Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Ask a Korean! News: Basketball Expats in China
This article is very old, but the Korean only came across it recently while following the travails of Stephon Marbury, a disgraced former NBA All-Star point guard who now plays in China. The themes that appear from this article should be very familiar to many of AAK!'s readers:
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
White Rice and Mickey D's: Life of an NBA Exile in China (Alan Paul in China)There are many different expat communities in China, ranging from students to retirees setting out on second careers. One of the most interesting and unusual is also one of the smallest -- the Chinese Basketball Association's 30 foreign players. Their position in society is rather strange, at once profoundly engulfed in Chinese culture and living on its fringes. They are extreme expats, often living in smaller cities in the Chinese interior, isolated from communities of fellow Americans and highly dependent on one another.
...
The two foreign teammates are often each other's best friends and support systems. Mr. Shammgod, however, spent much of the season as the lone American on Shanxi because 7-foot-tall Rashid Byrd clashed with management and left for the U.S., only to return a month later.
"I can't handle this situation," said Mr. Byrd, shortly before heading home the first time. "This is my first time outside the U.S. and it might be my last after this."
Jason Dixon shakes his head when talking about Mr. Byrd's struggles. A funny, quiet 6-9 center, Mr. Dixon is an eight-year member of the Guangdong Tigers. "It's their country, their league and their game and you can't change it," he says. "The sooner you understand that the better off you'll be. I've seen so many guys come over here and fight the system instead of making peace with it."
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Monday, February 08, 2010
What is the State of ESL Teachers in Korea?
Dear Korean,
I came across this article today in the Los Angeles Times concerning the Anti-English Spectrum and English language teachers in Korea. Is this simply a homegrown, right-wing nut group, similar to what one can find in the U.S. and other countries, or are ESL teachers in Korea really this problematic?
John C.
Dear John,
Where does the Korean begin? This issue has the potential to blow up in the Korean’s face in any number of ways, since many of AAK! readers are ESL teachers in Korea who are sensitive to this issue. So the Korean must begin with his clear and unequivocal position on what he thinks about Anti-English Spectrum (AES):
The Korean thinks that AES is a nut group. Its leader engages in stalking ESL teachers, and exhorts others to do the same. Having a group like AES is an embarrassment for Korea. It needs to go away.
But the influence of AES needs to be put in perspective. Korean society most certainly does not endorse stalking anyone, and Koreans who care about the situation – including AES members themselves – have roundly criticized this tactic.
Nonetheless, even an unsavory group like AES could serve as an indicator of how things are – and failure to recognize how things are comes at a cost. For example, most liberals derided and dismissed “birthers” who dominated town hall meetings in America and claim that Barack Obama was not an American citizen. Obama is obviously an American citizen, but that is not the important part. Liberals should have realized that many people in America were deeply pissed off at Obama for whatever reason, and that many Americans were willing to latch onto any dumb reason to vent their hate. Instead of sincerely exploring what was angering these people, many liberals blamed their usual parade of horribles – Glenn Beck, Bill O’Reilly, racism, dumb rural Americans, you name it. And the result now is that liberals have frittered away their dominating advantage by losing the Senate seat that was held by the icon of American liberalism for decades.
(Here is the Korean’s unsolicited advice to future politicians and pundits: Never, never, never assume that people are stupid. They are not. There are stupid individuals in the world, but a group of people is never stupid. If you don’t understand why people are doing certain things, you are the one who is stupid – not the people.)
So what can the existence of AES tell us about the state of ESL teachers in Korea? Right now, Koreans are feeling deeply uneasy about their new reality – that there are many in Korea who do not look like them, affecting them in a way that they do not necessarily like. This uneasiness feeds into the tension between Koreans and ESL teachers. This tension right now is still mostly under the surface, because most Koreans are reasonable enough not to express that tension like AES does. However, there is always a chance that the underlying tension could blow up, sparked by a certain event. Therefore, it would be important to understand the factors that feed into the tension, and neutralize them in any manner we can.
The Korean believes that there is no party with clean hands in this situation – (some) Koreans and (some) ESL teachers must share the blame. To that end, the Korean prepared “blame scorecards” – the laundry list of everything wrong that everybody has done (that he can think of.) First up is Korea.
Blame Scorecard: Korea
· Half-baked Policy to Bring in ESL Teachers – This is the action that began the entire cycle. ESL teachers came to Korea as early as early 1980s, but the ESL teacher population exploded in the last 10 years or so. (As recently as 1988, there were barely over 1,000 non-Korean ESL teachers in the entire country.) This happened because as English education became more emphasized in Korea, Korean government loosened up the visa requirements for people who are known as NSETs (= native-speaking English teachers.) As a result, more than 20,000 NSETs entered Korea every year since 2002. For a country that has never experienced mass immigration, this was a very significant number.
But, as governments often do, Korean governments set up regulations that emphasized quantity over quality, which means they did not properly filter out unqualified NSETs – which blew up with the case of Christopher Paul Neil. Neil, an internationally wanted child molester, was arrested in Thailand after having fled from Gwangju, Korea, where he worked as an ESL teacher. When these loopholes were exposed, the government overreacted and swung to the other direction, requiring drug and HIV testing (that it did not require for Korean teachers) that nearly amounted to harassment.
Also, Korean government did not anticipate what should have been reasonably anticipated – that importing such a huge number of people to work in an area that Koreans care so, so much about (i.e. English education) -- would cause a lot of friction. Initially there was no real training that would get the ESL teachers ready for living and doing their job in a culture that can be radically different. Even though there are more trainings offered in recent years, they tend to be done in a manner Korean government is known for – bumbling and haphazard.
The idea to bring NSETs to assist in English education was not a bad idea. But Korean government’s execution of that idea was simply terrible. Problems that could have been avoided through reasonable anticipation were (halfway) mended instead through trial-and-error, pissing off everyone involved in the process.
· Bad Behaviors from Employers of the ESL Teachers – It is no secret that education business in Korea is very lucrative, which means it sometimes attracts unscrupulous characters who really should not be anywhere near education, period. Well, it was no secret to Koreans anyway; not so much for NSETs. Many ESL teachers were blindsided by the fact that their employers would cut corners and rip them off at any chance possible. To this day, the horror stories of ESL teachers getting ripped off by their employers are a dime a dozen on the Internet. (For example, here.) Not paying salaries? Arbitrarily changing schedules? Refusing to provide health insurance (as they are legally required to do)? Generally reneging promises? You name it, it’s there.
Even places that are otherwise reputable, like the public school system, sometimes give into the temptation of screwing over ESL teachers, since ESL teachers have a harder time fighting back compared to Korean teachers.
· Poorly planned use of ESL teachers – Even in cases where Korean schools act with the best of intentions, they often put ESL teachers in a position to fail. Particularly at public schools, ESL teachers are supposed to be co-teachers with a Korean teacher. Often there is poor communication between that Korean teacher and the ESL teacher, leading to confusion and resentment on the part of both sides. Many schools have no orientation process and simply tell the ESL teachers to go to it and teach the children. Considering that most ESL teachers do not have a previous teaching experience, much less experience in teaching English to non-English speaking children, they often fail even with their best efforts, frustrating everyone involved in the process.
· General racism of Korean society – As the Korean said previously, Korea was not (and still is not, although to a lesser degree,) a place where its people are used to dealing with race relations. This often conflicts sharply with ESL teachers who are from countries that are more more accustomed to dealing with race relations. (e.g. United States.) Because of this inexperience, Koreans often do not hesitate to ascribe particular characteristics to a given racial group and judge the entire race – which is exactly what racism is. Once a few bad apple NSETs emerged, the idea that every NSET is a drug-sniffing child molesters began to gain some traction in Korea, which made NSETs in Korea to feel unfairly persecuted. It also does not help that news media in Korea often play on Koreans' xenophobia by writing sensationalistic but factually dubious articles every now and then.
· Jealousy of Korean young men – This factor is not often discussed, but is very significant in understanding the actual people who fuel the tension. Korea has had a chronically high unemployment rate among young adults, which has been recently exacerbated with the global recession. These young adults – particularly men – are right now forming a very pissed-off social group. They have sacrificed much in their lives – grueling schools, going to college, serving their military duty, etc. – for the promise of having a good job. Understandably, not having a job after all the tribulations makes these young men very angry.
NSETs often provide a convenient target for their rage. ESL teachers are generally a group of young people who have no better education than Korean young people, but somehow they get a cushy job that pays well (by Korean standards) simply by virtue of being born into speaking English. On top of that, NSETs never served in the military.
Another thing – do you know what happens when a guy doesn’t have a job? A lot of things, but one of them is that he doesn’t get a date very often. And when you are young, few things matter more than getting a date. So when male ESL teachers flaunt the fact that they date Korean women (more on this below) – well, you can imagine the rest.
These men are most certainly not the majority in Korea, but the ability for these men to sway the public opinion is not to be discounted. They are generally tech-savvy, and all they have is time. According to a study by Naver – Korea’s largest search engine, with a format similar to Yahoo! – less than 1 percent of the people who view a news article leave a comment on the article. Predictably, 76.7 percent of all comments are men, and 61.1 percent of them were under 30. But the astonishing part is this: 3.4 percent of all commenters generated more than 50 percent of the comments. In other words, less than 0.0034 percent of all news viewers generated more than half of all comments. But that is enough to make the government overreact and put in restrictive policy towards ESL teachers, making them feel unwelcome in the process.
But again, the ESL teachers are not free from blame either. More blame game after the jump.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
I came across this article today in the Los Angeles Times concerning the Anti-English Spectrum and English language teachers in Korea. Is this simply a homegrown, right-wing nut group, similar to what one can find in the U.S. and other countries, or are ESL teachers in Korea really this problematic?
