Random Splats

Lost Nomad, clearly among the top Bloggers in Korea these days (must be the pictures of fish), had a beat on the 40+ Koreans who threw a tantrum in Hong Kong. Gi Korea has some good commentary on it as well. It was with no small satisfaction to me that the flight took off without the crybabies and the airline (at least thus far) is refusing to reward their boorish behaviour. Would have been nice to see it and give a Nelson (of the Simpson's) 'ha-ha' as the plane flew away without them.

A few points that I haven't already heard from others commenting on the issue.

1. There were 308 passengers on the plane altogether. Other than the 44 crybabies, we don't know how many more passengers were Korean. Isn't it possible that the majority of the Koreans just boarded the plane without complaint?

2. Score one for the Korea media by reporting the Koreans' behaviour in a negative light (as they should have). This group made an ass of its collective self and a Korean newspaper called them on it. I don't suspect many Koreans will try to defend that group's actions (though it would be interesting to see what would have happened in an Japanese airport). People do dumb-ass things all the time, individually and collectively. It's the way the media and society react to it that is most important in my book (though other English language outlets in Korea seem to have ignored the story).

3. Is it just me, or do 'Ugly Koreans' only seem to show up in countries that Koreans might deem as equals or inferior? We hear a lot of stories about ugly Koreans in the Phillipines, for example, but I can't recall hearing any in Europe or North America.

udda stuff...

The Big Hominid (who is somewhat big and does seem to be of an erect bipedal nature)  gets an angry email from one 'Bill Pickford,' just about the same time Lost Nomad (who seems neither lost nor particularly nomadic, by the by) has an angry commenter by the name of 'William'. One in the same? Or just a coincidence that is most unfortunate for 'Williams' everywhere who are NOT morons?

Sejong over at Dog stew has a good update on all that yummy progress North Korea has made since the Korean Summit of 2000. (Oops! I should have said 'progress North AND South Korea have made', I always forget!)  I left a comment (poor guy doesn't get many these days) giving appropriate praise.

Here is Ha Seung-jin of the Portland Trailblazers in the NBA Summer League (he's out with an injury).

Is that a regulation sized basketball? Damn that boy is big.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, Ha is going to be the next Sean Bradley of the NBA. Be warned...

Konglish Slogans

A happy fun article on korea company inadequate using English of.

These companies need professional help and since they are obviously too cheap to get it, I hereby volunteer my services with the following proposed changes.

KTF--Have a good time!       

Should be commended for at least forming an intelligible sentence. However, the slogan is irrelevant to the product and just comes across as silly.   Proposed change:

KTF--Love you long time!

This creates very endearing, nostalgic images of Asia that are still cherished by many in the West.

KB: Think Star                                

[Completely meaningless. I suggest the following change:

KB: Think Deathstar

A powerful symbol of strength and authority. People will definitely think twice before skipping out on college loans from a bank with this slogan. This picture almost works with the new slogan as is, though it would be better if they had their stormtrooper riot gear on.

SBS Humanism through Digital       

Barf. Someone please tell me the marketing team didn't spend over 2 weeks and God only knows how many man hours coming up with this nonsense. Suggested change:

SBS: Oh the Humanism!

The ad should be complete with the SBS blimp going down in flames (they do have a blimp, don't they?). Would be very symbolic of what the Korean media is doing to the country.

Seoul Milk: Milk itself                    

As noted in the article, strange images arise if you consider 'milk' as a verb. Why not just go directly to these slogans:

Seoul Milk: Milk Me!

[Cue Beavis and Butthead chuckling here]

For the women (and Leone over at Mincing), Nelly could do the advertising with just a slight change of wording to the slogan:

Seoul Milk: Milk This!

"But Mr. Partypooper," the Korean ad execs say, "milk does not come from man."

"Uh, yeah. It's one of them metaphor thingies. Trust me on this one" I reply with a sagely grin.

[Check here for some other interesting milk ads I stumbled across. The second and third are ok, but the first one I found a little disturbing. Another cute picture to amuse the immature.]

