It will be interesting to see if the Korean political left will try and demagogue this latest mad cow case in California to their own political advantage like they did back in 2008:
South Korea will beef up quarantine checks on U.S. beef imports and take other emergency measures following the latest discovery of a mad cow case in America, the farm ministry said Wednesday.
The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said it is checking details of the latest mad cow case and plans to take appropriate measures in accordance with the country’s prevention of livestock epidemics act and import health requirements pact reached with Washington that permitted the import of U.S. beef.
“At present, Seoul has not taken steps to halt customs clearance of imported U.S. beef,” a spokesperson for the ministry said. Stopping customs clearance of beef can effectively halt all imports.
The latest mad cow case reported in California is the fourth to be detected in the U.S. Seoul had banned U.S. beef imports in late 2003 after the first case was reported, but fully reopened the market in 2008 after long-drawn negotiations with Washington.
The ministry said that the latest case involving a dairy cow is not directly connected to beef that can be imported by the country.
Under the bilateral pact with the United States, South Korea only imports beef from animals under 30 months old with all specified risk materials (SRMs) removed. SRMs are parts of a cow that could transmit the fatal disease to humans. Humans who eat the infected SRMs can come down with the variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, which has killed around 150 reported people so far.
U.S. health authorities, meanwhile, stressed that the case found was a very rare “atypical” case of mad cow disease that did not involve the animal eating animal protein-based feed that has been cited for causing the sickness.
The U.S. has halted protein-based feed from reaching animals to contain the outbreak of the disease. [Yonhap]
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5:33 am on April 25th, 2012 1
“U.S. health authorities, meanwhile, stressed that the case found was a very rare “atypical” case of mad cow disease that did not involve the animal eating animal protein-based feed that has been cited for causing the sickness.”
In other words, it was a random mutation which will happen once in a while in nature, and therefore it is not by any means an outbreak. Moreover, atypical mad cow disease is not known to be transmittable.
6:31 am on April 25th, 2012 2
Let the fun begin!
http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/25/health/california-mad-cow/index.html?hpt=hp_c1
7:51 am on April 25th, 2012 3
You know I find it a little interesting that GI Korea chooses to blame Korea once again for the Mad Cow outbreak in California, instead of blaming the horrible American beef industry that continues to abuse its rights to manufacture hormone filled dirty beef. Mad Cow wouldn’t have happened if they didn’t keep practicing feeding dead animals to animals. But they do. So now it’s Korea’s fault for not wanting to import and eat the dirty feces covered Mad Cow US beef. The US beef industry is one of the most corrupt organizations in the planet which pays off the high ranking US government elected officials to keep silent on the abuses. I’m betting my farm that there are far more cases of Mad Cow in the US, but they won’t ever reveal the truth. Koreans are especially at risk due to Koreans love of beef bone marrows that go into all kinds of Korean cooking. In the US, the bone meat are not popular so it’s a good business to sell off the stuff they don’t want, to the Koreans.
I suspect thousands of Americans who supposedly have Alzhimer’s or rare degenerative disease are really Mad Cow cases. They just don’t want to report it.
That just about explains why we have so many mad GI’s in this forum ranting and waving about the evil Koreans.
8:47 am on April 25th, 2012 4
Koreans are mad about krazy cows, so much so they can’t resist.
9:44 am on April 25th, 2012 5
Two problems at work: Korean activists overreacting to this kind of news, and Americans in general under-reacting to it.
A lot of people I trying to brush this off by saying it’s just one cow, but the Bush administration’s inspection policies were designed in such a way to cheaply find outbreaks of disease under the theory that, much like polling, a random sample of inspected cows would reveal a wider problem quickly and more cheaply.
In other words, with one in every hundred cows inspected, we can expect about a hundred (statistically most likely somewhere between 80 and 120) similarly infected. That is, there may be dozens of other BSE-inspected cows out there. Where are they?
This cow was not from Canada, like the last one, was it?
Tom, got a reliable link to the BSE-Alzheimer’s connection. I think that could be a possibility, but I haven’t seen an authoritative source on that yet. It’s a theory, though some wild theories (ulcers caused by bacteria, cancers caused by viruses) have turned out to be true.
