Apr 02
By David Wills
A few weeks ago, a couple of articles popped up on Google News that brought the name “Ieodo” once again to the attention of the world. Although admittedly there wasn’t much substance to these articles and they probably only went to print because it was a slow news day, it was enough to bring a collective groan from Korea’s expat community, and doubtless there were a few mentions of the “new Dokdo”, as yet another pissing contest continued between South Korea and one of its neighbors.
It appears South Korea has the national equivalent of Short Man Syndrome (this despite its population being taller than people in either of its big neighbors – China and Japan). It is sandwiched between powerful countries with bigger populations, more military might, and who’ve always had a greater influence over matters of global importance. The same can also be said of North Korea, whose brash actions and needless aggression are a painful cry not just for attention, but to inform the world that it has power and should not be ignored. History has not been kind to the Korean civilization, and it has been invaded and isolated for most of its existence. Yet in a remarkably short period of time, the southern half hauled itself from war-torn poverty to astounding affluence; and not just that, but it has become one of the richest nations on earth, sending its much vaunted Wave around the world to spread word of its new position. Koreans can be justifiably proud of their country’s progress.
Feb 27
By Lee Scott and Iwazaru
The first rule of doing damage control on an Internet meltdown is to protect your Twitter page. That’s what I found when I got around to checking out Jenny Hyun’s page a full five days after her rocketing to the top of my “Korean Americans I had never heard of till now” list. Jeremy Lin I had heard of (who hasn’t by now?). Floyd Mayweather, too.
Interestingly (to me), it was about five days after Floyd Mayweather made his (at best racially insensitive and at worst racist) remarks about New York Knicks player, Jeremy Lin, that Hyun went off the deep end. Mayweather tweeted on February 13, 2012:
“Jeremy Lin is a good player but all the hype is because he’s Asian. Black players do what he does every night and don’t get the same praise.”
Mayweather’s comments sparked not only Hyun’s tweet-tirade (more on that in just a moment), but also prompted Ultimate Fighting Championship president, Dana White to call him a racist .
Oct 10
By The Expat at Expat Hell
The Korean Ministry of Tourism has a new mantra: No Foreigner Left Behind. Welcome to Korea, You’re in Good Hands Now. Check your educational baggage and world experiences at the door and let us be your guides. We have white male expat geniuses with bitch-tits and MBAs in Korean culture. We have mail order brides from over 56 different countries on hand at all times to correct your Korean pronunciation and grammar. When they aren’t busy restoring 한옥 or writing classical Korean poetry, our crack legion of bitch-tit clad white male expat geniuses will be available online to correct any mistakes you make in either English or Korean. All bases are covered; we’ve got your back.
Sep 05
By Mizaru
In 1948 Korea competed at the summer Olympics in London, England winning a bronze medal in both men/s weightlifting and middleweight boxing. The division of Korea was not yet complete as South Korea was establishing itself as a sovereign nation and the two narratives of those athletes surely would serve as interesting profiles of character. In 1948: Graham Greene, Norman Mailer and John Steinbeck published weighty novels. Also published were, Thomas Merton’s autobiography turned spiritual treatise, The Seven Story Mountain, and T.S Elliot’s’, Notes Towards the Definition of Culture. It was a pretty essential year for the written word in English.
‘So why stop reading if you are going to write?’ is a maxim not so popular with today’s new age hothouse writing culture in full bloom. But, while wondering about the literary boosterism coming out of a small corner of Korea’s pop-culture blast out to the world, I have picked up J.D. Salinger’s “Nine Stories,” also published in 1948…
Jul 12
By Mizaru
A review Of Nanoomi/Subject Object Verb’s Quest: Does Asian America Need a Brand Makeover?
Editor’s note: Before the racial flagellation comes my way, no I am not a Korean National or a Gyopo. I am American in fact a hyphenated Irish – American who understands indentifying with more than one place at one time. We are all Midnight’s Children living through different allusions at the same time, and as it’s been said it is not where you were born but where you belong and now I live in Seoul.
In a recent editorial I read on the Korea promotional site Nanoomi I was intrigued and finally flummoxed by the consideration and proposal that in order to get Korean soft power (i.e., books movies, pop-music, TV shows and the like) out to a worldwide audience a sort of Asian Creative Agenda should be established. “Does Asian America Need a Brand Makeover?” The idea is …
May 16
By Jake Reed
This is Part 2 of Jake’s Chengdu travel. Read Part 1 here.
Chengdu might not be the frat party of China and maybe that’s a good thing. I would hate to think I went to a place just to sample the radial Dionysian outlets where the Sun rises in the East, sets in the West and what follows for me is another gripey hangover. Better to ask what was old China like in this neck of the woods? Well, Chengdu did happen to be in possession of the Tao which preceded Buddhism and is creating wonders still in effect today. Next to a KFC on any given street here you can yourself gazing into a lush garden tendered by skin headed, peace mongering Asians.
