Libertarians in Korea

I couldn't believe my eyes. Some American Libertarians s in Korea were getting together to have a meeting?

Surprisingly, seven of us got together at the Starbucks in Itaewon last night.

Libertarians are hopeless in America. What in the world can they expect to accomplish in South Korea? They might as well as be selling fresh ham in Saudi Arabia.

There is a Korea-based think tank (자유기업원) with a free market focus. I had lunch with the president of the organization a few days ago. He told me that there is at least one Korean politician who is openly libertarian. Unfortunately, he doesn't speak English so I doubt that I will be able to help him much.

CJL

I officially love my boss

I've had some great bosses and supervisors over the years.

As much as I have liked some of them, none can compare to the people I'm working with now..

So here I am, at the office on a Saturday using an office computer because of an unfortunate incident with my laptop computer the other day...

First, the president, CEO and a major investor in the company insisted that I join them for lunch. It is Saturday, I'm wearing a t-shirt I bought in Guam, shorts, and sandals. Then, after lunch, the president bought me some strawberry candy (화과방--딸기영양갱 (Strawberry Thick Jelly) and 커피맛영양갱 (Coffee Thick Jelly). This was after some other snacks and sandwiches during the week.

David Boaz of the Cato Institute was my direct supervisor for four years. The most he ever gave me was a book about William Lloyd Garrison...

DB is a really smart guy, but does he even know what Strawberry Thick Jelly is or where to buy it? And would he share it with me?

I had bought the newspaper with the goal of reading it during lunch while my bosses talked in Korean. They made every effort to engage me in the conversation. The kids at the table next to us were very curious about me, but did their best to pretend they didn't notice me whenever I looked at them.

Casey

Advice one week too late for me

* Among my many writing accomplishments: I was a contributing author to one of the Lonely Planet books. I honestly don't recall what I wrote to attract their attention but I do remember getting a free copy in the mail and seeing my name among the contributing authors.

* I would seriously recommend that one of the travel book authors print in full the text of what Michael Hurt published in the Korea Herald yesterday. I've been only been here a week but I can already see the wisdom in what he has written. If you know anyone planning to come to Korea then send them that link. Of course, they probably won't take it seriously until they get here...

* But then, the authors of those travel books might not want to publish what Hurt has written because in just one full-page he has summarized what the authors say in three or four chapters.

* In the other direction, I've noticed that many of my Korean friends would overpack when moving to America. They'd bring all kinds of stuff they could easily purchase in America, all the way to a Korean friend who mailed a TV to herself. Hurt's sequel should be a guide for Koreans going to America.

* I brought four bags with me last week. Not enough dress shirts. Really, what was I thinkin'? One suitcase was full of books--my carry-on to keep the other bags from exceeding weight restrictions. Still, there are many other books I left behind or gave to Goodwill before leaving...

CJL

The little black man inside us all

I rode with my two of my Korean colleagues in two different taxis in Seoul today...

only had two close calls with other vehicles.

The driver in the second taxi was quite balanced. First, he almost collided with a car on his left as he merged into traffic. Then, he almost collided with a vehicle on his right that was merging into traffic. Was a truck headed straight for us next? He took it all in stride, not bothering to curse at either one of the other drivers.

I remember when I was a youngster hearing that mothers would advise their children to wear clean underwear and socks in case they were in an accident. As Bill Cosby pointed out, there is a possibility that such items would be found in the glove compartment after a tremendous accident.

* * *

Speaking of socks...

I visited two Korean businesses today along with my colleagues. The great thing about both companies? Employees were walking around in shorts, sandals. One was wearing a very fashionable cap, the type I would like to wear. I wanted to take a photo of him with the cap on but figured that my intentions would be lost in the translation...

At one place we didn't have to take our shoes off, but at the second place not only did we have to take our shoes off, but wear some nice sandals they had at the front door. The pain! Walking around in sandals at the office?

Thankfully, I didn't bring any socks with holes in them.

* * *

Was this lost in the translation?


I noticed this book when we were meeting with one of the publishers. The title: "The Little Black Man." The author is Fulvia Degl`Innocent.

I initially thought I had come across a racist book. The author is Italian. Based on the context, the "little black man" is the angry side in all of us. Couldn't come across a single black person in the entire book, but I guess those who track the various negative meanings of the use of the word "black" can make hay with it...