John C.
Dear John,
Where does the Korean begin? This issue has the potential to blow up in the Korean’s face in any number of ways, since many of AAK! readers are ESL teachers in Korea who are sensitive to this issue. So the Korean must begin with his clear and unequivocal position on what he thinks about Anti-English Spectrum (AES):
The Korean thinks that AES is a nut group. Its leader engages in stalking ESL teachers, and exhorts others to do the same. Having a group like AES is an embarrassment for Korea. It needs to go away.
But the influence of AES needs to be put in perspective. Korean society most certainly does not endorse stalking anyone, and Koreans who care about the situation – including AES members themselves – have roundly criticized this tactic.
Nonetheless, even an unsavory group like AES could serve as an indicator of how things are – and failure to recognize how things are comes at a cost. For example, most liberals derided and dismissed “birthers” who dominated town hall meetings in America and claim that Barack Obama was not an American citizen. Obama is obviously an American citizen, but that is not the important part. Liberals should have realized that many people in America were deeply pissed off at Obama for whatever reason, and that many Americans were willing to latch onto any dumb reason to vent their hate. Instead of sincerely exploring what was angering these people, many liberals blamed their usual parade of horribles – Glenn Beck, Bill O’Reilly, racism, dumb rural Americans, you name it. And the result now is that liberals have frittered away their dominating advantage by losing the Senate seat that was held by the icon of American liberalism for decades.
Laughing at them is easy. But figuring out why they do this is the right thing to do. (Source)
(Here is the Korean’s unsolicited advice to future politicians and pundits: Never, never, never assume that people are stupid. They are not. There are stupid individuals in the world, but a group of people is never stupid. If you don’t understand why people are doing certain things, you are the one who is stupid – not the people.)
So what can the existence of AES tell us about the state of ESL teachers in Korea? Right now, Koreans are feeling deeply uneasy about their new reality – that there are many in Korea who do not look like them, affecting them in a way that they do not necessarily like. This uneasiness feeds into the tension between Koreans and ESL teachers. This tension right now is still mostly under the surface, because most Koreans are reasonable enough not to express that tension like AES does. However, there is always a chance that the underlying tension could blow up, sparked by a certain event. Therefore, it would be important to understand the factors that feed into the tension, and neutralize them in any manner we can.
The Korean believes that there is no party with clean hands in this situation – (some) Koreans and (some) ESL teachers must share the blame. To that end, the Korean prepared “blame scorecards” – the laundry list of everything wrong that everybody has done (that he can think of.) First up is Korea.
Blame Scorecard: Korea
· Half-baked Policy to Bring in ESL Teachers – This is the action that began the entire cycle. ESL teachers came to Korea as early as early 1980s, but the ESL teacher population exploded in the last 10 years or so. (As recently as 1988, there were barely over 1,000 non-Korean ESL teachers in the entire country.) This happened because as English education became more emphasized in Korea, Korean government loosened up the visa requirements for people who are known as NSETs (= native-speaking English teachers.) As a result, more than 20,000 NSETs entered Korea every year since 2002. For a country that has never experienced mass immigration, this was a very significant number.
But, as governments often do, Korean governments set up regulations that emphasized quantity over quality, which means they did not properly filter out unqualified NSETs – which blew up with the case of Christopher Paul Neil. Neil, an internationally wanted child molester, was arrested in Thailand after having fled from Gwangju, Korea, where he worked as an ESL teacher. When these loopholes were exposed, the government overreacted and swung to the other direction, requiring drug and HIV testing (that it did not require for Korean teachers) that nearly amounted to harassment.
Also, Korean government did not anticipate what should have been reasonably anticipated – that importing such a huge number of people to work in an area that Koreans care so, so much about (i.e. English education) -- would cause a lot of friction. Initially there was no real training that would get the ESL teachers ready for living and doing their job in a culture that can be radically different. Even though there are more trainings offered in recent years, they tend to be done in a manner Korean government is known for – bumbling and haphazard.
The idea to bring NSETs to assist in English education was not a bad idea. But Korean government’s execution of that idea was simply terrible. Problems that could have been avoided through reasonable anticipation were (halfway) mended instead through trial-and-error, pissing off everyone involved in the process.
· Bad Behaviors from Employers of the ESL Teachers – It is no secret that education business in Korea is very lucrative, which means it sometimes attracts unscrupulous characters who really should not be anywhere near education, period. Well, it was no secret to Koreans anyway; not so much for NSETs. Many ESL teachers were blindsided by the fact that their employers would cut corners and rip them off at any chance possible. To this day, the horror stories of ESL teachers getting ripped off by their employers are a dime a dozen on the Internet. (For example, here.) Not paying salaries? Arbitrarily changing schedules? Refusing to provide health insurance (as they are legally required to do)? Generally reneging promises? You name it, it’s there.
Even places that are otherwise reputable, like the public school system, sometimes give into the temptation of screwing over ESL teachers, since ESL teachers have a harder time fighting back compared to Korean teachers.
· Poorly planned use of ESL teachers – Even in cases where Korean schools act with the best of intentions, they often put ESL teachers in a position to fail. Particularly at public schools, ESL teachers are supposed to be co-teachers with a Korean teacher. Often there is poor communication between that Korean teacher and the ESL teacher, leading to confusion and resentment on the part of both sides. Many schools have no orientation process and simply tell the ESL teachers to go to it and teach the children. Considering that most ESL teachers do not have a previous teaching experience, much less experience in teaching English to non-English speaking children, they often fail even with their best efforts, frustrating everyone involved in the process.
· General racism of Korean society – As the Korean said previously, Korea was not (and still is not, although to a lesser degree,) a place where its people are used to dealing with race relations. This often conflicts sharply with ESL teachers who are from countries that are more more accustomed to dealing with race relations. (e.g. United States.) Because of this inexperience, Koreans often do not hesitate to ascribe particular characteristics to a given racial group and judge the entire race – which is exactly what racism is. Once a few bad apple NSETs emerged, the idea that every NSET is a drug-sniffing child molesters began to gain some traction in Korea, which made NSETs in Korea to feel unfairly persecuted. It also does not help that news media in Korea often play on Koreans' xenophobia by writing sensationalistic but factually dubious articles every now and then.
· Jealousy of Korean young men – This factor is not often discussed, but is very significant in understanding the actual people who fuel the tension. Korea has had a chronically high unemployment rate among young adults, which has been recently exacerbated with the global recession. These young adults – particularly men – are right now forming a very pissed-off social group. They have sacrificed much in their lives – grueling schools, going to college, serving their military duty, etc. – for the promise of having a good job. Understandably, not having a job after all the tribulations makes these young men very angry.
NSETs often provide a convenient target for their rage. ESL teachers are generally a group of young people who have no better education than Korean young people, but somehow they get a cushy job that pays well (by Korean standards) simply by virtue of being born into speaking English. On top of that, NSETs never served in the military.
Another thing – do you know what happens when a guy doesn’t have a job? A lot of things, but one of them is that he doesn’t get a date very often. And when you are young, few things matter more than getting a date. So when male ESL teachers flaunt the fact that they date Korean women (more on this below) – well, you can imagine the rest.
These men are most certainly not the majority in Korea, but the ability for these men to sway the public opinion is not to be discounted. They are generally tech-savvy, and all they have is time. According to a study by Naver – Korea’s largest search engine, with a format similar to Yahoo! – less than 1 percent of the people who view a news article leave a comment on the article. Predictably, 76.7 percent of all comments are men, and 61.1 percent of them were under 30. But the astonishing part is this: 3.4 percent of all commenters generated more than 50 percent of the comments. In other words, less than 0.0034 percent of all news viewers generated more than half of all comments. But that is enough to make the government overreact and put in restrictive policy towards ESL teachers, making them feel unwelcome in the process.
But again, the ESL teachers are not free from blame either. More blame game after the jump.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Sunday, February 07, 2010
Saturday, February 06, 2010
Ask a Korean! News: Super Bowl 2010
So far in AAK! history, there has been three Super Bowls, and three Super Bowl picks by the Korean. The Korean is 3-0 in those picks, including New York Giants over the 16-1 18-1 New England Patriots. Before the Korean picks this year, the updated annual rant comes once again. (If you had been reading AAK! for a while, you can skip this.)
Ok, rant over.
Before the Korean goes onto his pick, it must be noted that a former California Golden Bear Scott Fujita is a starting linebacker for the New Orleans Saints. Fujita is also an outspoken advocate for gay rights, which got him featured on a New York Times article. Fujita also might be the second Asian American starting in the Super Bowl (after Hines Ward,) since Fujita was adopted into a family of Japanese American father and a white mother. (Fujita himself is not an ethnic Japanese. About his heritage, Fujita said: "I have no Japanese blood in my body. But I’m Japanese at heart.")
2008 pick: Giants 27, Patriots 20
2008 result: Giants 17, Patriots 14
2007 pick: Colts 24, Bears 21
2007 result: Colts 29, Bears 17
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
-EDIT 2/7/2010- Fuck you Manning, fuck you. You eat a bowl of cocks for breakfast. You ruined the Korean's perfection. Now the Korean is only 75 percent correct in his picks.
GAAAAAH!!!! Losing sucks.
Saints 31, Colts 17
Dear Commissioner Goodell,
Do you want to spread football to other countries? Then bring a goddamn franchise to Los Angeles.
Do you know how many Koreans watch MLB as Dodgers fans because Dodgers brought Chan-Ho Park? Do you ever wonder why there are 1.6 billion Houston Rockets and New Jersey Nets fans? It is thanks to the two very skilled guys named Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian. Manchester United, the world's most successful sports franchise, opened up a whole new market by signing Park, Ji-Sung (who is doing quite well this season.) Do you see a trend?