Dec 20
By J. Lee
A week after the North Korean shelling of the Yeonpyeong Island, I e-mailed Sung-yoon 
Lee of the prestigious Fletcher School, Tufts University, outlining my thoughts on the recent provocation. Like many people, I, too, had been shocked by North Korea’s gratuitous attacks on innocent civilians. Nonetheless, I felt that one had to adopt carefully measured strategies to stave off a further crisis—what I described in my e-mail as a potential “Doomsday.” In it, I wrote that “now is perhaps the most opportune time for Lee Myung-bak and his retinue of sycophants to resume talks with North Korea…” for “[s]hould another Korean War occur, there will be no victors, but victims only.”
Nov 01
By Konrad Kostecki
I am staying at home with my folks at the moment. It is good to see them again and I gotta say that they seem to be in a relatively good form. I ventured out of the house to see what is different, what is new. My gut told me that this place was going to differ greatly from Korea…No shit Sherlock! A short trip to the Safeway supermarket confirmed my suspicion unequivocally. In place of the made up hotties in high heels were haggard women sporting fashions that should not see the light of day under any circumstances. My god, what a collection of flotsam and jetsam! Overweight women wearing tight “leggings” or loose tracksuit pants.
Oct 18
By Mizaru
When reading any of the English language mainstream press in Korea, it is hard not to run into something sooner or later that comes out against “Konglish”. You know the phrases in English with a Korean twist to its usage. “Handphone” instead of cell phone or cellular phone; “One shot” instead of cheers or bottoms up quickly come to mind. The mainstream hack with perhaps too little time or spirit to explore fresh expression no doubt wants to grind Konglish back down to earth and chastise anyone who is not at open war with it. Tirades against “Konglish” are often delivered by various Korean government officials with a PhD.
Oct 04
By Conor O’Reilly
Don’t let this fool you! The whole festival is a massive outlet for people trying to be cool, trying to be real, trying to festival. It’s a place where people try to escape into the streets, have run-ins with the 5-O, dress over conspicuously and raise their chin higher than the person they are talking to. This is a place where people walk down the street with an empty guitar case just to get the nod from a fellow case carrier. Yes, the Hardly Bothered Coming Festival® really is a wonderful place to be cool. Disgusting!
Aug 09
By Jack Dashwood
I clicked on a Web site the other day that was paragraph after paragraph of “stupid things Korean girls text to foreigners.” The gist of it was “hey look at this broken English this girl sent me. What a tard!”. To a certain type of person, this point of view makes sense. If for example, you’re the type of person who would spike girls’ drinks at your college fraternity parties, or if you taunted the one brown kid in your school for being a terrorist, then this style of humour might be rather entertaining. Let’s take a moment to look from another point of view though…
Aug 09
By James Barrowdale
Alas, I still can’t tell you. The game went on, and my boredom and drunkenness increased at the same rate, a very rare occurrence. The sun started to get low in the sky, but the heat remained as oppressive as ever. The players were toiling out in the middle, but that is their job. I was sitting down fanning myself with a paperback and drinking cold beer.
Jun 30
By Iwazaru
“GOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAL!” or NOT.
Late in the first half of its second-round game with Germany, England was behind 2-1 when Frank Lampard blasted a shot off the crossbar. The ball came down at least a foot inside the goal line, but referee Jorge Larrionda (now booted from the Cup just like England) called for play to continue. Replays (a tool rejected by Fifa so far) confirmed the ball was across the line in another embarrassing incident for the game.
Jun 09
By Mizaru
Here we are heading into a new summer and as I walk into a local expat watering hole to attend a birthday party, the talk at the bar revolves around how last week’s perfectly pitched baseball game was marred by a bad call at first base for the last out of the game in the bottom of the ninth. I find that foreigners who come to South Korea to teach English (amongst other endeavors) and hang out tend to believe in the “we have the technology so we have to use it” aphorism. I didn’t bother with the instead of that: to see if someone saw a greater truth that maybe we and technology have turned the corner on and can’t see anymore. That perhaps there’s a more powerful perfection in the umpire blowing the call, but then admitting it with an earnest apology, and then the pitcher matching that with an effortless forgiveness.
Mar 01
By Marie Kulik
The city of Seoul. All cities are alive, but whilst others are fading into the annals of history this one has a beating pulse, a young pulse. The spotlight must move, it has chosen this peninsular.
People work and walk and sing and drink, but underneath it all, like any good city, is another face. People on street corners staring into what you are meant to perceive as nothingness; the telephone box users are not making calls,[...]
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