I'm just happy that my taxi driver didn't have a little black man inside him--he would have started driving like a maniac...

* * *

Eating Korean

Had lunch with my colleagues. Once again, I wasn't asked or expected to pay. Had lunch a few days ago with the president of a think tank. He waved me off when I offered to pay my half. Met a friend for lunch--she brought me a box of grapes. There are many great things about Korea. Definitely, the way my colleagues and friends treat me is one of them. I just hope it lasts.

The president of the organization I'm working with has been especially generous. She has bought me breakfast, lunch, and dinner on several occasions.

* * *

Speaking of hunger...

I see that the U.N. hopes there won't be hunger by 2025. I'm willing to bet all of the money I have against anyone from the U.N. that there will still be hunger in 2025.

I'm guessing that if I'm Seoul then that I'll probably be doing quite well.

CJL

Adjusting to living abroad

Dennis Miller famously said: "Sure, the lion is king of the jungle but airdrop him into Antarctica & he's just a penguin's bitch."

I'm having that feeling now in Korea. Just getting basic things done can be a chore.

Mailing something from the post office? First, I had to figure out where the post office is. Then, I had to figure out how to get there. Then, I had to actually find the place. Then, let the folks there know what I wanted to do.

Thankfully, there's a post office just a block away from where I'm working. That means I only got lost once. I stopped a Korean woman on the street to ask her in Korean where the post office was. I had rehearsed the lines before leaving so I sounded quite fluent when I asked. She seemed surprised that I was asking about the post office. I suspect she thought I was asking her in English so I had to repeat myself before she actually caught on that I was asking her in Korean...

She ended up walking me part of the way to make sure I didn't get lost. I got to the post office without a problem, probably with her watching from a distance to make sure I didn't get lost again.

I mailed the letter without a problem at all. At least on this occasion, Korea was my bitch...

CJL

French tourists are the worst--Koreans surprised?

"French tourists are the worst in the world, coming across as bad at foreign languages, tight-fisted and arrogant, according to a survey of 4,500 hotel owners across the world."

According to the same survey:
"The Japanese ranked top of the Best Tourist survey, with the British and the Germans judged the best of the Europeans."

CJL comments:

The Korean government periodically cracks down on Korean tourists for being unruly. During the 1990s when I was last here, the Korean government launched an anti-overconsumption campaign. As I wrote in the Korea Times at that time:

"At least citizens receive something they want for the six trillion won they are projected to voluntarily spend overseas this year. The same can't be said for government services, complete with faulty air-raid alarms and crumbling infrastructure at the non-negotiable price of only 56 trillion won in taxes. It is suspicious that politicians focus on the voluntary spending habits of Korean travelers although the government wastes in a day more than planeloads of crazed Korean tourists ever could. According to a Times staff editorial earlier this year, the introduction of numerous government programs has resulted in the size of Kim Young-sam's government increasing faster than the growth of the general population.

"Some might even label the greedy, reckless spending of public officials as wasteful, stupid, of, shall we say, overconsumption. My, my, I guess there is something to this overconsumption theory after all. The addiction might be even worse than claimed by busybody overconsumption theorists. "

CJL

Casey Lartigue Show hits the road!!!

I've been in South Korea for a week now. I am designing the curriculum for a new school scheduled to start in September. So most of my posts may focus on Korea until further notice. To protect both the innocent and guilty, I won't mention the school by name...

CJL

Reparations

Reparations

1) I do like the idea of punishing governments for their actions, but the problem with this example is that the people who were in charge of the government when slavery was legal aren't around to be punished. Hanging would be too good for them.

2) There are a few children of slaves alive, but there really are some more pressing issues today that could actually help people.

3) Blacks would be more likely to get reparations if advocates said that they wanted reparations in exchange for ending affirmative action.

4) People deserve punishment for slavery, let's round them up.

5) If my 38+ million black brothers and sisters ever get reparations, I'm buying Nike stock.

6) If a reparations check comes to me, I'm cashing it. I cash any and all checks made out to me.

7) Instead of reparations, I'd prefer to live tax-free for 20 years.

8) Instead of reparations, I'd prefer to be able to opt-out of the government's Social Security program and put my retirement savings in a private account.

