We Are Not Our Stereotypes

This article by Vivia Chen touches upon what the Korean has been trying to say about Asian Americans and the way we handle stereotypes against us.But how do most tiger cubs fare? Not so well, according to the panelists, which included Javade Chaudhri, GC of Sempra Energy; Wilson Chu, partner at K&L Gates; Don Liu, GC of Xerox Corporation; Linda Lu, associate GC of Allstate Inc.; Larry Tu, GC of...

Today, TK Learned:

... Mount Vernon gets ridiculously crowded on Thanksgiving.There are four types of criticism against American higher education. All of them are flawed. [Los Angeles Review of Books]Should law school pay students to quit? The Korean says yes. [Slate]Effort is important, but talent still matters. [New York Times]Seoul as a model of urbanized growth. Very insightful. [National Geographic]What a Chinese...

50 Most Influential K-Pop Artists: 23. Shin Seung-Hoon

[Series Index]23. Shin Seung-Hoon [신승훈]Years of Activity: 1990-presentDiscography:You, Reflected in a Smile [미소 속에 비친 그대] (1990)Shin Seung Hun Vol. 2 (1992)Shin Seung Hun Vol. 3 (1993)For a Long Time Afterwards [그 후로 오랫동안] (1994)Shin Seung Hun Vol. 5 (1996)Feeling (1998)Desire to Fly High (2000)The Shin Seung Hun (2002)Ninth Reply (2004)The Romanticist (2009)Representative Song:  Invisible...

Happy Thanksgiving!

Many celebrations of this most American of all American holidays, the holiday of immigrants. The Korean is thankful for an easy year at work, successful 5th anniversary of AAK! and the Korean Brother's engagement to a wonderful woman. Here is what the Korean wrote for last year's Thanksgiving, and the sentiment remains the same this year.*              *    ...

A Conversation

(Driving through Hyundai Heavy Industries in Ulsan.)The Korean Cousin:  "This is the way up to the lab I work in."The Korean:  "It's a big hill."TKC:  "I walk up this hill every morning, at 6 a.m."TK:  "You have always been so diligent, hyeong."TKC:  "That's what our family does, working harder than everyone. Your family moved to Seoul early, but I'm a hick, you know. There...

Korea-U.S. FTA just got ratified in Korea's National Assembly, in a predictably dramatic fashion. (Tear gas! That's new.) The Korean wrote about it on the Marmot's Ho...

Duties on Items Mailed to Korea?

Dear Korean,My daughter is in Korea teaching English at a school in Gwangju. Her mother and I gave her a new iPod as a parting gift, but when she got Korea she found it didn’t work. She mailed it back to us so we could take it back to the Apple store. Where we bought it. They confirmed that it was defective and replaced it,...

Today, TK Learned:

... that good times don't last, he still works for a big law firm, and there will be weeks where he will spend 18 hours at the office every day for a week and beyond.For all you poetry lovers, be sure to check out this new blog that provides translated Korean poems. [Korean Poetry in Translation]Excellent summary on the history of Korea's economic development, and Korea's challenges for the future....

Glass Ceiling and Bamboo Ceiling

Here is a bit about gender gap in legal business:Both female partners and female associates lag behind their male counterparts in pay, and the difference largely shows up in the respective bonuses paid to each. Finally, "[t]he majority of large firms have, at most, two women members on their highest governing committee. A substantial number have either no women (11 percent of firms) or only one woman...

Ask a Korean! Wiki: Books about Korean Art?

Dear Korean,I am a 27 year old student of the arts; and a graphic designer by profession. Recently I started learning Korean, and also about Korean culture. I was wondering if you had some books to suggest or resources for me to look into about Korean art, and art history. I am also very interested in learning traditional calligraphy.Cassandra H.The Korean receives a lot of questions asking for book...

Can You Go to College in Korea? (Take the Exam!)

This past Thursday was the most important day for 690,000 Korean high school seniors -- it was the day of the dreaded College Scholastic Aptitude Test. It is not an exaggeration to say that much of Korean students' lives were dedicated to that one day. Korean society does everything it can to assist the students' test taking. Buses and subways run more frequently, and airplanes are prohibited from...

Today, TK Learned:

... that David Letterman show starts at 11:30 p.m., not 10:30 p.m.America produces fewer computer science majors compared to 25 years ago. How is that even possible? [Marginal Revolution]This is how -- science majors quit in droves because science is too hard. Pretty damning indictment of just how stupid and soft American students have become. [New York Times]Scary lesson from this graph is that...

Louis CK, and Why America is the Least Racist Country in the World

First of all, here is Louis CK on anti-Mexican sentiment in Arizona. (If you want to skip other parts, go straight to 7:40 mark.)Although the entire episode is amusing, the punchline from the racist lady is what interested the Korean: "It's not that I don't like Mexicans, it's just that there are so many of them."It is the Korean's steadfast belief that America is the least racist country in the world....

Suicide in Korea Series: III. Sociology of Suicide in Korea

[Series Index]Korea's high suicide rates are widely known, and there have been plenty of attempts to explain why Korea has such high suicide rates. The proffered reasons range from the unwillingness to discuss mental health, Korea's cultural trait of "han", celebrity suicide affecting the general public, etc. There may be even...

Burial or Cremation?

Dear Korean,Would there be any shame associated with cremating a loved one rather than burying him/her?White SchoolteacherTraditionally, Korean people preferred to bury their dead. Traditional funeral in Korea is a big affair, requiring many people dressed up in hemp clothes carrying a lavishly decorated casket, to the family burial ground where the entire family is to be buried. Below is a re-creation...

Whither KORUS FTA?

If you are curious about what's going on with Korea's side of ratifying the free trade agreement with the United States, the Korean gave an analysis of the political stakes on the Marmot's Hole. Short version:  regardless of the sound and fury, the Korean is confident that the FTA will pass in Korea by the year's end.Got a question or a comment for the Korean? Email away at askakorean@g...

AAK! PSA: Classic Korean Movie Screening in D.C. This Friday

Here is a nice free screening of Madame Freedom in Washington D.C., this Friday.Date: Friday, November 4, 2011, 7 p.m. Venue:  Meyer Auditorium of Freer Gallery, in the Smithsonian complex.One of the defining films of the “golden era” of Korean cinema in the 1950s, Madame Freedom was a template for Korean films in the 1960s and influenced them well into this century. This melodrama about...

If you like Korean music but are sick of the same old idol group fare, get yourself straight to Indieful ROK. And while you are there, you can read the most recent viewer report on 나는 가수다, which now features the Korean's impressions of the sh...

Today, TK Learned:

... that the only thing more excruciating than translating a book is editing the translated manuscript of the book.One way to defeat surveillance might be providing constant details about where you are to the FBI, all the time. [New York Times]Ever wonder why Afghans are not grateful that Americans saved them from Taliban tyranny? This might be a reason why. [CNN]"An Egyptian man was severely beaten...