KT&G: Korea Tomorrow and Global          

Uh...what?

How about this?

FD&C: Feast, Domain and Context

I choose these three words by opening the dictionary to three random pages. I don't think I did that much worse that the original.

Some other Korean company slogans from the recent past that could use a little changing:

Change the morning                    

[Change your English editor]

Get a success!                           

[Get a clue!]

And my all-time favorite:

We've  

Ah yes, that meaningless, unfinished sentence that passes itself off as a name for apartment building complexes. Doesn't this just make you want to grab the Korean ad execs by the throat and scream:  "We've WHAT! What the hell have you people done! Finish the damn sentence!"

I think the Korean equivalent of this kind of nonsensical grammar fragment would be a slogan like: 갰다!

Yeah, I like that. Maybe that could the official slogan for this blog?

The Party Pooper: 갰다!

Other ideas for Konglish slogans for me bloog:

The Party Pooper: 10 Thousand Years! (guess the literal translation from Korean)

The Party Pooper: Dynamic Know-How of Blog!

The Party Pooper: The World's Greatest Aspirin [wait, that dumb-ass name has already been taken]

The Party Pooper: Digital Well-being! [The trendy Konglish phrase of the year]

The Party Pooper: Be the Bitchy Expats

I love them all. Maybe I should just rotate them.

Comments from original post


Great post, Scott...deserves to go into the PP hall of fame.

Posted by: Nomad | July 09, 2005 at 03:50 PM

Welcome to your new cyber happy!

Party Pooper long collegiate!

Korea juice celestial runs!

Samsung Noble Valence Tech

Naver: Think the bigger nova!

It'll!

Kevin

Posted by: Kevin Kim | July 10, 2005 at 03:59 AM

Oh, yeah-- almost forgot:

Fondle your pink dreams!

Never sweat hanky up again!

Dollop in of country!

No dog can't but love the snarl flavor!


Kevin

Posted by: Kevin Kim | July 10, 2005 at 04:02 AM

Haha Kevin. You're in the wrong business - instead of teaching, you should be designing t-shirts and catchy slogans. I can imagine the looks on tourist's faces upon arriving in Incheon and seeing a huge banner proclaiming "Welcome to Korea - fondle your pink dreams!"

Posted by: Nomad | July 10, 2005 at 08:55 PM

How about the company names that just repeat the same word twice, like "Bread & Bread"? WTF? And have you seen the "We've Pavilion" downtown? WTWTF??? But it's more than a little ironic that the Korea Times is pointing out improper English use.

[Posted by 61.40.248.19 via http://webwarper.net service.
WebWarper means saving & safety: http://webwarper.net/ww/~av/google.com ]

Posted by: Michael | July 10, 2005 at 10:12 PM

Milk This? Thank you for thinking of me but don't flatter yourself sweetheart - ha ha.

Posted by: Leone | July 10, 2005 at 10:55 PM

Just so you know, KT&G's new name/slogan is a way to cover up the original name of the company--Korea Tobacco & Ginseng.

Posted by: FYI | July 11, 2005 at 06:06 AM

Big Ho--your Konglish Kung-fu is indeed mighty. 'Welcome to your new cyber happy' is my favorite, by the by, followed closely by 'It'll'

Michael--forgot about the word repetition. There's a 'Donut and Donut' shop where I used to live. It was a great place to go if you ever needed a donut. They also sold donuts, by the way.

Leone--if I don't flatter myself, who will?

FYI--Ah...it almost makes sense now. Thanks for the info.

Posted by: partypooper | July 12, 2005 at 11:47 AM

The Party Pooper: 18! (ship pal)

Posted by: phrawgh | July 26, 2005 at 07:57 PM

Whilst on a day out yesterday I noticed a kids t-shirt for sale in a local market. It depicted a happy looking cartoon dog with "Doggy Style" emblazoned across it...........only in Korea!

