because teachers have clearly abused their authority and taken it too far, from beyond just inflicting a little pain and humiliation on the students to showing that they cannot control their anger. Beating students with a bamboo sword, for example, or repeatedly with a plastic broom are not carried out on students "for their own good," to borrow a tired phrase, but are cases of teachers demonstrating they've lost it. The first teacher was given a warning, by the way, and the second was given a leave of absence during summer vacation. Meanwhile some native speaker teachers in Ulsan did not have their contracts extended because, to hear the local education office tell it, among other reasons they yelled too much.

The "ethically unqualified" in the title comes from a quotation from the supervisor at the Incheon Office of Education, who told the Korea Times in March:

``Speaking English fluently doesn't necessarily mean they can teach English well. Many foreign teachers lack teaching methodology and some of them are not ethically qualified to treat children. Also, children have difficulties learning from them, as they cannot speak Korean,'' said Koo Young-sun, supervisor of the education office. ``The problem in securing foreign teachers is another reason we have to work with Korean teachers for English conversation classes,'' she added.

What examples did she give, what evidence did she cite? Hahaha, evidence.

As I said on the post about the Korean English teacher's book I just mentioned, I wonder if stories like hers might give our Korean colleagues pause to consider how hard it can be for us to lead classes. Not that we're tempted to beat children, but if students show such disrespect to their Korean teachers, they of course show it to us. In fact one reasons why students can be so inattentive in our classes is because we don't beat knowledge into them. Perhaps some students are put at ease knowing we won't hit them, but I remember hearing from quite a few of my former hagwon students that they respected the teachers who hit them the most because it showed that they cared.

Which of course leads one to ask what sort of training these teachers are getting, or lacking, if they see no other means of controlling students beyond violence. I can think of quite a few times when I've asked a co-teacher in the room to help kids pay attention, and their response was to whack them with the weapons they brought to class. If you're going to call into question the ethical qualifications of foreign teachers, and say that many are ignorant of teaching methodology---which is probably true---you damn sure better question the methods of teachers who cannot lead classes without a bamboo switch.

12% of native speaker teachers in Ulsan not retained.

So says the Korea Times.

The office [of education] said that it has not renewed their contracts after judging their methods to be inappropriate for teaching students in English.

A written survey was conducted to determine how many acted decently, how faithful they were to their duty, how well they guided students and how well they taught English.

It's certainly the district's or the school's prerogative to retain or dismiss whomever it chooses, and no doubt some native speaker teachers do cause problems or otherwise don't get along with their schools. Some of these reasons are dubious, though:

Among the dismissed were those who often yelled at students, argued with Korean teachers assisting them and wore indecent clothes. Some had to visit hospital too often for weight problems and some refused to teach after school, according to the survey.

Well, teaching these after-school classes are not mandatory, although many schools will force or guilt-trip the teacher into teaching them. Those who refuse may, evidentally, find themselves without a second contract.

What has always bugged me about the evaluation process---and I'm not denying that Korean teachers are entitled to a much larger stake in the system and the schools even though they are swapped out every four years---is that native speaker teachers are getting evaluated by all their nominal coteachers, but are not afforded the chance to evaluate them in return. I don't like the idea of some "coteachers" evaluating my classes when they haven't shown up or participated all year, and I don't like that nobody hears about this behavior besides those who read my blog.

A visit to the Hampyeong Butterfly Festival.

Here's a map of the festival grounds, from the festival website. Quite large, as you can see. Actually, the festival website still has information about the 2008 Expo, but I suppose that's close enough 2893u4q8ru39rfoajlsd.

This weekend was a big one for festivals, and I managed to get to four of them. Because I hate Korea so much, I ended up taking around 700 pictures, and will try to find time to get them up this week. The first one I visited was the Butterfly Festival in Hampyeong county. It runs through next weekend, so if you're in the area and looking for something to do, there's that. The festival site is huge, there are a lot of pretty flowers, and is relatively popular: this article says that about 110,000 people attended on May 2nd and 3rd. We didn't bother looking at the butterflies this year, and didn't look in many of the indoor exhibitions. I recall from last year that they were all pretty lame, and so I didn't want to waste any time standing in line to look at corn. As for the butterflies, I suppose I'm a little hard to please because there is a more impressive variety of animals and insects at my parents' house in Pittsburgh, and I would meet about as many butterflies on my way to the mailbox as I did last year at the World Butterfly and Insect Expo. Like I said, go if you'd like to take a stroll in a very big park; it's only thirty minutes from Gwangju.