Currently Pittsburgh Steelers -- unfortunately missed the playoffs this year -- is probably the only NFL team that any Korean knows because Super Bowl XL MVP Hines Ward is half-Korean. Thanks to Hines Ward, Steelers playoffs games used to show on Korean television. Think about how amazing that is. Your league has made zero efforts to advertise in Korea, but people in that market are watching NFL, even though they know practically nothing about the sport.
A hypothetical LA team would naturally recruit heavily on Asian and Hispanic population to appeal to the local demographic. Even if it does not, it will attract Asian American and Hispanic American fans, who will naturally transmit their love of football through their frequent traffic with their homelands. Sooner or later, people in Asia and Central/South America would be watching football! It's that simple!
You somehow seem to be married to the idea of spreading football in Europe. The Korean has to ask: Why? Why obsess over that London game, when 16 years of NFL Europa plainly showed that Europeans do not care about football? Both MLB and NBA realize that Asia is the future of professional sports. Asia has an up-and-coming economy, and its people are receptive to new forms of entertainment.
The Korean will repeat: BRING A FRANCHISE TO LOS ANGELES. It will pay off in more ways than you can ever imagine. The Korean will write the same rant every year until you comply.
Sincerely,
The Korean
Before the Korean goes onto his pick, it must be noted that a former California Golden Bear Scott Fujita is a starting linebacker for the New Orleans Saints. Fujita is also an outspoken advocate for gay rights, which got him featured on a New York Times article. Fujita also might be the second Asian American starting in the Super Bowl (after Hines Ward,) since Fujita was adopted into a family of Japanese American father and a white mother. (Fujita himself is not an ethnic Japanese. About his heritage, Fujita said: "I have no Japanese blood in my body. But I’m Japanese at heart.")
Fujita, exercising his Berkeley-educated mind to murder Manning and Addai
This will be a tough pick, mostly because the Korean has been busy with work and hardly followed pro football this season. (He did not even play fantasy football this year.) There are many factors to consider, like: How did benching starters affect the Colts' karma? How does Dwight Freeney's injury affect the Colt's defense? What will the Saints do as the "America's Team"? Don't the Saints have the better running game, the staple of playoff football?
But at the end of the day, the Korean just can't pick against Peyton Manning. Simple as that.
The Korean's pick: Colts 31, Saints 21.
Bonus prediction: Dallas Clark will score a TD.
The Korean's Glorious History of Super Bowl Picks That Are Never Wrong
2009 pick: Steelers 24, Cardinals 13
2009 result: Steelers 27, Cardinals 23
2008 pick: Giants 27, Patriots 20
2008 result: Giants 17, Patriots 14
2007 pick: Colts 24, Bears 21
2007 result: Colts 29, Bears 17
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
-EDIT 2/7/2010- Fuck you Manning, fuck you. You eat a bowl of cocks for breakfast. You ruined the Korean's perfection. Now the Korean is only 75 percent correct in his picks.
GAAAAAH!!!! Losing sucks.
Saints 31, Colts 17
Friday, February 05, 2010
Interesting reflection by a New York Times journalist on China's dog meat consumption.
Dog Days in China (New York Times)As it happened, our meal came shortly before the eruption of a furious online debate in China over a proposed “anti-animal maltreatment” law that would outlaw the eating and selling of dog and cat meat, making it punishable by fines of more than $700 and 15 days of detention.
The legislation, now under review, immediately came under heavy fire. One restaurant owner in the Chaozhou region declared: “This is ridiculous! You make dog and cat meat illegal, but aren’t chickens, duck, goose, pig, cow, lamb also animals?” Another noted a local saying: “When the dog meat is being simmered, even the gods become dizzy with hunger.”
I’m with these indignant protesters. I’m not happy that I ate dog. But I’m happy China eats dog. It so proclaims both a particularity to be prized in a homogenizing world and its rationality.
Thursday, February 04, 2010
Ask a Korean! Wiki: Korean Science Fiction?
Dear Korean,
Can you recommend any good Korean or Korean American science fiction novels or movies?
Korean Trekkie
Dear Korean Trekkie,
Science fiction is just not the Korean's thing. Offhand, he can only think of Wonderful Days (2003), a critically acclaimed sci-fi animation movie (but a box office failure.)
Readers, got anything?
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Can you recommend any good Korean or Korean American science fiction novels or movies?
Korean Trekkie
Dear Korean Trekkie,
Science fiction is just not the Korean's thing. Offhand, he can only think of Wonderful Days (2003), a critically acclaimed sci-fi animation movie (but a box office failure.)
Oh Wonderful Days, how the Korean hoped you would save Korean animation...
Readers, got anything?
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
AAK! Music: Around Thirty by Kim Gwang-Seok (1994)
-NOTE- Blogger is acting up. There are two videos on this post, but somehow you can only see them if you click the title of this post and bring up this post only. Do that to listen to the song. Sorry.
Today's selection is Around Thirty (서른 즈음에) by Kim Gwang-Seok (김광석):
Today's selection is Around Thirty (서른 즈음에) by Kim Gwang-Seok (김광석):
서른 즈음에
Around Thirty
또 하루 멀어져간다
Another day drifts away
내뿜은 담배연기처럼
Like exhaled smoke
작기만한 내 기억속에
In my memories so small
무얼 채워 살고 있는지
What do I fill and live on
점점 더 멀어져간다
Drifts farther and farther away
머물러있는 청춘인줄 알았는데
Thought it was staying youth
비어가는 내 가슴속엔
In my emptying heart
더 아무것도 찾을 수 없네
Nothing more can be found
계절은 다시 돌아오지만
Seasons again return
떠나간 내 사랑은 어디에
But where my love that left
내가 떠나보낸 것도 아닌데
I did not let it leave either
내가 떠나온 것도 아닌데
I did not leave it either
조금씩 잊혀져 간다
Forgotten little by little
머물러 있는 사랑인줄 알았는데
Thought it was staying love
또하루 멀어져간다
Another day drifts away
매일 이별하며 살고 있구나
Living on saying good bye every day
매일 이별하며 살고 있구나
Living on saying good bye every day
Briefly about Kim Gwang-Seok: Kim debuted in 1984 as a part of a band called 노래를 찾는 사람들 ("People Who Seek Music"), which played a large part in Korea's democratization movement by providing many songs with the underlying message of resistance. He later quit the band and debuted as a solo in 1989, after a short stint as a guest member of a band called 동물원 ("Zoo"). Kim goes on to have more than 1,000 live concerts from 1989 to 1995, a record of some sort. He has two albums with 동물원, four regular solo albums, and two compilation albums. Tragically, Kim committed suicide in January 1996, at the age of 34 -- perhaps the earliest example of celebrity suicide in Korea. Kim was more underground, and his songs were never chart-toppers. However, since his death, there have been five tribute albums in his name, reflecting the broad and everyday appeal of his music.
About this song: 서른 즈음에 is on Kim's fourth and last regular album. In a survey of 40 pop music experts in 2007, 서름 즈음에 was selected to have the most powerful lyrics of the songs of 1990s. The responders said: "Listening to the song automatically makes you look back upon yourself."
Translation note: 작기만한 내 기억속에/무얼 채워 살고 있는지 was particularly difficult.
Translation note: 작기만한 내 기억속에/무얼 채워 살고 있는지 was particularly difficult.
The Korean on Kim Gwang-Seok: The barer of Korean soul of late 1980s. Unlike, for example, Kim Dong-Ryul, Kim Gwang-Seok's songs are always situation-specific, and never leaves the emotions of Korea in the 1980s -- no longer desperate for food and freedom, but vaguely afraid of what lies ahead. Even a song that could be more universalistic like this one, knowing what it likes to be facing 30 years of age in Korea of late 1980s doubles the emotional strength of the song.
Kim also represents the last scion of Korean pop culture up to mid-1990s, when a singer could be a star without having to appear on television or go through a production company. His songs are always simple, at times deceptively so -- just a guitar and his unassuming but clear voice. He would be the last of his kind, as a man who would forever change Korean pop music (for good and for bad) was gaining a mythological status right as Kim left this world.
After the jump, another video of Kim Gwang-Seok singing Around Thirty before a live audience.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Kim also represents the last scion of Korean pop culture up to mid-1990s, when a singer could be a star without having to appear on television or go through a production company. His songs are always simple, at times deceptively so -- just a guitar and his unassuming but clear voice. He would be the last of his kind, as a man who would forever change Korean pop music (for good and for bad) was gaining a mythological status right as Kim left this world.
After the jump, another video of Kim Gwang-Seok singing Around Thirty before a live audience.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Tuesday, February 02, 2010
Becoming Korean Citizen -- Update
Dear Korean,
Which of the ethnic Koreans (if any) in other parts of the world would be recognized as Korean by the South Korean Government were they to try to move to Korea?
Michael G.
Dear Michael,
The Korean previously wrote about acquiring Korean citizenship, but major changes of law regarding citizenship and immigration happened this past December that warranted an update.
But first, the Korean must put up a big caveat, given the types of questions he received since the last post:
THE KOREAN IS NOT AN IMMIGRATION LAWYER, OKAY? Everything in this post is based on his reading of newspaper articles and a little bit of Internet search. The Korean has no idea how your particular situation might work in terms of gaining Korean citizenship. The Korean has neither the ability nor time to track down every little regulation in the immigration law that might decide your fate. A very simple Naver search for 이민 변호사 will give you plenty to go by if you want any detailed discussion.