Posted by: Leone | July 30, 2005 at 08:09 PM

Photo News 2005

Pres. Roh and and his "Woori" friends walk to a meeting followed by Opposition Leader Park Geun-hye (walking a modest 5 steps behind the men, like all proper Korean women should). Notice Park Geun-hye checking out Rep. Moon Hee-sang, chairman of the ruling Woori Party. I bet she's wondering how many North Korean families could be fed just on the meat in Moon Hee-sang's head alone.

Lovely ties, don't you think? They say that behind every pink tie in Korea is a pot-bellied middle-aged ajoshi who desperately hopes that said tie will make him look more youthful, thus giving him a chance to score with his hot 21-year-old secretary.

South Korea’s U-20 football players preparing for a big match with Nigeria.  "South Korea are placed at
the bottom of Group F with one loss."

"Placed at the bottom of Group F." That can't be good psychologically.

Daewoo Group founder Kim Woo-choong arriving at the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office building to face charges of accounting fraud.  Poor guy. His life is going to be hell for the next year or so until he gets his customary full pardon.
Note how that pink tie makes Kim (age 68) look like a spritely 67 year old.

President Roh looks on as former President Kim Dae-jung spews out some BS about how wonderful life has become since he paid Kim Jeong-il a shit-load of money to shake his hand and take pictures in Pyeongyang.
Pres Roh looks a little pouty to me.  I would be too if I couldn't get out of the shadow of a failure like Kim Dae-jung.   

"LG Electronics executive vice
president Nam Sang-geon, right, and company employees... work at a charity
bazaar in front of LG Twin Towers in Yoido,
central Seoul, Saturday. LG Electronics employees donated some 40,000
items and were forced to work err....volunteered as one-day salesclerks."

I know some LG employees, and believe me they had as much of a choice to give up their weekend as a North Korean has when voting in the DPRK general elections. Some LG employees were expected to come in on Sunday to make up for the work that they normally would have done on that Saturday.  Yippee! Wouldn't want all this charity to work to cut into our profits!

Ja Woo Rim (자우림) lead singer Kim Yun-a holding up a Pepsi in their new commercial. This is the same Kim Yun-a who makes anti-western videos and professes to hate American globalization and "white supremists" in the States. It's really nice to see how quickly she falls on her back and spreads her legs when one of them big white corporations waves some money under her nose.

Keep raging against the machine, sweety...

Comments on original blog


Still the best blog in Korea.

Posted by: YeOldeToaste | June 15, 2005 at 07:26 AM

Those silly ties are metrosexual gheyness for the ajossi set.

Posted by: Michael | June 16, 2005 at 04:51 AM

you are hollywood gold stealers. dokdo is our land.

Posted by: dokdo | June 17, 2005 at 08:49 AM

Dokdo, that was an excellent rebuttal to a post that had absolutely nothing to do with Dokdo or Hollywood.

And for the record, I swear I have never at any time stolen gold from Hollywood.

Posted by: partypooper | June 18, 2005 at 06:52 AM

"I bet she's wondering how many North Korean families could be fed just on the meat in Moon Hee-sang's head alone."

NOT!

I'll bet she's wondering if she can have KJI some more children, but hey that's a good idea about Moon. The head is a terrible thing to waste.

Posted by: oranckay | June 19, 2005 at 07:43 AM

"Park Geun-hye (walking a modest 5 steps behind the men, like all proper Korean women should)"

Umm... I think propriety has nothing to do with it.

How can a woman be manipulative towards men if she's walking out in front?

How does a farmer whip his livestock along to the desired destination from anywhere but 5 steps behind?

Posted by: oranckay | June 19, 2005 at 07:49 AM

Again, honourable Pooper, you have outdone yourself. BTW, when are you going to make it to Vancouver? There is an excellent pub just down the road that is right on the ocean. I'll buy the first round.

Posted by: kimchipig | June 19, 2005 at 09:37 AM

KP: Won't be in Canada anytime soon, I'm afraid. No thoughts of visiting Korea again just for the memories? Anyway, stop with the excuses and get blogging again. Nobody in Vancouver is too busy to blog.

Oranckay: Though most of us around here may be "oranckay" in the usual sense of the term, methinks you are not the original "oranckay" in the Korean blogosphere (the KJI reference in particular seemed out of character).