10:29 am on April 25th, 2012 6
3 you make some valid points about the beef industry.
However, this move is purely political. To ignore the political implications of this is foolhardy.
That said, food supply safety is vital in any country.
One wonders about the safety of the food supply in south korea. How is the beef industry different in korea?
In a country where eateries often re serve leftover and partially eaten side dishes,and where in the recent past, thrown out usfk meat with bite marks on it was being served to unsuspecting korean diners. Is the food supply any safer in korea?
If you want to avoid mad cow, best to stop eating beef.
11:44 am on April 25th, 2012 7
“Tom, got a reliable link to the BSE-Alzheimer’s connection.”
Kushibo, yes I do have the link. For instance, YOU.
Truth, I’d rather eat partially eaten side dishes than force fed US MAD COW beef laced with grade A USA feces. Go stuff your face with cheese burger, Stormfront member.
11:51 am on April 25th, 2012 8
Truth wrote:
It is not purely political. In 2003, based on one BSE-infected cow from Canada found in the US, the three largest importers of American beef — Mexico, Japan, and South Korea — all ended imports (as did a number of other countries).
BSE in the food supply is a very serious issue, one that’s on government radar as well as on consumer radar. The corporate food suppliers are foolish if they don’t respond to consumer concerns and demand: they stopped supplying American beef when the ban was imposed, and when it was lifted they sold it again and made lots of profit when it was flying off the shelves again. Naturally, they will respond to this because the public has legitimate concerns about the safety of American beef.
That this will barely cause a blip in milk or beef consumption in America is not a sign that Koreans are overreacting. Don’t forget, one of the big arguments in favor of lifting the ban was that there had been no BSE-infected cow discovered since 2003. That is no longer true, so one of the key premises for lifting the ban has fallen away.
I don’t know, how is it? Correct me if I’m wrong, but you seem to be taking the position that unless we know otherwise, by default we should assume it is like the US’s.
But the US under Bush cut its meat inspection by 90% for the aforementioned reasons (comment #5). South Korea also lacks the large-scale factory farms that are common in the US. Furthermore, South Korea tends to triangulate government practices by looking at supposed “best practices” not only in the US but also Europe and especially Japan, the latter where beef inspection is far superior to the US.
Those things would suggest that the beef supply might be safer than in the US. Corruption may undermine that, but given the voracity with which entire herds or flocks of food animals are killed when one is found to be infected with avian or bovine diseases, it seems that the zeal favors elimination of health issues, as opposed to allowing them to fester undetected.
That said, I don’t know the answer to your question, but I would be loath to assume prima facie that what’s going on in South Korea’s beef production is close to what’s happening in the US.
Recycle food is a huge safety issue in South Korea, but that sort of inspection and enforcement is an entirely different animal from food production.
Bullocks. If you want to avoid Mad Cow, get your government and industry to employ better practices. It is abhorrent the way that beef is produced in the US. Why would cows be fed other cows in the first place, allowing BSE to spread? Cannibal cattle was all about expanding profit, and it cost lives. Ditto with the factory-farming of beef and pork, which adversely affects even the vegetable industry (e.g., e coli in spinach from effluent).
The tragedy is that these policies that come with enormous externalities we pay for later end up forcing out the good producers of beef that cannot compete on price or against their lobbying efforts.
I’m too lazy to find the link (but I will if asked) but there was one beef producer that decided to appease the Japanese (and Korean) markets by agreeing to inspect all its cows for Mad Cow Disease, akin to Japanese practices, and label their beef so. They were blocked from doing so by the government because other beef producers (the large-scale factory farms) thought that this would be an unfair practice that would force them to do the same.
There’s something wrong with that. I don’t eat it more than once or twice a week, but I would not want to go without beef. So instead of throwing up my hands and saying that these beef practices are par for the course, I would prefer that they go back to producing beef in a way that is more natural and healthier, and where things like BSE aren’t an issue.
11:55 am on April 25th, 2012 9
But seriously Kushibo, go read the book:
Brain Trust
The Hidden Connection Between Mad Cow and Misdiagnosed Alzheimer’s Disease
by Colm A. Kelleher, Ph.D.