It rained pretty good on Saturday and the weather was bad Sunday morning, so we didn't actually leave the house until about 1:00. My girlfriend had class on Monday, so we didn't stay long enough to see everything. Here are a few pictures I took with my new point-and-shoot; there are many more in my flickr gallery. First up is porn, a mainstay at festival dollar stores.



You would be surprised how many hits I get for "hospital porn" each day, and I will guess I am now your one-stop shop for "Hampyeong porn" on the internet. From the bus terminal to the festival site is a long market area rows of tents covering restaurants, games, clothes, souvineers, and various knick-knacks. Here's some food.



It was a beautiful day when we finally got there.




Clouds came and went, and I'll blame the overall poor quality of my pictures on them. Actually, I was playing with a new Casio point-and-shoot for the first time, and I didn't realize the photographs looked so bad until I got them home. It looks like I had the flash on for most of them, which gave them a yellowish tint. In fairness, though, you hardly ever accurately capture a festival on camera, so I'll just leave it at that.



There were statues of famous Korean entertainers. Here is Bae Yong-joon and Choi Ji-woo from the soap opera Winter Sonata ridiculous ridiculously popular among Japanese.



And here's BoA.



Here's the Obama cut-out that Hampyeong debuted in November. I suppose the "Yes we can" in Hampyeong's case refers to the county's efforts to become a leading eco-tourism destination.



I stood still for a couple seconds for the picture, and when I moved I startled a woman who assumed I was cardboard as well. "No," I said, "that's just my personality."

A few pictures of the scenery.









There was a field of painted cows.






And a large rope snake.



Here people could choose items for a hypothetical meal, and the cashier would scan the barcodes to tell them the nutritional information.



More scenery.



There's a hill behind the festival grounds, with a cute little exercise area halfway up. Don't bother waiting in line at the library upstairs unless you have small children.







Here's a view of half the festival grounds. There's a small amusement park and a pond with duckie boats int he background.



Because we had to leave early we skipped many of the exhibits, although we did look through the bat exhibit that had no bats. We also, unfortunately, hurried through the left side of the map up top.





Here children were catching mudfish (추어, in Korean), at what was probably the least favorite part of the festival for mothers.



As you can see from the splashes in the water, a man periodically threw more in.



The day's haul.



Some of the star performers.



Again, it's worth a trip if you live nearby and would like to stroll around outside for a little while. Don't expect too much on the butterfly front, though, and expect to be a little disappointed if you grew up around nature. I wonder if it's too early in the season to have butterflies outside, or if the climate has more to do with it. But for people who have spent most of their lives in cities and far from nature, I suppose the festival is more appealing. And since we're being cranky, if you're trying to promote your county as a world-reknowned eco-tourism destination, and if you're trying to push your festival as one of the best in the nation, it would be a good idea to have a foreign-language version of the website and to offer information current to this year.

It only takes about thirty minutes from Gwangju, and buses leave about once an hour. On the way back, though, there's a good chance you'll have to take one of the Hampyeong local buses that run frequently to Gwangju; they'll take about an hour to get back.

Gwangju man dies homeless with 128 million in the bank.

An excerpt from the Korea Times:

A homeless man, who was denied access to more than 100 million won he had saved in a bank account since 1993, died of cancer last week.

The man couldn't withdraw the 128 million won ($94,000) in his account because he didn't know his own name.

According to Gwangju police and Gwangju Bank, the man, who didn't have a registered name or ID number, died of pancreatic cancer in a hospital on April 28.

Called Mr. Na by those who knew him, he collected scrap iron and other junk in the daytime and slept on the street at night. Friends said Na had told them he was born on May 23, 1953, but didn't know his real name.

According to the bank, he opened an account under an alias in early 1993. The bank said he continued saving money until recently although his account has been frozen since August 1993, when the real-name account system, introduced by former President Kim Young-sam, took effect.

It'll be up to a court to decide what happens to the money, the article says, but a bank official said the money will probably go to the government.

Japanese porn stars coming to a Korean soap opera.