9) Education, not reparations, is my focus. Focusing on education as well as reparations sounds nice, but being successful at getting people educated is tough enough already...

10) If I'm paying for slavery, then I want some slaves.

CJL

A Better Way to Honor Sen. Kennedy

Some members of Congress apparently want to honor Sen. Kennedy by passing major health care legislation.

Couldn't the nation just give him a gold watch and a handshake? That's the way corporations did it in the past for valued employees who were retiring.

It would even be worth giving him a gold watch for each year he has served in Congress. It would be much cheaper than coming up with a plan that would involve NINETEEN percent of the U.S. economy. I'm not a Kennedy supporter but it I would support giving him a parade at taxpayer expense all the way from D.C. to Boston.

I know gold might not seem appropriate to some. After all, Kennedy and his colleagues have done so much to devalue and debase the American currency that it might be more appropriate to give him a paper watch (perhaps even one that is water resistant).

CJL

Destroying some cities to save them...

"It became necessary to destroy the village in order to save it."
An American major after the destruction of the Vietnamese Village Ben Tre

* * *

I heard on Rush Limbaugh that there is chatter about bulldozing Flint, Michigan. The talk was started by a UK Telegraph piece.

If some lousy cities are going to be bulldozed then I would like to add all or parts of Newark, Baltimore, D.C., and Detroit to the list...

If the areas don't officially get leveled then you can probably get some great real estate deals:

"According to the Michigan Association of Realtors and Detroit Board of Realtors (data here), the average sales price of a Detroit home fell to $11,533 in March (Year-to-Date), a -43.8% decline from the $20,514 average home price during the same period last year (see chart below)."

I guess it shouldn't be surprising that there aren't any major chain stores operating there, according to the Wall Street Journal.

It is also noted in the article: "The city's 22.8% unemployment rate is among the highest in the U.S.; 30% of residents are on food stamps."

In unrelated news, "U.S. Senate passes apology for slavery." According to another article: "Congressman John Conyers, D-Mich., a longtime reparations advocate, will be among dozens of proponents who will address the issue [of reparations for slavery at a gathering in Texas this weekend]."

CJL

Dead ex-felon on the lam

You would hope that someone in Mayor Fenty's office saw the article and called off the search. A DC agency has been hunting for a dead man. His death has allegedly been confirmed. Still, the agency is searching for him.

There may be a perfectly reasonable bureaucratic explanation for the search, I do realize that...

many priceless quotes in the article, the family is horrified...

But things could always be worse:

* He could cast a vote in the 2010 and 2012 elections. I always hear that an election could come down to a single vote...would be terrible if the dead man decided who would be in office.

* He could be on the payroll in Maryland ("Another state audit this week found significant financial troubles in the Baltimore City public school system -- including wage overpayments in some cases to deceased employees.").

If I were feeling really mean then I would set up a blog with posts from the guy talking about his success in evading the agency reps chasing him...

But I don't kick a dead man when he is on the loose...

CJL

Hitting-n-running...

Another war we've lost

First, we lost (or tied) Vietnam.

NYT op-ed now declares: "Drugs won the war." I wonder how many people who predicted the war on drugs would be a disaster were dismissed as crackpots who just wanted to get high?

Has anyone with the NYT admitted yet that we've also lost the War on Poverty?

And will it take 40 years to admit most of Obama's plans have failed?

* * *

An Obama plan to be derided in 40 years or less
About Obama's health plan: "The government competes in the private sector the way an alligator competes with a duck."
--Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.)

High-Stakes Tests, for real

NYT has the latest "those Asian kids study real hard" story. I taught English in Asia for six years, I learned that those stories are true! When I came back to America, I had a tough time taking Americans seriously when they complained about "high-stakes tests." Studying for 15 hours a day, sleeping just four or five hours, and then just having one shot once a year to take a test that will determine based on numbers where you will go to college?

The Middle East--please, go away...
I was listening to the radio when the announcer man said they were going to play a speech by someone talking about the Middle East.

Several years ago I decided that I wouldn't focus on the Middle East until the year 2018. I figured that nothing would be resolved by then anyway...

At some point Israel will take my advice...just keep trading promises of peace with promises of land...

* * *

National Man Day
No kidding.

And what do they do the other 364 days of a typical year?

CJL