2014-09-05 Hong Kong Special b-day (Sodam + Henri Schneider)

Yeonmi Park and I were invited to Hong Kong to do a live recording of our TV show, plus I was invited to present the results of a Freedom Factory survey.

* The trip started with my suitcase getting bounced to the next flight. Too much comedy related to this...

* Henri Schneider, the chief economist of the Swiss Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises, wanted to treat me to dinner. He even postponed returning to Switzerland an extra day so we could meet. He's a serious guy with a cynical and hilarious streak. But he had a great time with my team from Korea! 

* Sodam Jeong--I'm still laughing! She MADE a mini-me of my head as a gift. That's right, she made it! I couldn't stop laughing when I saw it. Even if she breaks into my home, steals my TV or even kills my dreams, I will always be able to forgive her. Plus, she bought me a selfie stick. Check my photos, I am rarely pictured alone, and I don't do selfies, either. But a selfie stick to take photos with others? Just last week I was whining about having to ask random people on the street. Problem solved. Thanks, Sodam!

* Sodam was the inspiration for my "To be a good volunteer, use your brain" column.

And Henri inspired my column from earlier this year about Koreans looking to other countries for economic and social models.
As I've written about Henri Schneider before.

* We were at the Lei Garden restaurant. I am guessing that we won't be allowed back in. We took over the restaurant with the mini-me head, and then with the selfie cam. People were taking pictures of us taking pictures of ourselves.

* Henri said that he took more photos in just a few hours with us than he has in the past 20 years. Perhaps I should send him one of those selfie sticks for his birthday...

It was a great way to start the trip to Hong Kong.

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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 ...

Park Jin welcoming remarks to FSI (and Casey Lartigue)

National Assembly member Park Jin makes the welcoming remarks at FSI's conference featuring North Korean diplomats. Park Jin | Greeting message to FSI and Casey Lartigue mention - YouTube

Rich talking back

The rich are talked about very often in negative terms, but how often do the rich respond in kind? Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart, who inherited most of her money but apparently has also done very well with it, recently railed against class warfare and had some advice for the non-rich : "There is no monopoly on becoming a millionaire," she writes. "If you're jealous of those with more money, don't just sit there and complain. Do something to make more money yourself - spend less time drinking, or smoking and socializing and more time working." She complained about politicians raising taxes, regulations that slow investment, and other anti-business policies that harm the poor. "If you want to help the poor and our next generation, make investment, reinvenstment and businesses welcome."

Random photos from today

I went walking around today. Whereas some people like to go walking in the mountains, I enjoy walking around in the city. Well, not D.C. or other cities with many homeless, crazy and/or armed people walking around... * * * Here's where I had lunch today. About $1.90 for a hamburger hamberger. * * * Ha-ha! Bet you never would have guessed that Batman is a drinking place in Korea! * * * Man Clinic? The Koreans walking by seemed to be very curious about why I was taking a photo of a "Man Clinic." They may know something I don't know...Actually, I wasn't curious enough to go in and find out what it was... * * * Right down the street from the Man Clinic...there's a Love Shop! I love the euphemism. "Love Shop" sounds much better than Sex Shop. I'm guessing that if you don't go to the "Love Shop" to buy condoms that you may need to visit the Man Clinic a short time later? * * * Nobo...

Freedom Factory Shareholder Meeting (2015-01-31)

Re: Building something out of nothing Freedom Factory is a very small company, of which I am a shareholder. Yesterday we had our annual shareholder meeting. Freedom Factory is allowing us to "incubate" TNKR until we can stand on our two own feet--or at least crawl on our four hands and feet. (Consumer Rights Watch is in the same position). I owe special thanks to FF CEO 김정호. He is a "true believer" in the cause of freedom, so he is allowing both projects to grow out of FF. That's even though Freedom Factory is a small start up with the CEO, staff and supporters wondering how we are going to achieve our dreams with such a tight budget. So when I say I am so thankful to the volunteers and donors of TNKR, it isn't just lip service. Volunteers--along with Freedom Factory, the Atlas Network, donors--are helping us to create something out of nothing, helping North Korean refugees find their own way and tell their own stories. Like the FF CEO, I also don...

The Casey Lartigue Show!

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