Posted by: partypooper | June 20, 2005 at 07:58 AM

THAT'S REALLY ME, partypooper. Check it out: ht tp: //ora ncka y.net/blog/?theDate=200506211

(had to split that up, I get this message when I try to post:

Invalid URL 'ht tp://or an ckay.n et/bl og'

Please correct the error in the form below, then press Post to post your comment.

Posted by: oranckay | June 20, 2005 at 10:01 PM

Oranckay, I stand corrected. I'm glad to see my blog brings out those kinds of comments from you. :)

Liked the "fertilizer" comment on your blog, by the by...

Posted by: partypooper | June 21, 2005 at 07:11 PM

Park Geun-hye is HOT!!!

Posted by: Gumbi | June 21, 2005 at 11:25 PM

Photo Fun June 2005

Swiped this picture from connectkorea. In modern Korean families with only 1-2 children (most likely stopping as soon as the first male child is produced), this is what happens when you do not have an older brother around to kick your ass when you do something totally gay.

Thank God Korean males go to the military where this kind of behavior is literally stomped out.

SNU professor Hwant Woo-suk, who recently become a household name in Korea for making extraordinary advances in stem-cell research, reportedly telling Science and Technology Minister Oh Myung at a ceremony: "Dude, you wouldn't believe the kind of tail I'm getting these days. I'm a fuckin' rock star!"

From the Korea Times: "Water flows down Chonggyechon stream during a test run of the stream’s
water flow, Wednesday. The stream near Kwanggyo, central Seoul, had
been covered by pavement for the last 40 years. The stream’s
restoration will be completed on Oct. 1"

It will be really nice for Seoulites to have a new place to dump their garbage (the Han River really isn't that accessible). I can't wait for the mass demonstrations to come when the first American GI gets caught tossing a beer can into it.

Stole this picture from you know who (excreted at 1 AM; the Big Ho's most brilliant work always comes along in the wee hours). The original caption read: "We're staring at your tits and we like what we see."
I've found the picture's concept works even better if you drop your pants in front of the computer screen (especially considering the expression of the girl in the pink shirt).
If you find while waving your pecker in front of the computer screen that the Big Ho's expression is more than a little disconcerting, try the same
exercise in front of this picture. The pink shirt girl's expression is even better (YES!!), the girl on the right is flatteringly terrified of your manliness, and you even get a little response from "Z" (not an easy thing to do, I understand). The Big Ho, in response to this challenge to his mating dominance of the herd, assumes battle positions.

Comments on original post



Sheer genius. And the best I can come up with is fish blogging. Wanna see my bass?

Posted by: Nomad | June 06, 2005 at 02:54 AM

Your pecker? Sheer pathetic-ness.

Posted by: bluejives | June 07, 2005 at 01:04 PM

Is that all you got Bluejives? IS THAT ALL YOU GOT?!?

In the words of my 43rd most favorite American president: Bring it on.

[Angry white male expats and even angrier Korean male kyopos; don't you just love it?]

Posted by: partypooper | June 07, 2005 at 06:37 PM

Partypooper,

What makes you think I'm angry? Does my text on your screen look angry to you?
Dude, I come in the name of peace and to further my understanding of this strange creature that is an expat who lives and work in korea through the examination of their blogs.

BTW, I really loved your Gaywatch Korea post. Pretty fucking hilarious. You were point on about how Koreans seem to have a poorly developed sense of "gaydar", as you put it. Anyone who didnt know any better would think Korean males were a bunch of latent queers from reading your blog.

I also found your "disclaimer" that just because you happen dwell on gayish subjects doesnt mean you're gay yourself. Interesting. You've got a link to the right that says "Mincing with Myojung". I clicked on it and took a look. It turned out to be a blog of a gay man in Korea. I dont know, man. Something's fishy.

BTW, I like your light pastel green and pink colors. Kinda like a chick's blog.


Important Disclaimer

Just because this author spent hours and hours on this subject does not in any way mean that he might be gay. I'm sick of people claiming that I must be secretly gay because I expend so much energy talking about it. I love women. Lots of them. As a matter of fact, I even have sex with them, sometimes even more than once. So just stop thinking that about me right now.