What, you don’t know what Naver is? And you don’t know what 이민 변호사 means either? You don’t speak Korean and need help? THEN WHY THE HELL ARE YOU TRYING TO GET KOREAN CITIZENSHIP???? For God’s sake people, THINK for yourselves once in a while. Although this is not quite yet the season for “Best of the Worst 2010”, the Korean will reproduce an early entrant for it below. This is an example of stupidity. Learn from it, and stop doing it. Please.
You want Korean citizenship because you want to play some goddamn ONLINE GAMES?? ARE YOU KIDDING ME??
Alright, deep breath. Now that the Korean vented enough, let’s get down to business.
-EDIT 2/3/2010- Commenter Michelle noted that the reformed Citizenship Act did not yet pass, and she is correct. The revision was finalized at the executive branch on Dec. 22, 2009, and will be submitted to the National Assembly at the next session where it will (most likely) be enacted into law -- if National Assemblymen are not too busy fighting each other.
The most important change is that now, certain category of Korean citizens may hold dual citizenship. Korean citizens who were born into dual citizenship (e.g. a child born into Korean citizen within U.S. territory) previously had to choose one citizenship or the other when they turned 22. If they did not choose, they would automatically lose their Korean citizenship. Now, such people can hold both citizenships as long as they sign an affidavit stating that they will not exercise their non-Korean citizenship in Korea. (For example, dual-citizenship holders cannot escape paying Korean taxes by claiming their non-Korean citizen status.)
Dual citizenship also applies to adoptees who lost their Korean citizenship simply by virtue of gaining a different citizenship. Previously, if they restored Korean citizenship, they had to renounce their non-Korean one – which Ministry of Justice considered overly harsh. Now, the adoptees may restore their Korean citizenship without giving up their non-Korean one, under the same condition as above.
Non-Koreans who become Korean citizens by marrying a Korean citizen can also hold dual citizenship. Ethnic Koreans older than 65 years of age who are non-Korean citizens may also restore their Korean citizenship without having to renounce their non-Korean one, essentially holding dual citizenship. Also significant is that Chinese-Koreans who have lived in Korea for more than 20 years can hold dual citizenship under the same conditions as other dual citizenship holders.
The last category of people who benefit is those non-Koreans who fall under “high value foreign human resource”. Since the law only passed a month ago, the regulations are not set up as to exactly who count as “high value foreign human resource”. (The Korean made up that term, by the way. MoJ’s press release says 우수 외국 인재.) Significantly, these people no longer have the five-year domicile requirement – which is huge, since living lawfully in Korea for five years was the hardest part of gaining Korean citizenship.
There is a big exception to the dual citizenship rule, which is a case in which the parents deliberately give birth to a child outside of Korea such that the child will have dual citizenship. (U.S. and Canada are popular destinations.) Ministry of Justice estimates that 5,000 to 7,000 infants were born in this manner, which is more than 1 percent of all Korean newborns. Therefore, following more regulations, anyone found to have deliberately acquired a dual citizenship will not have an option for dual citizenship. There is some hint also that anyone who abuses the dual citizenship status would lose her Korean citizenship, although details are scarce at this point.
This is obviously a step taken with an eye toward the compulsory military service, since not serving the military duty is an extremely sensitive issue in Korea. In fact, the requirement for military service became more rigorous under the new legislation. Previously, a dual citizen male could renounce his Korean citizenship any time prior to age 22 to get out of the military duty. Now, the same person is not allowed to renounce his Korean citizenship unless he fulfilled his military duty if he is trying to renounce his Korean citizenship after his 18th birthday.
Other than that, the rest of the immigration system appears to remain the same – which means that Korea will continue to have a surprisingly liberal immigration policy. The Korean is especially a fan of the more open policy for foreign talent. His greatest complaint against the current immigration system in the U.S. is that it turns away people who graduated from top American colleges and graduate school, already have a job in America, and want to continue living in America. Even if the qualified non-American citizens somehow get to stay in America, their status is constantly in jeopardy, hurting American industries. Google, for example, needs a dedicated team of “immigration fixers” to make sure that their talented workers can work for them.
Currently there are around 80,000 non-ethnic Koreans who hold Korean citizenship, with 100,000 more waiting in the paperwork line. While no one will mistake Korea for immigration-liberal country like Canada, the Korean thinks Korea has taken a positive step in preparing itself for the inevitable future where more people will be living far away from where they had been born.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Which of the ethnic Koreans (if any) in other parts of the world would be recognized as Korean by the South Korean Government were they to try to move to Korea?
Michael G.
Dear Michael,
The Korean previously wrote about acquiring Korean citizenship, but major changes of law regarding citizenship and immigration happened this past December that warranted an update.
But first, the Korean must put up a big caveat, given the types of questions he received since the last post:
THE KOREAN IS NOT AN IMMIGRATION LAWYER, OKAY? Everything in this post is based on his reading of newspaper articles and a little bit of Internet search. The Korean has no idea how your particular situation might work in terms of gaining Korean citizenship. The Korean has neither the ability nor time to track down every little regulation in the immigration law that might decide your fate. A very simple Naver search for 이민 변호사 will give you plenty to go by if you want any detailed discussion.
What, you don’t know what Naver is? And you don’t know what 이민 변호사 means either? You don’t speak Korean and need help? THEN WHY THE HELL ARE YOU TRYING TO GET KOREAN CITIZENSHIP???? For God’s sake people, THINK for yourselves once in a while. Although this is not quite yet the season for “Best of the Worst 2010”, the Korean will reproduce an early entrant for it below. This is an example of stupidity. Learn from it, and stop doing it. Please.
From: Brandon C.(Emphasis added by the Korean)
To: The Korean
I have a question for you while I was reading "Becoming a Korean Citizen"
I am concerned whether I should renounce my Korean citizen or recover it...
My current story: I am a "former" Korean citizen who currently is living in Canada with a US citizenship, a Commonwealth citizenship, and a Canadian Citizenship. I have an old Korean citizenship card and passport that no longer works online anymore... My parents may have renounced mine as well...
Although I plan to recover the citizenship at one point, but I'm also concerned if I have to attend the compulsory military service in Korea that all Korean men require to do, since I am a Korean male. I'm even more concerned if I can recover the citizenship in the first place.
I am most likely going to follow the "simplified naturalization" path rather than "general naturalization" although I have a Korean vocabulary and grammar knowledge of a Jr.High school student despite me being a current high school student senior...
PS: The real reason of recovery of my Korean citizen is to continue enjoying registration and playing on Korean sites and online games and keep up with my cousins and childhood friends whom most of them are still in Korea ...
If there is a way to recover my citizenship other than military service, can you please tell me? or it must be done as a Korean male?
I do not mind living in Korea for another 3 years to get the citizenship if I have to ...
If yes, then do I have to talk to the ROK Consular General in Toronto regarding these issues or should it be done by KIA?
You want Korean citizenship because you want to play some goddamn ONLINE GAMES?? ARE YOU KIDDING ME??
THIS is worth changing your citizenship over?
Alright, deep breath. Now that the Korean vented enough, let’s get down to business.
-EDIT 2/3/2010- Commenter Michelle noted that the reformed Citizenship Act did not yet pass, and she is correct. The revision was finalized at the executive branch on Dec. 22, 2009, and will be submitted to the National Assembly at the next session where it will (most likely) be enacted into law -- if National Assemblymen are not too busy fighting each other.
The most important change is that now, certain category of Korean citizens may hold dual citizenship. Korean citizens who were born into dual citizenship (e.g. a child born into Korean citizen within U.S. territory) previously had to choose one citizenship or the other when they turned 22. If they did not choose, they would automatically lose their Korean citizenship. Now, such people can hold both citizenships as long as they sign an affidavit stating that they will not exercise their non-Korean citizenship in Korea. (For example, dual-citizenship holders cannot escape paying Korean taxes by claiming their non-Korean citizen status.)
Dual citizenship also applies to adoptees who lost their Korean citizenship simply by virtue of gaining a different citizenship. Previously, if they restored Korean citizenship, they had to renounce their non-Korean one – which Ministry of Justice considered overly harsh. Now, the adoptees may restore their Korean citizenship without giving up their non-Korean one, under the same condition as above.
Non-Koreans who become Korean citizens by marrying a Korean citizen can also hold dual citizenship. Ethnic Koreans older than 65 years of age who are non-Korean citizens may also restore their Korean citizenship without having to renounce their non-Korean one, essentially holding dual citizenship. Also significant is that Chinese-Koreans who have lived in Korea for more than 20 years can hold dual citizenship under the same conditions as other dual citizenship holders.
The last category of people who benefit is those non-Koreans who fall under “high value foreign human resource”. Since the law only passed a month ago, the regulations are not set up as to exactly who count as “high value foreign human resource”. (The Korean made up that term, by the way. MoJ’s press release says 우수 외국 인재.) Significantly, these people no longer have the five-year domicile requirement – which is huge, since living lawfully in Korea for five years was the hardest part of gaining Korean citizenship.
There is a big exception to the dual citizenship rule, which is a case in which the parents deliberately give birth to a child outside of Korea such that the child will have dual citizenship. (U.S. and Canada are popular destinations.) Ministry of Justice estimates that 5,000 to 7,000 infants were born in this manner, which is more than 1 percent of all Korean newborns. Therefore, following more regulations, anyone found to have deliberately acquired a dual citizenship will not have an option for dual citizenship. There is some hint also that anyone who abuses the dual citizenship status would lose her Korean citizenship, although details are scarce at this point.
