Drunk people don't whisper

ALWAYS ON DUTY?

Was talking to a friend a few days ago, she mentioned that she saw a cook from a Korean restaurant she has eaten at digging into his nose with his finger as he walked down the street. I'm sure the cook may say he was off-duty, but I think she should tell the people at the restaurant and that the guy should get fired. Of course, he may do such a thing when he is in the kitchen at the restaurant, but he should never let his customers see him do anything strange...

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BASEBALL ANNOUNCER NAPS DURING GAME

I am not a baseball fan. I do love playing softball. But I haven't watched a baseball game in years. I just read about a baseball announcer falling asleep during a baseball game. He's paid to talk about baseball so I guess it should be a problem that he was sleeping on the job.

I haven't been to a baseball game since I was 12 years old. But I may go to a baseball game here in Korea.

1) Korean fans are GREAT at games. Not even dead people can sleep while they are cheering. I've only seen this at basketball games, but apparently the same thing happens at baseball games.

2) There are cheerleaders at baseball games in Korea. So that is a second reason I may go.

(Actually, the cheerleaders are the main reason I'd go to a Korean baseball game.)

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DRUNK PEOPLE DON'T WHISPER

I stayed out all night last weekend, on a retreat. We drank a lot during the night. I finally went to sleep at 5:40 a.m. Actually, I wasn't sleepy, but I thought I should sleep. Several guys STILL didn't want to sleep, and they were talking so loudly.

This seems to be an international phenomenon. Drunk people don't whisper. Mind you, we were in a remote area, not a nightclub. I wonder...is it that drunk people lose their inhibitions, so they speak loudly? Or is it that the beer drowns their ears, so they speak louder so they can hear themselves?

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DATING ADVICE

One of Yahoo's recently featured stories was: "10 Places You're Guaranteed to Meet Men."

The one that should be on the list, but isn't: A good place to meet men is wherever they happen to be standing or sitting.

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A few years ago a friend of mine asked me where is a good place to meet women.

Here was the conversation:

Friend: I went to a wine-tasting last night but I didn't meet any women.

CJL: Since when did you start drinking wine?

Friend: I'm not a wine-drinker. But I heard that's a good place to meet women.

CJL: So why would you go to a place to meet women doing something you don't enjoy doing?

Friend: Because that's where women go. Women were there.

CJL: With that logic, you may want to open a nail business. Women go there to get their nails done. You do realize that if you meet a woman at a wine-tasting event that she may want to go there again in the future?

Friend: So where do you think I should go to meet women?

CJL: Why don't you meet the women at the places you enjoy going? Open your eyes to the women already around you. That way, you will have something in common with the women you meet.

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I don't disagree with the title of the article, the author is correct that women can "meet" men at the places she listed. It doesn't mean the women who take her advice will be meeting men they have anything in common with. If the women don't enjoy going to Home Depot then it is a bad idea to meet a guy who enjoys going.

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ANALYSIS VERSUS CONCLUSIONS

Over the years I have noticed that people can agree on analysis and disagree with their conclusions. An example is socialists and capitalists agreeing on problems--then coming to completely different conclusions about what should be done.

I've also noticed the opposite--people completely disagreeing in their analysis but still coming to the same conclusion. That happens on the issue of immigration.

I agree with a lot of what Walter E. Williams writes, but I typically disagree with him on one main issue: Immigration. Here's his latest column on immigration. He argued a few years ago in a TV interview that immigrants should be shot on sight.

He concludes his latest column: "Start strict enforcement of immigration law, as Arizona has begun. Strictly enforce border security. Most importantly, modernize and streamline our cumbersome immigration laws so that people can more easily migrate to our country."

I disagree with his analysis leading up to the conclusion, but strict enforcement of immigration (or any law)? Sure! Either the law should be on the books or it should be taken off the books. Otherwise, the law can be enforced at any time rather than enforced when violated. I also favor strict border security. And I agree with that the immigration laws should make it easier to migrate to America.

CJL

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."

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 ...

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...

To be a good volunteer, use your brain (Korea Times, December 5, 2012)

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. There is probably an unwritten rule that a celebrity offering to do volunteer work for a good cause should immediately be embraced. Well, that’s not what happened to Jeong So-dam, the glamorous Korean cable TV announcer when our paths crossed on Nov. 29. Ms. Jeong was the MC of an event about American political philosophy hosted by the Association for Economic Evolution. During my speech about American libertarianism since 1940, I discussed my volunteer work for North Korean refugees. After the speech, Jeong approached me, asking how she could help. I gave her the same tough love I give to potential volunteers by asking: “Who are you?” After all, if you are Bill Gates, then open your wallet. If you speak four languages, then help with translation work. So I first stress to potential volunteers: Use your brain. Tell us about your skills and interests so together we can figure out your initial role. Jeong was good-natured about it, rather than c...

Why I won't go to North Korea (Korea Times, December 27, 2012)

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. “Have you ever been to North Korea?” This is the question I am almost always asked here in South Korea when people learn that I have become an activist for North Korean escapees. My response is curt: “No.” “Do you plan on going?” they ask next. My answer remains the same: “No.” When they start to ask a follow-up question, I cut them off: "No." People are often just trying to make conversation, I know, but I am blunt for a reason: I am not interested in going to North Korea as long as North Koreans are held captive. I could go one day, but for now, I can do without a government-guided tour by " men-stealers and women-whippers ," to borrow a phrase from American abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison. I don’t mean to criticize people who have gone to North Korea for political, educational, business, religious reasons or just plain curiosity. However, some people push me on the issue, ― and I push back. A good friend wh...

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