Man, that title will bring me a ton of hits. All K-Pop, via Extra! Korea, says that three Japanese AV stars will appear in a Korean drama called Korean Classroom. Says All K-Pop of Sora Aoi, one of the stars,

this is strictly a fully-clothed drama as she continues to work hard to distance herself from the AV field. The production for Korean Classroom was completed last July (2008) and will be on local cable channels in May.

They will play attractive exchange students who fall for Korean men. Of course. LOL at the first line of Aoi's Wikipedia page.

Gunsan man busted for stealing dog, selling it to bosintang restaurant.

From the Times:

Gunsan Police Station in North Jeolla Province booked the suspect, identified only as Choi, 42, on Monday for stealing the three-year-old Siberian Husky. He sold the dog ― worth about 3 million won ($2,400) ― on the black market for just 140,000 won.

According to the police, Choi took the animal from a nearby parking lot after losing 30,000 won at an adult video game arcade on April 28. The dog was owned by a nearby public bath operator.

Choi was apparently unaware of the true value of the animal when he sold it the next day for a fraction of its worth, police said.

"The dog Choi stole is of fine breed with a genealogical table," an officer said. "The dog is well-tamed and thus did not resist when Choi took him in his car."

In Korean here. What a horrible fate for that dog. To say nothing of the previous owner chaining a dog of such a fine pedigree outside in the parking lot in the first place.

Suh In-young done got her nose did again.

Extra! Korea tells us that Suh In-young of the girl group Jewelry, pound-for-pound the ugliest pop group in Korea, has gotten another new nose. Often women will have plastic surgery to help them look younger, but this 24-year-old has consistently gone the other direction. Maybe this latest change is the incidental result of someone, um, "thanking" her for popularizing that ugly-as-fuck mushroom haircut last year.

Busy day in Damyang.

Lots of tourists in Damyang for the Bamboo Festival.



Damyang estimates that 350,000 tourists have shown up so far. The county has a population of 51,022 as of the 2007 census.

In the Joongang Ilbo today.

My latest piece in the Joongang Ilbo is online, this time about swine flu and the preventative measures taken to keep it under control in South Korea.

If you're wondering what the premise of the column is, read the introductory remarks I made here and here.

"Little Dokdo" in Hampyeong.

There's a "Little Dokdo" in Hampyeong at the Ecological Park.



It's a 1/30 scale model, 30 meters from the far edge of one rock to the far edge of the other, and 12 meters high at the highest point.

There's another Dokdo in Jeollanam-do. Last September Goheung county renamed a small island in its waters after the disputed islets in the Sea of Japan.

(Link updated) Stephannie White still trying to get Mike's death international coverage.

Stephannie White, the mother of 14-year-old Michael White who was found dead in a Gyeongsan sauna last May, currently finds a piece she wrote about the anniversary of her son's death among the most-viewed and most-shared stories on CNN's ireport for the past 24 hours. According to an email from her, if the story stays atop the most-viewed list it will be part of a Mothers' Day special on CNN. Visit the link and share the news.

Also make sure you pass along what's collected on MightieMike.com, including the podcasts. The last updates I've had here were last month when Stephannie toured the Gyeongsan sauna where Mike was found dead under suspicious circumstances, and when she sued the Korean government back in January.

Joint suicide attempt in Jorye-dong motel.

Shortly after midnight on the 2nd a man and a woman were found by rescue personnel in an unnamed motel in Suncheon's Jorye-dong after attempting suicide. The 45-year-old man from Yeosu and the 27-year-old woman from Gyeonggi met on an online "suicide cafe" on April 27th and had been living in the motel togehter since then with the intention of committing suicide together. The woman ended up calling 119; she surived, he didn't. Another article says the man was 31, that he drank poison, and that his suicide note says he owned a "유흥주점" (not sure how to best translate that) and was facing financial difficulties, presumably from the occassional police crackdown on them.

These suicide cafes have been in the news a lot lately. From the Herald:

Last month, 21 people attempted to commit joint suicide and 12 died in the Gangwon Province. Some were found to be members of a major online suicide community. Last Thursday, the police arrested the founder of the website for aiding and abetting suicide.

The Health Ministry and the KASP will assist the police's anti-suicide campaign by distributing visual and audio educational materials in schools all over the country. They will also offer counseling to those who hinted at suicidal intentions on the internet.

President Lee Myung-bak, during his radio speech yesterday, showed worries on the suicide trend in Korea, especially on the joint suicides of people who met through