This is obviously a step taken with an eye toward the compulsory military service, since not serving the military duty is an extremely sensitive issue in Korea. In fact, the requirement for military service became more rigorous under the new legislation. Previously, a dual citizen male could renounce his Korean citizenship any time prior to age 22 to get out of the military duty. Now, the same person is not allowed to renounce his Korean citizenship unless he fulfilled his military duty if he is trying to renounce his Korean citizenship after his 18th birthday.
Other than that, the rest of the immigration system appears to remain the same – which means that Korea will continue to have a surprisingly liberal immigration policy. The Korean is especially a fan of the more open policy for foreign talent. His greatest complaint against the current immigration system in the U.S. is that it turns away people who graduated from top American colleges and graduate school, already have a job in America, and want to continue living in America. Even if the qualified non-American citizens somehow get to stay in America, their status is constantly in jeopardy, hurting American industries. Google, for example, needs a dedicated team of “immigration fixers” to make sure that their talented workers can work for them.
Currently there are around 80,000 non-ethnic Koreans who hold Korean citizenship, with 100,000 more waiting in the paperwork line. While no one will mistake Korea for immigration-liberal country like Canada, the Korean thinks Korea has taken a positive step in preparing itself for the inevitable future where more people will be living far away from where they had been born.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Monday, February 01, 2010
Ask a Korean! News: Iowa Hawkeyes are Huge in Korea
Heads have exploded in the headquarters of the excellent college football blog, Everyday Should be Saturday. The blog discovered that the new Girl's Generation (a k-pop group, if you didn't know) music video prominently features the girls kissing the Iowa Hawkeyes helmet.
From EDSBS:
What do South Korea and Iowa have in common? Plenty. Both are rivals with a dictatorship led by an aging charismatic leader and his son. Both are blazing hot in the summer and ball destroyingly cold in the winter. Both have a fondness for beer and chain restaurants, and both South Korea and Iowa love freedom and democracy. Iowa exercises their love primarily by its unique role in the American primary system, and South Korea does so by periodically erupting in the fiercest rioting on the planet ...
And no, the Korean is not posting the video here. He had to wear goggles while watching the video just to make sure he did not claw his eyes out.
Many thanks to Benjamin P. for the tip.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Ask a Korean! News: To Give, or Not to Give?
Mr. Joo Seong-Ha of Nambuk Story wrote a very compelling post laying out the dilemma of providing aid to North Korea. Below is the translation:
Yesterday on this blog, a commenter quoted one of my articles and demanded that I make my position clear. I do not respond to every comment because I am busy, but in this case I felt that I had to, since the commenter said he is also a defector who does not even know if his family in North Korea is dead or alive. I myself have experienced this, so I know that pain better than anyone.
The commenter was outraged at this sentence in my article: "Personally, it does not look great on the part of Lee Myoung-Bak administration to be on a high horse of North Korean aid while only giving 10,000 ton of corn."
Before I explain my position, I will first provide a more fundamental explanation. I have always said that there is no one answer to North Korea. I believe it is a matter of choice. A mountain has only one peak, but there are many paths to reach it. One cannot say this path is the only correct path, and not that one.
Opinions regarding food aid to North Korea in the end divide into "give" and "not give". I believe that both opinions are persuasive in their own way. I have always said we should give, but I don't think the opinion of "not give" is wrong. If we do not give, we do gain much. If the rationing stops, North Korean regime's control over its people will loosen up, and the people will be freer. Of course this is a big advantage.
In spite of that, I have my own reason to promote food aid. I wrote an article previously on this topic, so I will not repeat too much. My view is that stopping food aid may be correct for now, but there might be a different answer if we considered 20-30 years into the future when Kim Jong-Il is dead and we would be judging what we did today. Let us not fixate on Kim Jong-Il regime here and now, and set our sights beyond that.
There is a third opinion that says we may provide aid as long as transparency is guaranteed. I believe this is no more than a wordplay. Defectors know what I am talking about. Every day, I saw the North Korean soldiers changed into civilian clothes and changed the license plate of the military car to fool the United Nations watchers and take the food. I have also seen the officials pretending to provide ration when the UN watchers are monitoring, and take them away when the watchers were gone.
Defectors need to respond the opinion of food aid with transparency. How would one guarantee transparency in a country like North Korea? Is it even possible? How? Everyone insists upon transparency but I have not seen anyone who provided an answer about the way to actually achieve that. Personally, I don't believe there is any way to achieve transparency unless the watchers go into every house and see the food going over people's throat. The officials will just take them away if the watchers leave. But obviously this will take several thousands of watchers, which Kim Jong-Il will never tolerate.
In other words, transparency is just a wordplay; this is a matter of giving, or not giving. Of course, if we do give, we must insist on transparency. But that is no more than a matter of occupying moral high ground in order to mentally satisfy ourselves. Sending watchers to North Korea is no more than a formality, and North Korea is only pretending to be watched. The food can go anywhere the North Korean regime wants it to go.
I previously said that we had to provide food aid even if it goes to the military. The vast majority of North Korean soldiers are children of laborers and peasants. The majority of male defectors who are now in Korea must have served their 10 years in the military as well. It would be simple to understand if you put yourselves in their shoes and think you are currently serving in the North Korean military.
I do not want them to starve. Even the soldiers will be North Korean people once they finish their service. The effect of starving in the teenage years lasts the entire life. I believe the Kim Jong-Il regime will probably continue for another ten years at best. In that case, I don't want the generation that will support North Korea after the unification to be weak and dumb because of starvation. In a society like North Korea, there is no way to distinguish the military and civilians. Do you think it is humanitarian to provide aid to children? Do you think those healthy children will not report to the military? Providing aid to North Korean children is essentially investing into the future of North Korean military.
I have also previously said that it would be a good idea to invest in North Korean infrastructure, because by the time the roads and railroads are complete in about 10 years or so, Kim Jong-Il will be dead.
Then why did I say it does not look good to grandstand over 10,000 tons?
To repeat, North Korean aid is a question of giving or not giving -- and I believe that if we are giving only 10,000 tons, we might as well not give anything. If we chose a path, we should be faithful to that principle. Now we are violating the principle (that we set for ourselves) of "no aid without reform" just to give 10,000 tons. Was Korean government's principle on North Korean policy was so cheap that it would give way to an aid of 10,000 tons? Think then about how North Korea would mock South Korea, and how North Korea would consider South Korea to be cheap. "Cheap" was the first word I thought of when I heard about the 10,000 on as well.
I think we should either give a lot more, or not give anything at all.
Some said providing corn instead of rice would make it more likely that regular people would receive the aid, but even this is suspect. Do you think North Korean officials don't eat corn? How many spoiled North Korean officials are there who refuse the ration because it's corn? Or have you seen reports that said North Korean military swore to only eat rice? That's just not true.
From South Korean perspective, rice should be easier to send up. Rice, not corn, is rotting away in government silos; it is costing South Korean government millions of dollars to keep the rice in storage. [TK note: South Korean government buys all rice that is over-produced in order to subsidize the rice farmers.] I do not really care if it is rice or corn, but maybe corn is marginally better since more quantity goes up for the same price.
At this point, there is no way to stop the 10,000 tons from going up at any rate. And we do not know how much more aid will be provided in the future.
But let's call a time out here, because there is one more thing to consider. Although I have said we should provide food aid to North Korea, but now is not the right timing. I hope we will give that 10,000 tons, and hold out for at least another six months while only saying we will provide aid.
Why? Because right now, there is a power struggle between the regime and the market forces since the currency reform. North Korean regime is trying to cut off the chain of food and household items supply that was previously dominated by the market forces, and is trying to take over that chain itself. So the regime is now trying to shut down the marketplaces, supply goods through government-owned stores and provide ration. In order to do this, the regime needs a lot of food and goods. If the regime cannot guarantee the supply, the market forces will win. There is already chaos in the marketplace.
One might hope that North Korean regime might try to re-establish order and engage in reform, but that hope is not credible. The easy way is to help the market forces win in North Korea. In order to do that, there should be no aids in goods to North Korea, as it is essentially rooting for the market forces to lose. For now, we should wait and see -- and later (the battle will be over in about half a year or so) when the market forces emerge victorious, we can send a lot of food at that point. This is how we provide North Korean aid in order to achieve our goals.
Of course we need to demand transparency with our aid. It is doubtful that our demand will have any real effect, but it puts us at a moral high ground.
North Korean regime is in a real bind since the currency reform. I think that is reflected in the fact that they are now reaching out to receive that 10,000 tons, which South Korea previously offered but North Korea did not even bother to respond. At least South Korean government is sending it into the remote port of Cheongjin, which I believe is a good idea.
This post got a lot longer than I intended. I am sure there are many who disagree with me, but it is a matter of differing opinions, not a matter of right or wrong. Any opinion can be correct as long as one takes the attitude of recognizing differences.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
* * *
Yesterday on this blog, a commenter quoted one of my articles and demanded that I make my position clear. I do not respond to every comment because I am busy, but in this case I felt that I had to, since the commenter said he is also a defector who does not even know if his family in North Korea is dead or alive. I myself have experienced this, so I know that pain better than anyone.
The commenter was outraged at this sentence in my article: "Personally, it does not look great on the part of Lee Myoung-Bak administration to be on a high horse of North Korean aid while only giving 10,000 ton of corn."
Before I explain my position, I will first provide a more fundamental explanation. I have always said that there is no one answer to North Korea. I believe it is a matter of choice. A mountain has only one peak, but there are many paths to reach it. One cannot say this path is the only correct path, and not that one.
Opinions regarding food aid to North Korea in the end divide into "give" and "not give". I believe that both opinions are persuasive in their own way. I have always said we should give, but I don't think the opinion of "not give" is wrong. If we do not give, we do gain much. If the rationing stops, North Korean regime's control over its people will loosen up, and the people will be freer. Of course this is a big advantage.