Posted by: bluejives | June 10, 2005 at 07:24 PM

Bluejives! My fellow American! I was worrying you wouldn't come back to play. Thanks for the compliments on my gaywatch post. A lot of people have enjoyed that. Some dense and/or humorless people just don't get it, but it's nice to see that you did. :)

Posted by: scott | June 11, 2005 at 12:11 AM

Are you Real Reality from over at Dave's? You seem like the same person...

Posted by: Jackie | June 20, 2005 at 09:39 PM

Sorry Jackie, we are not the same person. If I were to join the Dave's Cafe crew, I would choose a really super clever name like "kimchi Jjang!" or "Bondegi Warrior" and post some fresh and new topics, like about how Korean girls are when dating or a top-ten list of what bothers me about living in Korea.

Posted by: partypooper | June 21, 2005 at 07:28 PM

Kwangju Remembered

It's Gwangju Day. If you are looking for serious commentary, try the Flying Yangban, Kotagi and Marmot links on your right. If you are looking for comedy, check out Dog Stew (this day is like Christmas for his kind).

It's a highly controversial issue, one far too complex for me to understand what was the right course of action for those involved to take. So as usual I'll just let my Korean Progressive Leaders do my thinking for me. Here's what our beloved former Unification Minister
Jeong Se Hyun said in his own words on a related topic:

"...political freedom is a luxury, like pearls for a
pig. The improvement of economic conditions ... is the most important issue right now."

"Once the economic situation is
improved, then ... focus on human rights."

Timeless wisdom. If it is true today, I'm sure we would all agree that it was true back in 1980.

Oriental Dentistry

Another post saved from oblivion from my old Pooper site. Some choice comments from the original post are included as well.

Here's an interesting article from the Korea Times on "oriental dentist clincs." The author, alternative medicine guru Dr.* Park Chan-joo, poses the question:

"How do suppose [sic] people in ancient times dealt with toothaches and other dental problems? "

The answer? Will, the true answer of course is that the supposed Oriental doctors of that time just dished out some bullshit advice and ridiculous "treatments" until the tooth completely decayed and they just had to pull the damn thing.

However, for an "alternative" answer to that glaring truth, Dr. Park describes the glorious product of thousands of years of oriental learning and wisdom.

Teeth were considered by the ancients to be extensions or protrusions of your bones. Just as bones are related to the kidneys, teeth are also controlled and nourished by that organ. So, it is said that when your energy or ``chong,’’ the essential bodily material stored in the kidneys, is weak, you can have dental problems.

Buckle up and hold and tight as we try to ride this rickety roller-coaster of unreason. Teeth are bones, which is obvious because teeth are white and so are bones. Bones are related to the kidney which is obvious because...well, anyway, it's obvious and therefore if you get a cavity it's because you have kidney problems.

Got it? No questions? Good, because she's just getting started!

Of the five elements, the upper gums belong to the earth element, which by the way is unique to oriental medicine.

Yeah, unique to oriental medicine. Isn't it amazing that no one else in the world came to the same conclusion? This great insight allowed oriental doctors to know where to use acupuncture in order to cure tooth decay. She doesn't mention why acupuncturists still do not follow this practice.

Tooth ailments have specific symptoms and require special treatment. Toothaches, for example, are caused by accumulated heat in the intestines, which cause your gums to be swollen and your breath to smell bad.

You know, I don't even think the oriental doctors of yesteryear were even trying to make sense. Toothaches come from heat in the intestines? How much opium do you have to smoke before that makes sense? Honestly, believing that toothaches are caused by tiny invisible gnomes pounding on your teeth with their wee little gnome hammers makes more sense than this.

Now, you might say, hey, Pooper, she isn't saying that this old belief is true. She is just explaining how things used to be in the past.

But if you read her columns faithfully as I do (and believe me, she never fails to entertain and amuse), you know that she eats all this shit up. She's an oriental doctor, so to question any of the ancient wisdom would undermine their entire religion practice.