Millions of Americans maybe infected already with years of eating infected beef, they just don’t know it. When they get sick, they will attribute them to something else, because they are ignorant.
So yes, officially Mad Cow is not a problem in the US. Because they are in denial.
Such ignorance is a bliss. You guys keep your mad cow infected beef away from Korea, we don’t want them.
12:15 pm on April 25th, 2012 10
Tom wrote:
It’s only been a few months since I had to arrange the funeral of my WWII veteran uncle who died from Alzheimer’s, so that gratuitous dig is especially funny.
12:32 pm on April 25th, 2012 11
Sorry about that Kushibo, I was just joking. But I’m sure you’ll forget about this incident pretty soon, just like your uncle did.
깔깔깔 
깔깔깔
5:16 pm on April 25th, 2012 12
8. When the Korean government reacts, and as of it this writing, no other country has changed it position, it seems enhanced inspections are more designed to stave off political upheaval than actual safety of the beef being imported.
The Korean left used Mad Cow fears as a weapon against LMB. MBC broadcasted false information to incite the public and cause hysteria. Violent protests were held in downtown Seoul. The LMB administration has no desire to repeat the protests in an election year. If it were merely a safety issue, given the problematic cattle industry practices in the USA, the inspections should have been already in place. Thus, the reaction is not to greater threat of mad cow, but it assure the korean public.
In addition, I should have written mostly political because obviously there is an economic issue as well, the price of domestic beef in Korea.
I know you have a lot of experience with Korea and the numerous problems they have had with food safety in the past decade. Whether is was garbage filled dumplings, or strange items found in popular snacks, or bad kimchee from china,etc Do not underestimate corrupt practices in korea and unsafe food being produced and served daily.
Even food stores, changed labels on american beef to hanwoo (korean beef) to enhance their margins.
I asked about Korean food safety practices, because in most areas outside of food, they do not seem to focus much on safety. In addition, it seems most of their training comes from US sources. Thus, I imagine their food safety and inspection system is lower than the USA. Although with how bad the FDA has been lately, its not easy to imagine. I believe korea also injects antibiotics into its cows.
I agree the USA needs to do a better job inspecting and ensuring the safety of its food supply. It seems its more interested in protecting its agricultural and cattle industries than the well being of its citizens.
Your suggestions about how the FDA should inspect beef would be a big improvement. However, given the power of the cattle industry, its not likely to happen anytime soon. Thus, best to reduce beef consumption or stop eating it all together.
Its not good for you. All the recent info about heart disease and other aliments would lead most intelligent people to reduce their consumption. Beef consumption is slowly declining in the USA on a per person basis.
Finally, sorry to hear about your Uncle.
5:29 pm on April 25th, 2012 13
“It is not purely political. In 2003, based on one BSE-infected cow from Canada found in the US, the three largest importers of American beef — Mexico, Japan, and South Korea — all ended imports (as did a number of other countries). ”
Boohoo, the cow originated in Canada…Any evidence that it wasn’t infected in the US? What about the other cows found to have been infected with BSE?
How about testing every cow? The rates are fairly low (6$ or so), just pennies to each consumer.
PS. I remember reading how the US government sued a farmer in Montana (I believe) who wanted to have every head of cattle he produced tested.
5:46 pm on April 25th, 2012 14
Does anyone know if the commissary meat is included in Korea’s import inspection process? Or does it bypass customs?
8:45 pm on April 25th, 2012 15
It’s the fat tub of lard Americans like TRUTH, that is the reason why Americans will never get any broad support in Korea over the Mad Cow issue. Arrogant Americans like him can’t recognize the fact that South Korea is the most pro-American country in East Asia, and Korea is as good as it will get for pro-Americanism in East Asia. But it’s guys like him that turns off even the pro-American Koreans against America. That’s OK, because that makes my job that much easier. As more and more Koreans see for themselves what you mad cow eaters say behind Korean backs, the rest will be done in by our resident American cowboy TRUTH.
No More Dirty US Mad Cows For Korea!