In spite of that, I have my own reason to promote food aid. I wrote an article previously on this topic, so I will not repeat too much. My view is that stopping food aid may be correct for now, but there might be a different answer if we considered 20-30 years into the future when Kim Jong-Il is dead and we would be judging what we did today. Let us not fixate on Kim Jong-Il regime here and now, and set our sights beyond that.
There is a third opinion that says we may provide aid as long as transparency is guaranteed. I believe this is no more than a wordplay. Defectors know what I am talking about. Every day, I saw the North Korean soldiers changed into civilian clothes and changed the license plate of the military car to fool the United Nations watchers and take the food. I have also seen the officials pretending to provide ration when the UN watchers are monitoring, and take them away when the watchers were gone.
Defectors need to respond the opinion of food aid with transparency. How would one guarantee transparency in a country like North Korea? Is it even possible? How? Everyone insists upon transparency but I have not seen anyone who provided an answer about the way to actually achieve that. Personally, I don't believe there is any way to achieve transparency unless the watchers go into every house and see the food going over people's throat. The officials will just take them away if the watchers leave. But obviously this will take several thousands of watchers, which Kim Jong-Il will never tolerate.
In other words, transparency is just a wordplay; this is a matter of giving, or not giving. Of course, if we do give, we must insist on transparency. But that is no more than a matter of occupying moral high ground in order to mentally satisfy ourselves. Sending watchers to North Korea is no more than a formality, and North Korea is only pretending to be watched. The food can go anywhere the North Korean regime wants it to go.
I previously said that we had to provide food aid even if it goes to the military. The vast majority of North Korean soldiers are children of laborers and peasants. The majority of male defectors who are now in Korea must have served their 10 years in the military as well. It would be simple to understand if you put yourselves in their shoes and think you are currently serving in the North Korean military.
I do not want them to starve. Even the soldiers will be North Korean people once they finish their service. The effect of starving in the teenage years lasts the entire life. I believe the Kim Jong-Il regime will probably continue for another ten years at best. In that case, I don't want the generation that will support North Korea after the unification to be weak and dumb because of starvation. In a society like North Korea, there is no way to distinguish the military and civilians. Do you think it is humanitarian to provide aid to children? Do you think those healthy children will not report to the military? Providing aid to North Korean children is essentially investing into the future of North Korean military.
I have also previously said that it would be a good idea to invest in North Korean infrastructure, because by the time the roads and railroads are complete in about 10 years or so, Kim Jong-Il will be dead.
Then why did I say it does not look good to grandstand over 10,000 tons?
To repeat, North Korean aid is a question of giving or not giving -- and I believe that if we are giving only 10,000 tons, we might as well not give anything. If we chose a path, we should be faithful to that principle. Now we are violating the principle (that we set for ourselves) of "no aid without reform" just to give 10,000 tons. Was Korean government's principle on North Korean policy was so cheap that it would give way to an aid of 10,000 tons? Think then about how North Korea would mock South Korea, and how North Korea would consider South Korea to be cheap. "Cheap" was the first word I thought of when I heard about the 10,000 on as well.
I think we should either give a lot more, or not give anything at all.
Some said providing corn instead of rice would make it more likely that regular people would receive the aid, but even this is suspect. Do you think North Korean officials don't eat corn? How many spoiled North Korean officials are there who refuse the ration because it's corn? Or have you seen reports that said North Korean military swore to only eat rice? That's just not true.
From South Korean perspective, rice should be easier to send up. Rice, not corn, is rotting away in government silos; it is costing South Korean government millions of dollars to keep the rice in storage. [TK note: South Korean government buys all rice that is over-produced in order to subsidize the rice farmers.] I do not really care if it is rice or corn, but maybe corn is marginally better since more quantity goes up for the same price.
At this point, there is no way to stop the 10,000 tons from going up at any rate. And we do not know how much more aid will be provided in the future.
But let's call a time out here, because there is one more thing to consider. Although I have said we should provide food aid to North Korea, but now is not the right timing. I hope we will give that 10,000 tons, and hold out for at least another six months while only saying we will provide aid.
Why? Because right now, there is a power struggle between the regime and the market forces since the currency reform. North Korean regime is trying to cut off the chain of food and household items supply that was previously dominated by the market forces, and is trying to take over that chain itself. So the regime is now trying to shut down the marketplaces, supply goods through government-owned stores and provide ration. In order to do this, the regime needs a lot of food and goods. If the regime cannot guarantee the supply, the market forces will win. There is already chaos in the marketplace.
One might hope that North Korean regime might try to re-establish order and engage in reform, but that hope is not credible. The easy way is to help the market forces win in North Korea. In order to do that, there should be no aids in goods to North Korea, as it is essentially rooting for the market forces to lose. For now, we should wait and see -- and later (the battle will be over in about half a year or so) when the market forces emerge victorious, we can send a lot of food at that point. This is how we provide North Korean aid in order to achieve our goals.
Of course we need to demand transparency with our aid. It is doubtful that our demand will have any real effect, but it puts us at a moral high ground.
North Korean regime is in a real bind since the currency reform. I think that is reflected in the fact that they are now reaching out to receive that 10,000 tons, which South Korea previously offered but North Korea did not even bother to respond. At least South Korean government is sending it into the remote port of Cheongjin, which I believe is a good idea.
This post got a lot longer than I intended. I am sure there are many who disagree with me, but it is a matter of differing opinions, not a matter of right or wrong. Any opinion can be correct as long as one takes the attitude of recognizing differences.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
AAK! Music: Hope by Kim Dong-Ryul (2000)
Inspired by a marathon session at a noraebang last night, the Korean is starting a new corner - "AAK! Music". This corner will provide a Korean song, the translated lyrics and a brief overview of the artist and/or the song. The song selection is guaranteed to be arbitrary and capricious to the whim of the Korean, but he will take requests and translate them if he likes the request. (Hint: the Korean despises boy/girl bands and their fans. Expect your email to show up at "Best of the Worst" corner if you dare to request anything from Girls Generation.)
The Korean already explained the difficulty of translating a song here. (The song accompanying that post is also quite good.) So the Korean is always open to translation critiques.
Without further ado, today's selection is Hope (희망) by Kim Dong-Ryul (김동률).
그래 한번 살아보는거라고
Yes, I will try living
더 이상 나 내줄것도 없으니
For I no longer have any more to give
독한 맘이 다시 무너지는 것은
My resolute heart again falls apart
내 아직 그대를 사랑하기에
Because I still love you
오 사랑은 참 잔인해라
Oh how cruel is love
무엇으로도 씻겨지지 않으니
Nothing washes it away
한번 맘을 담근 죄로
By the sin of dipping my heart once
소리없이 녹아내려 자취없구나
it silently melts away without a trace
오 사랑은 참 우스워라
Oh how funny is love
기나긴 날이 지나도
Long after long days past
처음 그 자리에 시간이 멈춰버린 채로
In the same place frozen in time
이렇게 버젓이 난 살아 널 그리워하고 있으니
I shamelessly live on like this longing for you
Briefly about Kim Dong-Ryul: Kim Dong-Ryul debuted in 1994 as a part of a duo called 전람회 ("Exhibition"), along with another talented singer named Seo Dong-Uk (서동욱). Kim was initially famous for being an intellectual pop star, as he attended the prestigious Yonsei University at the time when he debuted. His duo disbanded in 1997, and he released his first solo album in 1999. He has three albums under 전람회 and five solo albums, all of which ranged from fairly popular to chart toppers. This song is on his second solo album, also titled 희망. His official website is here.
The Korean on Kim Dong-Ryul: An amazing voice linked to deep sentimentality. His lyrics aspire to be universal, and his best songs elegantly express the desperate, unrequited love separated by impossible barriers -- the type that is often cheaply actualized in Korean dramas.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
The Korean already explained the difficulty of translating a song here. (The song accompanying that post is also quite good.) So the Korean is always open to translation critiques.
Without further ado, today's selection is Hope (희망) by Kim Dong-Ryul (김동률).