Just as with other health related issues, prevention is preferred to treating problems after they occur.

True, but the prevention she talks about is not avoiding sweets, brushing and flossing, and seeing a dentist regularly. It's 'clicking your teeth gently' in the morning and 'gargling' with any liquid. If that makes any sense to you, then be my guest and click away, but I'll stick with my trusty toothbrush, thanks.

Although there are few people who go to see an oriental dentist about their tooth problems, the lessons from this old medical book can be helpful.

As usual, no studies to back up any of this. Just dish out the bullshit to the idiots who keep people like Dr. Park in business. Thank the gods for stupid people, huh?

We look forward to your next column, Dr. Park. Your entire profession might be built on superstition and quackery, but if laughter is really the best medicine, your column is doing a world of good.

*the title of "Doctor" here is not to be confused with the kind of doctor who actually knows the human body and can cure things

Select comments on the original post:

I try to avoid reading the KT as a rule, but that was hee-larious. "Dr. Henry" isn't nearly as funny, but he has his moments, like "Dirt can be removed by simply taking a shower" in his classic "How to Take a Shower in Summer." But the all-time winner is "How to Block or Open the Bunghole"--I shit you not: http://search.hankooki.com/times/times_view.php?terms=bunghole+code%3A+kt&path=hankooki1%2Fkt_culture%2F200104%2Ft2001042015341746110.htm

Posted by: Michael | April 09, 2005 at 07:03 PM

Michael, that article was wild. That guy is a total nut (in a lovable way, that is). Good stuff.

Posted by: scott | April 10, 2005 at 07:46 AM

I'll be needing a wisdom tooth pulled in the next couple weeks, and this sounds like the guy to do it. Thanks.

Kevin

Posted by: Kevin Kim | April 15, 2005 at 10:34 PM

hiiiiiiii!!!! i liked reading some of your articles. they are funny! i'm interested in korea, and i dont know much about it. i was adopted from there, and was wondering how i looked compared to the other girls there? heheh

Posted by: miki | April 29, 2005 at 07:51 PM

Hi Miki. I'm glad you liked the posts. It's admirable that you are trying to find out about your country of birth, but a little scary that you might be learning about it from my site. ;)

As for how you look in comparison with Korean girls; that's hard to say since I've never seen a picture of you. But odds are that if you just double the amount of makeup you currently put on in the morning then you would probably look very similar to the average girls here.

Posted by: partypooper | May 01, 2005 at 06:28 AM

I disagree with your assessment. Have you ever visited an oriental clinic before? At first, I thought acupuncture was a total sack of shit but now I'm a fan. Next time you sprain your ankle, don't whine to your doc that icing doesn't help - check out your local taboo yellow witch doctor :)

Posted by: steve | May 02, 2005 at 05:06 AM

I nominate Dr. Park for a never-ending, Arirang TV "loop."

Posted by: A Yank Abroad | May 29, 2005 at 08:17 AM

Chung Dong Young

Here is the man who I believe will win the next presidential election in South Korea.

Currently Chung Dong Young is the Unification Minister of South Korea (or "anti-unification Minister," as he is lovingly referred to by most ex-pat K-bloggers; see the Yangban for a detailed argument, and this piece as well).

For those not in the know, Chung is one of the Sunshine Boys in Korea who openly believes that the North Korean government should be supported to prevent its collapse. Their view of diplomacy with North Korea can be summed up by saying that if North Korea cannot be influenced by the carrot, the answer is to apologize and offer an even bigger carrot.

Over on the Ministry of Unification's Homepage, I found this in the FAQ section which will give you a good idea of Chung's philosophy. Some comments of my own included.