10:32 pm on April 25th, 2012 16
I hate it when I agree with Tom on anything but he does make some valid points about the North American beef industry. The more you know about it the less you want to eat it’s products. That said, I have my doubts about the Korean beef industry as well. These cattle here are hardly range fed beef. Most of those I’ve seen are standing up to their ankles in their own shit, (just like in Colorado or Alberta)confined to small pens under flimsy tarp covers. What’s more it’s an open question where their feed comes from. Korea doesn’t have grasslands and I doubt that it produces an excess of corn, barley or other grains to fatten their cattle up and this must be imported. And just who produces surplus cattle feed? Well, I’ll leave that to your imagination.
10:47 pm on April 25th, 2012 17
#15, I think Korea has its own issues to worry about. I drove past a couple checkpoints when this was going on, what a mess for the Country of South Korea this was.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot-and-mouth_disease
“South Korea was hit by the rarer type A FMD in January, and then suffered type O infection in April.[37] The most serious case of foot-and-mouth outbreak in South Korea’s history started in November 2010 in pig farms in Andong city of Gyeongsangbuk-do, and has since spread in the country rapidly.[38][39] More than 100 cases of the disease have been confirmed in the country so far,[38] and in January 2011, South Korean officials started a mass cull of approximately 12 percent, or around 3 million in total, of the entire domestic pig population and 107,000 of three million cattle of the country to halt the outbreak.[38]“
11:20 pm on April 25th, 2012 18
15. More pro american than Japan? than Taiwan? the Philippines?
Whats the point?
Whether Koreans love or hate America, I want America simply to act in the interests of the american taxpayers.
Your job? I do not subscribe to the notion that individual koreans lack the capacity to think for themselves. On this blog, I have referenced facts, some koreans may feel uncomfortable exposing their sketchy past, but it does not change the facts. As korea matures as a people and a country, they will learn the world does not revolve around korea, and its notion of importance is grossly misrepresented.
I do not think American foreign policy should be trying to be the most popular country in the world. I want the USA to think and act in whats in the best interest of American citizens. Now, it gives and wastes billions of dollars every year overseas. It also allows other countries full access to our markets and allows other countries to continue to restrict our access to theirs.
The USA needs to use its economic muscle to keep markets open for its exports. If a country restricts USA exports, the USA should retaliate.
Thus, if Korea slows down importation of US beef, the USA should halt Samsung electronic devices at customs I am sure it can play the asian game and find some chemical or something harmful in the devices that require further inspection. Koreans and Japanese have often played this game. Does the korean gov inspect every samsung cell phone exported to america. One might have been exposed to dangerous chemicals that could cause harm to Americans.
Any product, any item in the food supply has the potential to be contaminated and cause harm. Are we to insist on 100 percent inspection of all items? It seems a country that relies on exports, this might not be best for the rok.
11:47 pm on April 25th, 2012 19
Japan is acting today the way Korea did under Roh Moohyun. Leftists in both countries have a stake in looking like they’re not toadying to the man, even if they want to be under Uncle Sam’s security umbrella.
As for Taiwan, it’s a very popular thing to talk about how America’s security guarantees are wholly unreliable.
And the Philippines… is there a Philippines besides the one that kicked the US military out in the 1990s?
11:53 pm on April 25th, 2012 20
No, the US needs some introspection on why the rest of the world rightfully sees our “food” supply as so effin’ scary. Retaliating against allies and trading partners to force them to import stuff that has a real health issue attached to it is terribly wrongheaded. Not to mention a wasted opportunity.
Seriously, when we have e coli, a deadly organism from animal GI tracts infecting our vegetable supply, that should ring alarm bells, but in the US it’s business as usual.
I just listened to someone from the USDA saying that this latest Mad Cow is atypical and therefore not a problem, never mind that it’s a poorly understood form of the disease that probably shouldn’t have shown up at all given its supposed rarity.
And I just got done having a discussion with “M,” who is from Japan, who is pretty sure that Japan will follow suit with whatever Korea does vis-à-vis this latest outbreak.
It is absolutely the wrong thing to be bashing those who are concerned — for whatever reason including political ones — about this.
12:53 am on April 26th, 2012 21
19. There are research institutions that to country comparisons. I disagree with your assessments on all three countries but that is for another thread.
