2015-10-03 TNKR on Saturday: What have I done? :-)

Many South Korean office workers look forward to the weekend--so they can sleep! At least, that's according to what many of them say, when I ask, "What do you usually do on weekends?"

Well, Eunkoo Lee can't answer like that anymore! Before we got more serious about TNKR, she would sleep or watch baseball on weekends. But now almost every Saturday (and some Sundays), we have some type of an event related to (TNKR) Teach North Korean Refugees.

Ah, but yesterday, at last, I was going to have a Saturday off. My Korea Times column is due, I have several other pressing projects. But it was Eunkoo who was telling me that I should come out on Saturday! That's because she was going to be at our new study center in Itaewon to meet with some of the refugees studying in the program. I was making up excuses why I couldn't join, but she didn't want to hear it!

I started yesterday by shooting some hoops. After that, I joined up with Eunkoo. We all had a great time, talking, eating. One refugee started our program at the ABC level, but he has now gotten to the DEF level. Yesterday, we pushed him to utter some phrases in English. He hesitated at first, insisting on Korean, but after a lot of prompting, pushing, and teasing, he did it! He looked up some phrases, perhaps some he learned from his tutor, then he began asking questions.

And the young lady who joined us yesterday has been studying in our program for several months now. She is really eager, not the least bit shy about trying English. She said, "I always think about the nice TNKR volunteers who help North Korean refugees."

So yesterday, Eunkoo got me! I came out on a Saturday when I had planned to act like a Korean office worker, sleeping until Monday arrived.

The next few weeks we will be REALLY busy. I'm sure that the people who don't read messages closely will get confused and go to the wrong places or not properly apply.

October 10: TNKR Open House (Itaewon)
October 17: TNKR Orientation for tutors (Itaewon)
October 24: TNKR English Matching session (Bangbae)
October 31: TNKR English Rematching session (Itaewon)

In addition, we have several private meetings planned.

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2022-12-09 Seoul Honorary Citizenship (ceremony & media roundup)

On September 29, 2022, I was informed that I had been awarded Seoul Honorary Citizenship. December 9th, I was one of the 18 non-Koreans to receive Seoul Honorary Citizenship. I was delighted to have several colleagues and supporters join me at the ceremony. They all have had a special role in my activities here. Here's the media roundup so far: The Korea Times (English) https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2022/12/113_341484.html Yonhap (English) https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20221211001200320 (Korean) https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20221210022100004 (French) https://fr.yna.co.kr/view/AFR20221211001000884 (Spanish) https://sp.yna.co.kr/view/ASP20221211000900883 K-Odyssey https://m.k-odyssey.com/news/newsview.php?ncode=179556481389320 Newsis https://www.newsis.com/view/?id=NISX20221209_0002118460 Chosun https://www.chosun.com/national/national_general/2022/12/11/S2OA76535FCBHFIQI7R5P7HYYM/ Daum News https://v.daum.net/v/20221211111512898 MSN https://www.msn.com/ko-kr/news/n...

"Who would be free themselves must strike the blow?" --Lord Byron

Frederick Douglass loved that quote. Booker T. Washington would say it sometimes, too. I recently met two women from North Korea. That's right, that North Korea. I asked them many questions but held back somewhat. I suppose they still must be careful and I don't want them to think I'm a spy. Hey, I used to be a host on black talk radio, I was accused of many things then. Plus, if North Koreans are trying to track those folks down I suppose the last thing they'd want would be to have their photos posted on a blog. At some point I will write about meeting those ladies. * * * Yesterday I got interviewed by a Korean reporter about various political and social issues. After I confirm that my interview made it past the station's producers then I'll post the info here. CJL

Race, race, race

On the issue of race: Clinton goes first, (surprisingly) without her Selma accent. Biden doesn’t mention that there is a clean and article black person on the stage. Richardson says the next president must talk about race…we need less talk about race, and more about individual action. Edwards said something, apparently to help us transition to the only somewhat black candidate on the panel. Obama has the home field advantage being at Howard, but doesn’t do much with the initial question. Kucinich says that people are told to raise themselves up by their own bootstraps, but then they steal the boots. He gets the loudest cheers. This will be a long night if that continues... Gravel —who? Dodd —like the 64th team in the NCAA basketball pool, Dodd should be one and done. Brb, I’m checking on the NBA draft… CJL

Common Sense on North Korea (Korea Times, April 2, 2012)

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. As interesting as Kookmin University professor Andrei Lankov’s writings are, there is nothing quite like attending one of his lectures. He can barely restrain himself behind the podium, often pointing and waving his arms. I also enjoy his unscripted speeches, but his answers in Q&A sessions are like the difference between watching Michael Jordan shoot baskets in warm-ups and an actual game. I have finally discovered the secret behind Lankov’s consistently solid analysis about North Korea: Use common sense. At an Asan Institute conference last summer, he argued that North Korea watchers should try to understand North Korea from its perspective. Don’t most people know that you must understand the mindset of others you are dealing with? Yet, common sense in theory gets ignored politically. From the North Korean perspective, nuclear weapons are the best thing they’ve got going. They will NOT give them up easily, even if President Obama ...

Breen's column that outraged Samsung

“What People Got for Christmas” Michael Breen The Korea Times December 25, 2009 At this time of year when Seoul’s bare winter trees are wrapped in beckoning lights ― blue and white are the in colors ― and Merry Xmas signs at hotels and department stores are really saying come-hither-gentle-reveler-and-empty-your-purse, and when expensive restaurants belch noisy year-end office party groups onto every street and the karaoke rooms are full, it is tempting to declare that Christmas has lost its soul. But that would be a mistake. Christmas is a time for giving, and, before they can be given, gifts have to be bought. Commerce is good. Here, as proof, is a round up of some of the gifts given and received today by people in the news. Samsung, the world’s largest conglomerate and the rock upon which the Korean economy rests, sent traditional year-end cards offering best wishes for 2010 to the country’s politicians, prosecutors and journalists, along with 50 million w...

The Casey Lartigue Show!

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