Q.6 Isn’t South Korea's assistance to the North actually contributing to the strengthening of the regime?

o The South’s economic assistance to the North is not intended to help maintain the regime. We provide economic assistance not only as a humanitarian gesture to relieve the North Korean people from human suffering but also a means to induce the North’s change... [Yes, just like how police get the mafia to change by offering them economic assistance and counseling] - Economic assistance serves as a leverage for inducing the North to participate in inter-Korean dialogue and economic cooperation. [Yes, economic assistance does have a tendency to encourage people to come to further "dialogues" in which even more economic assistance will be given. Also, "ecomonic cooperation" means the South agrees to foot the bill for everything and North Korea agrees to accept it.] Furthermore, it has an educational effect of bringing about changes in thinking and attitude of the North Korean leaders by helping them see how much the outside world has developed. [Oh, I finally get it! Kim Jeong-il just doesn't know that he made his country into a repressive shit-hole! If he only knew how well other countries are doing everything would change in a snap of his chubby little fingers.] o Although there are views that the South's economic assistance could be diverted for military purposes and that the process of distribution is not transparent, we believe that transparency is on the rise. [Here it comes, proof of transparency...]   - There are about 90 people from various international organizations, including the WFP, residing in North Korea for monitoring purposes. Out of 206 cities and gun(counties), monitoring of 162 cities and counties is possible. [90 people with heavily restricted travel monitoring an entire country. Ok, that's good enough for me.] - When we delivered 400,000 tons of rice to North Korea in 2003, not only did North Korea notify us of the details of the distribution, but workers from the South were allowed to visit the actual distribution sites as well. Yeah, right. "Visit" does not mean "monitor." So some South Korean workers went to a distribution point and saw the rice there at that moment. Maybe they even saw some North Koreans get some rice. Now perhaps all was as it appeared, but how easy would it be for NK to stage something like that? Were any of the "distribution details" independently verified? Of course not. NK puts on a show and the Sunshine Boys pee their pants in delight. And are we to assume that was the only time NK allowed any sort of verification of where aid went? Nothing in 2004? And to this day does South Korea have any idea where the 500 million dollars (US) that was given to Kim Jeong il for the 2000 Summit has gone? Yeah, didn't think so.

Read through the "Do you think the Sunshine Policy has resulted in any change in North Korea?" question for even more laughs.

Beginning in 2007, expect 5 more years of this kind of bullshit. Chung also ensures that there will be no more mass defections from North Korea, saying, "We disapprove of the mass defections. There will be no more large-scale arrivals
of defectors in Seoul.''

They wouldn't want to put the brakes on all of this great "progress" they are making changing the North Korean government, you see.

Chung Dong Young's special message to the little girl who is watching her parents getting dragged back to North Korea where imprisonment, starvation and possible public execution await: Fuck you and the empty rice bowl you came with.

For Kim Jeong-il and co., these indeed are the best of times.

Here is Chung as a fresh-faced, well-fed 18-year-old boy right out of high school.

Way back then did he ever dream that one day he might have the chance to damn 10's of thousands of North Koreans to starvation, torture and death?

Chung got into the eye of the public at large through the ill-fated impeachment proceedings last year (I believe that's him in the back of this tearful group-hug). Chung managed to get more coverage on the news than any other Woori party member.

Great show, folks. You can always fall back on an acting career in tear-jerking Korean dramas if this politics thing doesn't work out for you.

A friend of mine met Chung at an international conference held a few weeks ago. She worked at the event as an assistant who helped the dignitaries (including Adrian Foster Carter). She was very excited to meet Chung (she's a Woori party member) but was disappointed when he was rude to her and everyone else who wasn't a dignitary or from the press.

What? Chung Dong Young? Champion of the masses?  Truly shocking. 

By contrast, she was very impressed with Adrian Foster-Carter and Prime Minister Koh-gun who were genuinely friendly and treated everyone, even the "commoners," very well.

Chung also got himself in the news during the political campaigning
that followed the impeachment debacle. He stated that old people in
Korea didn't know much about politics and should just stay home. That
got him in a lot of trouble, leading him to making some "heartfelt" public apologies to some randomly selected old people.

Don't worry, Chung, by the time elections roll around in 2007 a lot of those "ignorant old people" will have died off, leaving only the "knowledgable" youth of Corea to sweep you into office and undo everything the old generation worked so hard to build.

So here he is, Korea: Your future leader.

Yay Me!!!