By Here is some more Dokdo nonsense for everyone:
Singer Kim Jang-hun, who privately funded the public awareness campaign ad on The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post on Aug. 6, will run the same ad on The New York Times next week as well, determined to “go all the way with the Dokdo issue,” Chosun Ilbo reported Saturday.
“This is not a showbiz stunt to boost my popularity. Actually I am risking my entire professional career because I believe this is something I am compelled to do,” he said.
Kim has been at the forefront of international campaign to raise awareness on Dokdo, a set of disputed islets in the East Sea.
Kim has so far funded hundreds of millions of won for the cause.
Kim said his passion for Dokdo came from the fact that “Korea is a country that has been invaded by foreign forces as many as 936 times, but each time it rose again. It also rose from the rags of the Korean War a few decades ago to become the world’s 13th largest economy.
“This country is resilient. It has something. It’s cool. I am proud of it. I cannot let go of it,” he said. [Korea Times]
I think Korea is resilent and cool as well, but this Dokdo nonsense does nothing to help Korea’s image at all.
1:00 am on August 10th, 2009 1
"This is not a showbiz stunt to boost my popularity. Actually I am risking my entire professional career because I believe this is something I am compelled to do,"
How exactly could he be risking his professional career? Did Korean suddenly become opposed to nationalism?
1:10 am on August 10th, 2009 2
"Korea is a country that has been invaded by foreign forces as many as 936 times…"
A myth not founded on historical fact. Few countries experienced as much peace as Korea did up to the late 19th century. Sure, there have been large scale foreign invasions, but the time between these are large stretches to say it lightly. The only way to come to 936 would be to include acts of piracy and minor skirmishes.
1:17 am on August 10th, 2009 3
The Dokdo stuff I can almost understand. It's way overblown, sure, and looks ridiculous in comparison to, say, having a starving nation of your brothers and sisters right up there. But this "East Sea" crap is too much. Nobody is trying to switch it to 일본해. Keep it 동해 in your language, and I'll keep it "Sea of Japan" in mine. Mind your own business, and if you're looking to "correct" English, start with your pop songs, your textbooks, your advertisements, your fashion, and every other piece of nonsense English in this country.
2:57 am on August 10th, 2009 4
I love it when celebrities take it upon themselves to get into nationalistic political nonsense. They always make themselves like fools.
6:00 am on August 10th, 2009 5
I am not necessarily disputing you, I am just wondering what you find nonsensical. Is that a pop star is making such an advocacy, that there is so much else going on that is more important, etc.?
It sounds like there are reasons that the dispute over two rocks is still ongoing and intense.
http://www.geocities.com/mlovmo/page4.html
The Dokdo issue is not just about the ownership of the two islets. Both countries consider the ownership of Dokdo as an anchor for their respective interests in the surrounding waters. At stake are claims to about 16,600 square nautical miles of sea and seabed, including areas that may hold some 600 million tons of gas hydrate (natural gas condensed into semisolid form). This gas hydrate is believed to be deposited along the broad seabed extending from Dokdo to Guryongpo, North Kyongsang Province. Gas hydrate is a next-generation energy source that could be made into liquid natural gas if adequate technology is made available. The island is surrounded by fertile fishing grounds, and both sides frequently attempt to bolster their claims to it. Also spurring the fishing competition is a fear of dwindling sea resources. Japanese fishing officials say the depletion of fish stocks in other parts of the world means their country must rely more on waters closer to home. The northwestern Pacific in general has more underused fish stocks than other areas, according to the U.N.
9:44 am on August 10th, 2009 6
Frank,
Kim Jang-hun scores low on the Dokdo nonsense meter, but there are other countries with territorial disputes such as Canada and Denmark:
http://rokdrop.com/2006/04/15/canadas-very-own-do…
You don't see Canadian celebrities publishing anti-Denmark ads in American newspapers. You don't see Canadian putting up billboards in America either:
http://rokdrop.com/2009/01/01/dokdo-billboard-thr…
Don't even get me started on Bee man, flag eater man, finger chopping lady, and the rest of the out control nationalists on this issue.
This is nonsense to try and rope the US into a bi-lateral dispute between Japan and Korea. This dispute has many aspects to it with one being the Kuril Islands dispute. Japan still claims the Kuril Islands that Russia occupied after World War II. By giving up a claim to Dokdo it weakens Japan's stance on regaining the Kuril Islands. Most Japanese could care less about Dokdo but they do care about the Kuril Island issue.
What really brought this Dokdo dispute to prominence was the fishermen in Shimane Prefecture. South Korean fishermen have been poaching in Japanese waters for years and have gotten away with it to the extent that they even kidnapped two South Korean coastguard personnel that tried to apprehend them.
http://rokdrop.com/2005/06/05/this-was-predictabl…
That is why the government of Shimane Prefecture which is very dependent on its fishing industry have been driving the Dokdo issue in order to get it greater visibility within Japan. The South Korean overreactions have played right into the hands of the Shimane Prefecture folks because now the Dokdo issue has gotten greater awareness within the Japanese public and become a national issue that now national politicians are beginning to advance.
The whole issue of natural gas is something I have seen played out more in the Korean media in order to create an excuse other then the fishing issue of why Japan is advancing the Dokdo dispute. This whole stupid issue started over fish and has now turned into a nationalistic cause by politicians looking for political advantage that will make any negotiations to solve the original fishing problem next to impossible.
9:50 am on August 10th, 2009 7
Wow, very interesting. Thanks for the informative reply.
11:30 am on August 10th, 2009 8
If Korea was invaded 936 times then that must make Koreans the most mixed raced people on the planet.
12:39 pm on August 10th, 2009 9
Not if 468 times they were invaded by Japanese and the other 467 times they were invaded by Chinese, and one time they were invaded by Mongols.
6:10 pm on August 10th, 2009 10
Why even bother talking to a Korean about Takeshima/Dokdo. They live in the past and love to hate Japan, America and everyone else. The teach their kids to do so in school. Look at the anti-Japanese the students drew that were hung up in the subway stairs and all the stuff on USinKorea's website.
It doesn't matter how many times the buys space in foreign newspapers to promote their nationalism. The fact is, no one outside of Korea really cares about Korea except the US soldiers that may have to die for this ungrateful nation.
NO ONE except Koreans and Koreans outside of Korea cares and it will always be that way, that's just the way it is. Get over yourselves Koreans.
If you don't bloody well like it, too bloody bad!
9:54 pm on August 10th, 2009 11
Considering the fact that Korea sits next to China, I'm surprised that number isn't higher.