Goodbye, Aunt Ceil (2016-03-05)

I flew from Seoul to Texas to attend the funeral of my late Great Aunt Ceil. I got the bad news last week, then after I got the date of the funeral, I started making plans to be there.

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/opinion/2016/03/137_200579.html

I'm glad I came here. I last saw my Great Aunt in March 2014, at her sister's (my grandmother's) funeral. There were tears during the funeral, but the funeral was as she had lived--love, joy, optimism.

We had a lovely time reflecting on her life, older relatives telling stories. I learned many things about her and about my family. The best thing was seeing my aunts and uncles. One of my uncles threatened his patented "bear hug," but he was not alone in carrying out the threat.

* * *

Last year one of my lovely aunts passed away (and one of her sons passed away around the same time), but I was busy with so many things that I didn't return to Texas. I could only send condolences, and greatly regretted it.

* * *

Some random thoughts:

* People who think I am tough on people who show up late at events need to meet my relatives. I picked up some tips this weekend about how to deal with people who don't know what time it is...

* In Korea, people often tell me that I look like some black person in the news. I reject these comparisons: I do have some relatives who look somewhat like me. None of them include Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, Mike Tyson.

* Everyone was delighted that I flew in from Seoul to attend the funeral. Funerals are for the living, not the dead, so I suppose it means something when people travel long distances to say goodbye to a loved one.

.* Yes, I have had enough to eat during this trip. When people in Korea ask me why I am in Korea, I will now start to answer, "To avoid my relatives who always try to overfeed me. I don't want to weigh 400 pounds."

* If you are one of those people who complains about people taking selfies or about people taking photos with others, then.. you must be someone planning to live eternally and think everyone around you will also. Plus, you are a busybody idiotic analyst. Five years later, several of the relatives from this funeral have themselves passed on. We aren't here for long, let's enjoy the party while it lasts.

* * *

Bear Hugs in Texas, published in the Korea Times a short time later.

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/opinion/2016/03/137_200579.html

Bear Hugs in Texas, published in the Korea Times a short time later.

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/opinion/2016/03/137_200579.html

Manufactured cases

My former Cato Institute colleague Bob Levy is profiled by the Associated Press for his role in the challenge to the DC gun ban. One great thing about Levy is that he tells it like it is. As the article quotes: And Levy freely admits the case is manufactured, not one that bubbled up by chance from the district's steady flow of criminal cases involving guns. He wanted presentable plaintiffs to make a case for gun rights, not criminals. "We didn't want crack heads and bank robbers to be poster boys for the Second Amendment," he said. Is there a problem with this case being manufactured? I heard a talking head on the radio complaining a while ago that this case wasn't from real DC residents, that it was from outsiders. What's wrong with that? There may be some times that it takes an outsider to challenge an injustice or bad law. Did DC residents claim that Martin Luther King Jr. was an outsider who should have minded his own business? And about the case being ...

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KC=GQ

I am featured in the April 2013 issue of 2032 Magazine.

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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

The Casey Lartigue Show!

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