희망
Hope
사랑에 눈이 멀어서 행복했던 날들 이젠 꿈이었어라
The happy days spent blinded by love were now dreams
그저 흘러가는 물처럼 멈출 수도 없는 세월 탓으로
Just blaming the time unstoppable like flowing water
그럭 저럭 살아지긴 했으나 무엇 하나 보여줄 것 없으니
Somehow I continue to live but with nothing to show for
지금와서 또 누군가를 만나도 섣불리 널 지울 수 가 있을지
Now if I again meet someone could I dare erase you
오 사랑은 참 잔인해라
Oh how cruel is love
무엇으로도 씻겨지지 않으니
Nothing washes it away
한번 맘을 담근 죄로
By the sin of dipping my heart once
소리없이 녹아내려 자취없구나
it silently melts away without a trace
오 사랑은 참 우스워라
Oh how funny is love
기나긴 날이 지나도
Long after long days past
처음 그 자리에 시간이 멈춰버린 채로
In the same place frozen in time
이렇게 버젓이 난 살아 널 그리워하고 있으니
I shamelessly live on like this longing for you
Hope
사랑에 눈이 멀어서 행복했던 날들 이젠 꿈이었어라
The happy days spent blinded by love were now dreams
그저 흘러가는 물처럼 멈출 수도 없는 세월 탓으로
Just blaming the time unstoppable like flowing water
그럭 저럭 살아지긴 했으나 무엇 하나 보여줄 것 없으니
Somehow I continue to live but with nothing to show for
지금와서 또 누군가를 만나도 섣불리 널 지울 수 가 있을지
Now if I again meet someone could I dare erase you
오 사랑은 참 잔인해라
Oh how cruel is love
무엇으로도 씻겨지지 않으니
Nothing washes it away
한번 맘을 담근 죄로
By the sin of dipping my heart once
소리없이 녹아내려 자취없구나
it silently melts away without a trace
오 사랑은 참 우스워라
Oh how funny is love
기나긴 날이 지나도
Long after long days past
처음 그 자리에 시간이 멈춰버린 채로
In the same place frozen in time
이렇게 버젓이 난 살아 널 그리워하고 있으니
I shamelessly live on like this longing for you
그래 한번 살아보는거라고
Yes, I will try living
더 이상 나 내줄것도 없으니
For I no longer have any more to give
독한 맘이 다시 무너지는 것은
My resolute heart again falls apart
내 아직 그대를 사랑하기에
Because I still love you
오 사랑은 참 잔인해라
Oh how cruel is love
무엇으로도 씻겨지지 않으니
Nothing washes it away
한번 맘을 담근 죄로
By the sin of dipping my heart once
소리없이 녹아내려 자취없구나
it silently melts away without a trace
오 사랑은 참 우스워라
Oh how funny is love
기나긴 날이 지나도
Long after long days past
처음 그 자리에 시간이 멈춰버린 채로
In the same place frozen in time
이렇게 버젓이 난 살아 널 그리워하고 있으니
I shamelessly live on like this longing for you
Briefly about Kim Dong-Ryul: Kim Dong-Ryul debuted in 1994 as a part of a duo called 전람회 ("Exhibition"), along with another talented singer named Seo Dong-Uk (서동욱). Kim was initially famous for being an intellectual pop star, as he attended the prestigious Yonsei University at the time when he debuted. His duo disbanded in 1997, and he released his first solo album in 1999. He has three albums under 전람회 and five solo albums, all of which ranged from fairly popular to chart toppers. This song is on his second solo album, also titled 희망. His official website is here.
The Korean on Kim Dong-Ryul: An amazing voice linked to deep sentimentality. His lyrics aspire to be universal, and his best songs elegantly express the desperate, unrequited love separated by impossible barriers -- the type that is often cheaply actualized in Korean dramas.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Here is something that drives the Korean crazy:
No, the solution is not crossword puzzles and interactive videos. The solution is discipline. The solution is the willingness to sacrifice the here and now for the future reward. Learning is not supposed to be fun all the time, you lazy spoiled brats!! For cryin' out loud.
Learning a language sometimes seems as difficult as dieting. The solution is to figure out how to stay interested after the novelty wears off.The Web Way to Learn a Language (New York Times) (emphasis is the Korean's.)
To counter boredom, online language programs have introduced crossword puzzles, interactive videos and other games to reward users for making progress.
No, the solution is not crossword puzzles and interactive videos. The solution is discipline. The solution is the willingness to sacrifice the here and now for the future reward. Learning is not supposed to be fun all the time, you lazy spoiled brats!! For cryin' out loud.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Important Announcement: Email Change
After years of tribulation with Hotmail, the Korean finally got sick of the ineffective spam filter and terrible search function. The Korean can now be reached at askakorean@gmail.com. If you are waiting on a question, no worries -- all of the old emails are intact, and the Korean will continue going down the line.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com (Note the change!!)
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@gmail.com (Note the change!!)
The Korean is vaguely disturbed by this article:
The Korean can see how it could help the students to get rid of some red tape, but... there is just no dignity in this.
Colleges Market Easy, No-Fee Sell to Applicants (New York Times)Over the last few years, the tiny College of Saint Rose in Albany has seen applications increase at least 25 percent annually, minority admissions rise and its standing in the U.S. News and World Report rankings climb more than 20 rungs.
Its secret? Lifting a page from the marketing playbook of credit card companies.
Last fall the college sent out 30,000 bright red “Exclusive Scholar Applications” to high school seniors that promised to waive the $40 application fee, invited them to skip the dreaded essay and assured a decision in three weeks. Because the application arrived with the students’ names and other information already filled in, applying required little more than a signature.
The Korean can see how it could help the students to get rid of some red tape, but... there is just no dignity in this.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Why Do Koreans Like Cute Things?
Dear Korean,
Since I arrived in Korea, I have wondered about the national obsession for cute things. I know of no other place where grown men and women so enthusiastically pose for photos with cute robots, over-sized teddy bears, wear cute Mickey and Minnie Mouse paraphernalia, and... well, the list goes on. Cute cartoon cows on galbi signs? Cutesy police officers who look like puppies on road signs? What's the deal? Seriously, Teenie Weenie? (It's a clothing brand centered around globe-trotting teddy bears who look rather out of place in any location that isn't a child's story book)
- I'm Not Wearing A Shirt With That Damn Bear No Matter How Adorable It Makes Me
Dear INWASWTDBNMHAIMM,
You speak the truth. And in this case, pictures are worth a thousand words. So without further ado…
Cute robot assisting English education? Check
Grown man peddling teddy bears? Check.
Cannibalistic chicken peddling spicy chicken (dakkalbi)? Check.
Cutesy police officers who look like puppies? Double check.
And horror of all horrors, Teenie Weenie.
Pick up your jaws -- you are ruining the carpet.
Why is this happening? A society’s consumption pattern is a complex sociological issue, requiring many eggheads and inscrutable doctoral dissertations in order to uncover the multitudinous layers that create a sophisticated mosaic comprised of tastes, class identifications and ...
Heck, who is the Korean kidding? The answer is one word: Japan.
In fact, when INWASWTDBNMHAIMM says he knows of "no other place" with obsession for cute things, he pretty much told the world that he has never been to Japan. Because if he did, he would have seen these:
Since I arrived in Korea, I have wondered about the national obsession for cute things. I know of no other place where grown men and women so enthusiastically pose for photos with cute robots, over-sized teddy bears, wear cute Mickey and Minnie Mouse paraphernalia, and... well, the list goes on. Cute cartoon cows on galbi signs? Cutesy police officers who look like puppies on road signs? What's the deal? Seriously, Teenie Weenie? (It's a clothing brand centered around globe-trotting teddy bears who look rather out of place in any location that isn't a child's story book)
- I'm Not Wearing A Shirt With That Damn Bear No Matter How Adorable It Makes Me
Dear INWASWTDBNMHAIMM,
You speak the truth. And in this case, pictures are worth a thousand words. So without further ado…
Cute robot assisting English education? Check
Time for NSET Luddite movement? (Source)
Grown man peddling teddy bears? Check.
Pro Gamer Yoon-Yeol Lee shows off teddy bears modeled after him. (Source)
Cannibalistic chicken peddling spicy chicken (dakkalbi)? Check.
Cutesy police officers who look like puppies? Double check.
At least it doesn't look like a pig. (Source)
Police characters, hard at work. (Source)
And horror of all horrors, Teenie Weenie.
Yes, an entire fashion chain built around a teddy bear theme!! (Source)
Pick up your jaws -- you are ruining the carpet.
Why is this happening? A society’s consumption pattern is a complex sociological issue, requiring many eggheads and inscrutable doctoral dissertations in order to uncover the multitudinous layers that create a sophisticated mosaic comprised of tastes, class identifications and ...
Heck, who is the Korean kidding? The answer is one word: Japan.
In fact, when INWASWTDBNMHAIMM says he knows of "no other place" with obsession for cute things, he pretty much told the world that he has never been to Japan. Because if he did, he would have seen these:
One of the first things you see as you are stepping out of the Narita Airport near Tokyo. (Source)
And these ladies, if you are lucky. (Source)
The pinnacle of Japan's kawai-ness. (Source)
Although Korea is a major exporter of culture at this point (in the form of movies, TV dramas and pop music,) Korea had no significant pop culture to speak of as recently as 40 years ago as the country struggled to build their way out of the heap of rubble. As Korean pop culture grew into form, it was influenced by two major pop cultures close to Korea -- American and Japanese.
It is, then, no surprise that Korea is infected by Japan's love for cute cartoon characters. Let's face it -- people like cute things. There is no population of children in the world that rejected Pokemon, and that's not because of its compelling story line. It is perhaps the first cartoon whose only appeal was cuteness overload.
Even children of South Park love Poke--, ahem, Chinpokomon.
The only reason why American adults are inhibited from embracing their cuteness-loving nature is the years of Puritanical repression they suffered as children, only using yellow No. 2 pencil when they secretly desired colorful mechanical pencils with anime characters printed on them. So INWASWTDBNMHAIMM, you actually want Teenie Weenie deep down. Look at that bear smiling. He's smiling at you! Are you going to disappoint the cute bear? How dare you!
But the Korean understands that old habits die hard, and your revulsion will not subside easily. So next time when you are subject to the horrors of Teenie Weenie, do what all Koreans do when they hate something about Korea -- blame Japan.
But the Korean understands that old habits die hard, and your revulsion will not subside easily. So next time when you are subject to the horrors of Teenie Weenie, do what all Koreans do when they hate something about Korea -- blame Japan.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email the Korean at askakorean@hotmail.com.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Ask a Korean! Wiki: Highlights???
Dear Korean,
I was writing because I have been in Korea for a couple of weeks now and I am starting to get some roots. I know that this is a superficial question but I am a high-maintenance girl. I was wondering if there was anywhere that a westerner could get her hair done as in highlights. I don't think that most Korean hair salons have the correct highlighting ingredients for a blonde westerner.
