Land of the Drunken Tiger

The Korea Times and Korea Herald both report today that the nation's tourism slogan, "Korea, Sparkling," may be dropped.

The "branding chief" says that, and "Dynamic Korea" need to be replaced with another bland name that won't attract anyone. Those weren't his exact words, but that's what will happen.

Has Korea tourism ever had a slogan that would attract tourists? If so, why did they scrap it? It might be better to find something that works, and stick with that.

But with a "branding chief" in place, there is probably always someone under pressure to come up with a snazzy name. The branding chief's suggestion of "Miraculous Korea" sounds more like it is a religious cult.

I would guess cheap airline tickets would probably get more tourists to Korea. Cheap hotels would probably also attract more folks. Cool stuff to do? That's not clear before you get here what would be cool to do. Fixing the situation with North Korea might also help. Unfortunately, there are constantly headlines with North Korea threatening to turn South Korea into a "sea of fire" or some such thing. That is not attractive to tourists.

I'd recommend "Drunken Tiger" (which is also the name of a popular Korean singing group).

Last night I went out with my colleagues. We had great food and drinks before going out singing. I sang Gangsta's Paradise by Coolio in a mix of English and Korean.

I wish I could say some of us got drunk. It would be more accurate to say that the whole company got drunk. I'm not much of a drinker, but I did put away quite a bit of Yogurt Soju. They say it is a girlie drink, in which case I became a full-fledged woman last night based on the amount I drank.

How many are having the Korean soup Heh Jang Guk (해장국), which Koreans have after a night of heavy drinking? I usually get to work about an hour early. I got in about 30 minutes later than usual, I wasn't sure that anyone would be sober enough to open the door.

* * *

Cato Institute, in the Korean press

The Korea Herald reported on a forum held by my former colleagues at the Cato Institute. The Korea Times published an op-ed by Indur Goklany, author of various Cato Institute publications

* * *

WOW! Nice car!

This might help with tourism more than any slogans. Oh, and Kia Motors is launching a new hybrid.

First photo is from the Korea Herald. The second is from the Korea Times.

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

Chosun Monthly magazine [Korean language]

Chosun Monthly Magazine has made an announcement (in Korean) about the Seoul Honorary Citizenship award that I received on December 9, 2022. Our Korean staffers say that the magazine is a big deal in South Korea. Here's the overall roundup of media about the award. In the next two months, I have extended interviews coming up in two different magazines, one in the USA and one in South Korea. Both articles will be in respected publications so they should raise awareness of FSI's work that your support makes possible. * * * Support FSI via Stripe or PayPal . https://donate.stripe.com/3cs28F5IAcc85IAaEF or PayPal .

Still writing (Korea Times, 2023-12-19)

Still writing by Casey Lartigue Jr. The Korea Times December 19, 2023 https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/opinion/2023/12/626_365284.html

Casey Lartigue awarded "Social Contribution" Award (Hansarang)

On April 20, 2017, I was awarded the "Social Contribution" award by the Hansarang Foundation. When I was first nominated, my response was: "Hahahaha! I won't win, but it is a great honor to be nominated." It was until I was a finalist that I took it seriously. Then instead of saying "I am honored to be nominated," I wanted to WIN ! Which I did! I was awarded a plaque, 10 million won (about $9,000), and many congratulations from many people (including other awardees that night).

[Video] "Author Spotlight" by Harvard

On February 2nd from 2-3 a.m. (Korea time), I was the featured speaker at an "Author Spotlight" by the Harvard Division of Continuing Education (DCE) and the Harvard Extension Alumni Association (HEAA) . Watch, like, share, and comment. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmRgP3q7rQg&list=PLn7xtnmarHFq6kVvq3PxOgC8nwjn8ioBO * * * I will be in the USA for two weeks in March, I will kick off the trip with a speech on the campus of the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HSGE) for its annual Alumni of Color Conference (AOCC). It will be a bit of a homecoming reunion, I was one of the speakers at the first HGSE AOCC in 2003. Stay tuned, this will be preparation for a larger event later this year. Thanks to everyone who has helped make FSI's work possible. ( Stripe ) ( PayPal ).

The Casey Lartigue Show!

Search This Blog