But again, my point was America must act in its own interests.
20. I am not sure the rest of the world is scared of our food supply. American franchised food outlets are spreading world wide. USA exports food all over the world. There has been concern mentioned in Europe over bio engineered food.
I think the difference is that America is more honest than most countries. We find bad things, we report them more than most countries. We admit our faults and try to correct them. Other countries, not so much.
I am not sure Korea is much of an ally. That again is for another thread.
Trading partners that manipulate their exchange rates to support their own exports at the cost of American jobs, hardly need to be coddled.
Of course America, should not export harmful products. No one is advocating that. I am advocating that the USA do whats in America’s interests.
This event is not an outbreak of mad cow disease in the USA. It was one cow.
Restricting or halting sales of all USA beef based on one cow, that experts say had no chance of entering in the food supply seems like a political decision rather than a public health issue. Heart disease from beef consumption kills far more people than mad cow. Korean gov makes a ton of money from cigarettes, but does little to restrict their purchase. Where is the public outcry, we know cigarettes kill. Soju?
When a country restricts our exports, in the interest of fairness we should restrict an equal amount of their exports.
In the end, its obvious we disagree.
However:
its nonsense to suggest that America should not act in the interest of its citizens.
its nonsense to coddle countries that have closed their markets to the USA and manipulated regulations to keep USA imports out.
2:38 am on April 26th, 2012 22
It’s in the US’s interest to foster democratic countries with free markets.
As for closed markets…
http://www.monster-island.net/2010/09/rok-us-trade-by-numbers.html
Although bilateral trade between Korea and the United States grew tremendously in size, until 1981 the bilateral trade balance was persistently—with the exception of 1978—in favor of the United States. It shifted into Korea’s favor beginning in 1982 and has since grown significantly, reaching a peak at $8.96 billion in 2002. Korea showed a trade deficit with the United States in 1991 and 1992 and also from 1994 until 1997, but has maintained a surplus since the economic crisis of 1997.
3:06 am on April 26th, 2012 23
#18
“Thus, if Korea slows down importation of US beef, the USA should halt Samsung electronic devices at customs I am sure it can play the asian game and find some chemical or something harmful in the devices that require further inspection.”
That reminded me of a conversation I had during the Mad Cow mass madness a few years ago.
A Korean guy I knew wanted to engage me about it and I resisted because I had already had too many such brick wall conversations. But this guy seemed pretty well educated. He said he was an engineer at Samsung, so I gave in.
It wasn’t too long before he said Korea should not import anymore beef until it can be guaranteed to be 100% safe! That was an absurd thing for an engineer to say because NOTHING can be guaranteed to be 100% safe. I asked him what kind of work he did at Samsung. He said he worked on cell phone display devices. I asked him if he believed cell phones were safe. No answer. I asked if he heard that some people believed that the RF from cell phones can cause brain cancer. He said yes, he heard that. Did he believe it? A halting, “I don’t think so.” I asked, if cell phones can’t be guaranteed to be 100% safe, would he stop using them and tell his friends and family not to use them? No answer.
The whole episode back them was amazing to me, the way it caused intelligent, rational people to get caught up in hysteria.
There are risk factors associated with everything. Recent studies show that consumption of beef or red meat, in general, will reduce you your life expectancy. Individuals can use that information and make choices on how much if any they should eat. But it’s not enough reason to take to the streets in a panic and storm the meat markets with pitchforks.
3:08 am on April 26th, 2012 24
#23
Oops. Screwed up closing the bold tag.
4:13 am on April 26th, 2012 25
@23 – I had a similar conversation about the mad cow riots with a Korean but my example was with Korean cars. I asked should the US stop the sale of Korean cars if one car is found to have a safety defect? Of course the answer was no because it was just one car.
No one is forcing Koreans to eat US beef and they have the option to buy domestic or Australian beef just like no one is forcing Americans to drive a Korean car or use a Korean cell phone if anyone is concerned about the safety of those products.
