The name is Lartigue, son...

Oliver Willis, who blogged next to me at the Democrat Presidential Forum on PBS last Thursday night, gets a lot wrong in two sentences.

As Willis wrote:
"-- Casey Latrigue from CATO, who's right next to me, exemplifies the kind of silly thinking the right supports. Oh, the civil rights act passed we ought to pretend race is solved."

First, here is what Willis gets right:

a) I did sit next to him.
b) The right may enjoy things I say--that's why people use the term "strange bedfellows." That's also why some take the approach that there are no "permanent friends or enemies, only permanent interests." I will point out to Willis that many on the right do have a problem with me when the topic is gay marriage, the drug war, or immigration.

What Willis definitely gets wrong:

1) "Latrigue." I won't give him (much) grief about misspelling my name, it is a bit difficult for people who don't hail from Louisiana. Plus, in the rush to blog during events it isn't surprising when people make spelling mistakes. But since he was sitting next to me he could have peeked at the name tag on the table as well as the media credential tag, my name was spelled correctly...

2) "from CATO"
I haven't been on the Cato Institute's payroll since early 2004. I guess I should give Oliver the benefit of the doubt--I suppose that I'll be "from Cato" the rest of my life, if not longer, just as I'm "from Harvard" or "from Fight For Children."

3) "CATO." Willis isn't the first to make that mistake. Many people who have no idea who Cato was (or "is" as some have asked) or base their opinions on second-hand sources often capitalize Cato as an acronym.

4) "Oh, the civil rights act passed we ought to pretend race is solved."

Not sure how one would really go about solving race...

Anyway, I blogged: "News flash, everyone: The Civil Rights Act passed more than 4 decades. It is time to get your own act together." Is there any other civil rights legislation that needs to be passed to help blacks advance? If anyone can show any Constitutional rights that have not been extended to blacks should let me know ASAP, I'd lead the fight to change that...

CJL

"Yoegi Anjuseyo!"

* I have a short reflection in today's Korea Times about an encounter with an unfriendly looking Korean man on the subway. It was a reminder not to be too quick in judging people in Korea. 09-13-2011 16:47 'Yeogi Anjeuseyo!' By Casey Lartigue Jr. The recent incident in which an American English teacher bullied an elderly Korean man and other passengers on the bus reminded me of a more pleasing incident from years ago. I was on the subway, taking the train outside of Seoul for a work assignment. I have the habit of standing on the subway to strategically position myself near the doors in case my stop magically appears. On that particular day, there was a Korean man STARING at me. Not just looking at me, but intensely staring at me. He had an incredible frown on his face. Not just for one stop, but for several stops the guy just kept staring at me. If I had known more Korean then I would have been able to curse him ...

Michael Breen discussion at 10 Magazine

Yesterday I attended a discussion with writer Michael Breen, hosted by Barry Welsh. Very often, when I attend a speech or discussion about a topic I know a lot about, I often think about ways the speaker/facilitator/discussant could have done better. But I didn't feel that way about Breen, it was one of those times that I really felt like I had a lot to learn and should listen more than talk. He's been in Korea for three decades, working as a reporter, commentator, communications specialist. He reminds me of Andrei Lankov in that his analysis seems to be based on observation of how things work rather than trying to get the world to fit his biases. I don't know him, so his friends may say he is a raging ideologue, but that's not the impression I had yesterday and based on his writings. Michael Breen (L) and Casey Lartigue I first read his book The Koreans about a decade ago. It was a delightful read, that was both warm to Koreans but also critical at times. Yes...

2020-11-26 My basketball story

This photo was uploaded today by my aunt Annette. This was back in the day, when 1) I had a head full of hair and 2) played basketball a lot. That first year of playing organized basketball, I focused on playing defense. It seemed that everyone wanted to shoot the ball, so I passed the ball and played defense. I probably led the league in steals, rebounds and blocked shots. I enjoyed taking on the best player from the other team, I felt like I would get better, quickly. The second year, I was a different player. I will never forget the first game that second year--we lost 29 to 26, I scored 18 points. I probably led the universe in scoring that second year, although we didn't win much. One thing I learned from that experience is that one great player 9 (at least in his own mind) can't beat a team. An eye injury ended my pro career before it began, to this day I still have floaters in my eyes because of the injury. I started wearing glasses, but the problem never went away. On t...

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

Get rid of that watermelon!

Part 1: When I was a youngster I used to collect Confederate money, posters and photographs with caricatures of blacks, and "No blacks allowed signs." I loved the money because it was a reminder of how far the sorry Confederacy had fallen. I had one poster of a dark-skinned black boy munching on a watermelon. I would look at that small poster and wonder, "What in the world is wrong with anyone wanting to eat watermelon?" Yes, white people, I'm talking to you. Your parents, grandparents, and other ancestors who thought making fun of blacks for eating watermelon were crazy ! Even people who say that nothing has changed in race relations must acknowledge that the many stereotypes of blacks are no longer prevalent. But then, there are also some ready to remind us of days-gone-by by debunking stuff that doesn't need to be debunked today. According to the Washington Post: The sound you just heard was yet another racial stereotype going kersplat ! Some ...

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