High-Maintenance Foreigner
Dear High-Maintenance Foreigner,
Yeesh, the Korean is glad that he is nowhere near you. The Korean is marrying the Korean Fiancee because she is the ultimate low maintenance woman. (The Korean does not even remember her birthday. She doesn't mind.) Fortunately, he has never needed to dye his hair in his life, and certainly not in Korea. Dyed hair would have incurred extra beating from his teachers.
Readers, where should HMF go? The Korean thinks that hair salons in Apgujeong ought to have the equipment, but he does not have any personal knowledge.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@hotmail.com.
I was writing because I have been in Korea for a couple of weeks now and I am starting to get some roots. I know that this is a superficial question but I am a high-maintenance girl. I was wondering if there was anywhere that a westerner could get her hair done as in highlights. I don't think that most Korean hair salons have the correct highlighting ingredients for a blonde westerner.
High-Maintenance Foreigner
Dear High-Maintenance Foreigner,
Yeesh, the Korean is glad that he is nowhere near you. The Korean is marrying the Korean Fiancee because she is the ultimate low maintenance woman. (The Korean does not even remember her birthday. She doesn't mind.) Fortunately, he has never needed to dye his hair in his life, and certainly not in Korea. Dyed hair would have incurred extra beating from his teachers.
Readers, where should HMF go? The Korean thinks that hair salons in Apgujeong ought to have the equipment, but he does not have any personal knowledge.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@hotmail.com.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Earthquake in IT?
Dear Korean,
Why do Koreans refer to Haiti as 아이티 (A-ee-ti)? My understanding is that the Haitian pronunciation contains an "H" sound. I imagine it would have been easy to replace the '아' with a '하'. Is it simply a matter of a single individual's (perhaps someone in the media) pronunciation mistake carrying over to an entire nation? I believe there are other instances of inexplicable pronunciation modifications, but this one seems particularly timely. Of course, I may be wrong about the native pronunciation. I don't believe there's an H sound in French. Is Aiti the correct pronunciation? Is it the English-speaking world that has it all wrong?
Eric M.
Dear Eric,
It is indeed the English-speaking world that has it all wrong. Check out this video of an IMF representative pledging support to Haiti in French.
No "H" to be found in Haiti -- the man pronounces like he is saying "IT".
And you are correct that Koreans refer to Haiti as "A-ee-tee". For example, at this link, you can see the news of an NGO called "Good Neighbors" delivering supplies to people of "아이티".
What comes into play here is Rule of Foreign Words Transliteration established by the National Institute of the Korean Language (국립국어원). Just like L'Academie francaise, NIKL governs all things related to Korean language, including how words that did not originate from Korea are supposed to be written. The overarching principle of the rule is to transliterate the words as they are pronounced in their language. Specifically, the Rule of Transliteration provides a chart that matches up the International Phonetic Alphabet to Korean characters, with more detailed rules in different languages such as English, Spanish, Japanese, French, etc.
The Korean likes this rule because it shows respect. Although Korean language sometimes has a separate name for a famous city in a foreign country -- for example, Sang-Hae (상해) for Shanghai (상하이) or Dong-Kyeong (동경) for Tokyo (도쿄) -- under this rule, Koreans are supposed to write them as 상하이 and 도쿄, not as 상해 or 동경. (In contrast, English-speakers have no qualms for calling Munchen as "Munich" or Praha as "Prague".) Calling a different country/culture with the name that they gave to themselves shows a lot more respect than calling with the name that we came up for them.
But it must be noted that, despite the good intentions, this rule is really hit-or-miss in practice. Because of some arbitrary elements in the rules, Korean transliteration of an English-based word is often unrecognizable, even accounting for the fact that certain sounds in English do not exist in Korean. This is particularly worse for American English pronunciation, because NIKL apparently based its rule on British English -- you know, where English came from originally. The result is that even though there may be better ways to transliterate things in Korean, following the rule gives out the worse transliteration.
For example, one such arbitrary rule is that you cannot use ㄲ, ㄸ, ㅃ, ㅆ, ㅉ in transliteration, but use ㅋ, ㅌ, ㅍ, ㅅ, ㅊ if necessary. Another rule is that when p, t, k is followed by a consonant, the Korean vowel ㅡ needs to be attached to p, t, k. So the word "sickness" is transliterated as 시크니스 under the rule, while 씩니스 would be much closer to the actual pronunciation. Another arbitrary rule is that [ou] in the International Phonetic Alphabet should be transliterated with 오 ("o"). Under this rule, the word "boat" is transliterated as 보트, while 보우트 might be closer to the actual pronunciation.
At any rate, this is not important. What's important is what is happening in Haiti. Did you donate? It's fast and easy: text HAITI to 90999, and you can donate $10 to the Red Cross in the relief effort.
-EDIT 1/25/2010- To complement the Korean's near-total ignorance of French, David from Ask a Frenchman! came to the rescue. Here is the Frenchman's comment:
Why do Koreans refer to Haiti as 아이티 (A-ee-ti)? My understanding is that the Haitian pronunciation contains an "H" sound. I imagine it would have been easy to replace the '아' with a '하'. Is it simply a matter of a single individual's (perhaps someone in the media) pronunciation mistake carrying over to an entire nation? I believe there are other instances of inexplicable pronunciation modifications, but this one seems particularly timely. Of course, I may be wrong about the native pronunciation. I don't believe there's an H sound in French. Is Aiti the correct pronunciation? Is it the English-speaking world that has it all wrong?
Eric M.
Dear Eric,
It is indeed the English-speaking world that has it all wrong. Check out this video of an IMF representative pledging support to Haiti in French.
No "H" to be found in Haiti -- the man pronounces like he is saying "IT".
And you are correct that Koreans refer to Haiti as "A-ee-tee". For example, at this link, you can see the news of an NGO called "Good Neighbors" delivering supplies to people of "아이티".
What comes into play here is Rule of Foreign Words Transliteration established by the National Institute of the Korean Language (국립국어원). Just like L'Academie francaise, NIKL governs all things related to Korean language, including how words that did not originate from Korea are supposed to be written. The overarching principle of the rule is to transliterate the words as they are pronounced in their language. Specifically, the Rule of Transliteration provides a chart that matches up the International Phonetic Alphabet to Korean characters, with more detailed rules in different languages such as English, Spanish, Japanese, French, etc.
The Korean likes this rule because it shows respect. Although Korean language sometimes has a separate name for a famous city in a foreign country -- for example, Sang-Hae (상해) for Shanghai (상하이) or Dong-Kyeong (동경) for Tokyo (도쿄) -- under this rule, Koreans are supposed to write them as 상하이 and 도쿄, not as 상해 or 동경. (In contrast, English-speakers have no qualms for calling Munchen as "Munich" or Praha as "Prague".) Calling a different country/culture with the name that they gave to themselves shows a lot more respect than calling with the name that we came up for them.
But it must be noted that, despite the good intentions, this rule is really hit-or-miss in practice. Because of some arbitrary elements in the rules, Korean transliteration of an English-based word is often unrecognizable, even accounting for the fact that certain sounds in English do not exist in Korean. This is particularly worse for American English pronunciation, because NIKL apparently based its rule on British English -- you know, where English came from originally. The result is that even though there may be better ways to transliterate things in Korean, following the rule gives out the worse transliteration.
For example, one such arbitrary rule is that you cannot use ㄲ, ㄸ, ㅃ, ㅆ, ㅉ in transliteration, but use ㅋ, ㅌ, ㅍ, ㅅ, ㅊ if necessary. Another rule is that when p, t, k is followed by a consonant, the Korean vowel ㅡ needs to be attached to p, t, k. So the word "sickness" is transliterated as 시크니스 under the rule, while 씩니스 would be much closer to the actual pronunciation. Another arbitrary rule is that [ou] in the International Phonetic Alphabet should be transliterated with 오 ("o"). Under this rule, the word "boat" is transliterated as 보트, while 보우트 might be closer to the actual pronunciation.
From the Guardian (UK)
At any rate, this is not important. What's important is what is happening in Haiti. Did you donate? It's fast and easy: text HAITI to 90999, and you can donate $10 to the Red Cross in the relief effort.
-EDIT 1/25/2010- To complement the Korean's near-total ignorance of French, David from Ask a Frenchman! came to the rescue. Here is the Frenchman's comment:
Just one detail, the guy is not just "an IMF representative" but he is Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the current Director of the IMF, former Minister of Finances (1997-2002) and Minister of Industry (1991-1993) in the French government, and possibly future French President (in the current polls he'd win if the elections were these days).Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@hotmail.com.
Concerning Haiti, the name is originally a Taino name meaning "Mountain in the Sea" or something like that and it didn't have a "H" in its pronunciation, the H appeared when it was first written (by the French) but keep in mind that in French, H is never pronounced (only in "ch" pronounced like "sh" in English). Thus, the original, and subsequent French pronunciation (French still being the official language of Haiti -with Haitian Créole) is something like "A.E.T" in English (that's what Strauss-Kahn says in the video, although it could sound like "IT".
Friday, January 22, 2010
Ask a Korean! Wiki: Korean Men in NYC -- Where Y'all at on Friday Night??
Dear Korean,
Simple question, where do single korean men hang out in NYC? Where can i meet them ? :)
Geraldine J.
Dear Geraldine,
That's a hot girl name. Fellas, where should Geraldine go tonight?
As to the Korean himself, he will go home to his fiancee and watch the Lakers at Madison Square Garden with a nice glass of Merlot.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@hotmail.com.
Simple question, where do single korean men hang out in NYC? Where can i meet them ? :)
Geraldine J.
Dear Geraldine,
That's a hot girl name. Fellas, where should Geraldine go tonight?
As to the Korean himself, he will go home to his fiancee and watch the Lakers at Madison Square Garden with a nice glass of Merlot.
Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@hotmail.com.
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