6:43 am on April 26th, 2012 26
Read your own headline:
“South Korea Continues To Import US Beef Despite Latest Mad Cow Scare”
South Korea is continuing to buy dirty US beef, despite the health risks to the Koreans. What exactly are you complaining about, and why are you bashing this on Koreans, when it’s your own US industry that’s found to be tainted with all kinds of unethical practices? Korea hasn’t done anything yet. What’s the problem?
6:50 am on April 26th, 2012 27
I long for the day the USA will see SK as a real ally and help us to protect our citizens from harm and danger from whatever it might be …
7:10 am on April 26th, 2012 28
“I think Korea has its own issues to worry about. I drove past a couple checkpoints when this was going on, what a mess for the Country of South Korea this was.”
-NONSENSE. That has nothing to do with the hygeinic practices of Korean beef industry. It has more to do with Korea’s limited geography where meat farms are located close to each other, making it much easier for diseases to spread. The US on the other hand, the farms are far more spread out from each other, making it tougher for disease to spread. That still does not mean the US beef industry is any safer, and that their practices are acceptable.
7:27 am on April 26th, 2012 29
Out of 90 million cattle slaughtered in the US each year, only 40,000 are tested.
Is Mad Cow Testing Good Enough?
http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/health/med-tech/is-mad-cow-testing-good-enough-8364049
Do the Koreans know something we don’t?
http://www.creators.com/opinion/jim-hightower/do-the-koreans-know-something-we-don-t.html
8:05 am on April 26th, 2012 30
#28,
Have you ever been to a Korean cattle farm? I have many times. Not all farmers take the proper precautions to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. Heck, I’ve seen barns that were so close to the road that a car would take out several cows by swerving a meter off the pave.
9:02 am on April 26th, 2012 31
Tom @No. 15: “Arrogant Americans like him can’t recognize the fact that South Korea is the most pro-American country in East Asia, and Korea is as good as it will get for pro-Americanism in East Asia.”
Having lived in Japan for three years and China for over two, I would have to say I disagree. Surely there have been far more anti-American demonstrations over the years in South Korea than in Japan, and many of the Chinese I have met have a very positive image of the US compared even to their own country (indeed, they tend to have an overly idealized view of the US on the whole, be it our “freedom” or “rule of law”). No, I would say that many South Koreans, especially younger generations, strongly resent the US because they were unable to liberate their country from the Japanese themselves and had to wait for us to help them do it, and because they still rely on us to this day to defend them against the Norks, and seem unwilling or unable to do so on their own.
As for the latest mad cow outbreak, I noticed that the Hani’s editorial on the issue today fails to mention even once that the cow in question was a diary cow that had been retired, and therefore was never in danger of entering the food supply. How “convenient” of them to forget to mention that!
9:23 am on April 26th, 2012 32
LOL..
have a look at the study that TRUTH mentioned above.
http://www.pewglobal.org/database/?indicator=1&survey=12&response=Unfavorable&mode=chart
Look at the last year that Korea shows up in the stats, the year 2010 data.
After Kenya, Nigeria, and US, Korea is fourth when it comes to favorable views of the KKK USA. And for Kenya and US, we know why they’re ranked up there.
Then look at the Chinese, they don’t have much favorable views of you guys, considering the amount of bashings you people have engaged in, against China. I don’t blame their resentment towards you guys who think their feces don’t stink. Now I’m not saying Korea – US should be friends or anything like that, but all I’m just saying you’re just turning off even the biggest US ass-kisser Koreans, with all your anti-Korean mouthing offs, and to also point out, how much you people incessantly complain and take for granted Korean’s good will towards the US coming your way (they are stupid, I know). But do keep going, it’s amusing. 
9:28 am on April 26th, 2012 33
A few notes. First, when you have a testing system that is extremely spotty (by design) the cow that tests positive for Mad Cow is not the problem itself but merely a symptom of a larger problem. Tom’s link has one cow tested for every 2000 killed and eaten. Although the candlelight vigilantes focused heavily on Mad Cow, they are right to be squeamish about American beef, most of which is factory farmed with atrocious practices. Americans should be squeamish about American beef.
Tom is right to note that a number of people are bashing Koreans when in fact (so far) the headline is that South Korea will continue to import US beef.
It’s disingenuous (#23) to suggest that beef cannot be made 100% safe when the goal of American testing is, by design, to test only 1% of all animals for general health issues and even far less (if Tom’s link is correct) for Mad Cow. The 100.0% percent goal being unattainable does not excuse using just a 1% goal.
It is also disingenuous (#25) to compare beef with cars. Car companies have massive and expensive recalls when they’re recalled and the manufacturers are subject to costly litigation. Furthermore every car gets inspected in some way (at least by the buyer) and the source of a faulty car can be traced to a specific car built in a specific factory. Not so with the beef industry, which kills with impunity and spreads its illness to neighboring agriculture. Outbreaks are harder to trace and when they do, the names of the players are so unfamiliar (unlike, say, Nissan or Hyundai) that it does little damage when there is an e coli outbreak.
Case in point: Can you name off the top of your head the slaughterhouse in Riverside where the downer cows were videotaped being kept in the food supply? Can you name off the top of your head the car manufacturer that did the recall due to the sticky pedals? I’ll best most cannot with the former but they can with the latter.
Moreover, while car recall issues are similar to disease incidence like this one in that they are symptoms of a possibly broader problem, car defects are not in fact contagious, very much unlike many of the health problems in the cattle industry (to include dairy cows).
This despite Teadrinker’s connection (#30) between infectious diseases and cars driving close by giving them some sort of ailment.
Finally, Korean beef being unsafe (if that can be proven beyond mere conjecture) does not make American beef any safer (and vice versa). And at any rate, given the price of Hanu Beef, the competitive counterpart to US beef in Korea is not Korean beef but Australian beef. If you want to see who has a stake in drumming up opposition to American beef in Korea, just follow the money.
9:39 am on April 26th, 2012 34
Per my final comment just above, it looks like we still need to keep an eye on the Australians:
http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/333460/20120426/mad-cow-disease-exports-japan-south-korea.htm
And keep an eye on the New Zealanders:
http://tvnz.co.nz/business-news/mad-cow-outbreak-could-boost-nz-exporters-4851383
Meanwhile, the candlelight vigilantes have given up hope that Lee Myungbak will stop exports, and they have successfully shifted their efforts to Indonesia:
http://news.kuwaittimes.net/2012/04/26/indonesia-halts-us-beef-imports-over-mad-cow-no-signs-from-japan-south-korea/
That’s purely political, I’m sure. Or is it only purely political if Korea does it, but not other countries?
9:40 am on April 26th, 2012 35
Per my final comment just above, it looks like we still need to keep an eye on the Australians:
http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/333460/20120426/mad-cow-disease-exports-japan-south-korea.htm
And keep an eye on the New Zealanders:
http://tvnz.co.nz/business-news/mad-cow-outbreak-could-boost-nz-exporters-4851383
9:41 am on April 26th, 2012 36
Meanwhile, the candlelight vigilantes have given up hope that Lee Myungbak will stop exports, and they have successfully shifted their efforts to Indonesia:
http://news.kuwaittimes.net/2012/04/26/indonesia-halts-us-beef-imports-over-mad-cow-no-signs-from-japan-south-korea/
That’s purely political, I’m sure. Or is it only purely political if Korea halts imports (which it hasn’t so far), but not other countries?
9:58 am on April 26th, 2012 37
Testing 40,000 cows out of 90 million cows has a testing rate of only 0.04 percent, not even close to one percent Kushibo. This is not testing, it’s just show for the gullible US public. Koreans are not as dumb.
For once I agree with the Kushibo. Rokdrop will use anything to bash on Koreans. You know, Lee Myung-bak government said that Korea would stop importing US beef if they find any mad cow. But he broke that promise, he says he never said that, liar rat face.
11:09 am on April 26th, 2012 38
Tom, the 1% refers to general inspections of cattle, not just for BSE. For BSE it appears to be significantly lower for general testing, since they also rely on the notion that a BSE-afflicted cow would eventually exhibit other telltale symptoms like not being able to stand (i.e., a downer cow).
My comments were that 1% or 1/2000 are both way too low, yet Americans sally forth with the idea that our beef is safe and there’s nothing to worry about.
11:23 am on April 26th, 2012 39
11:43 am on April 26th, 2012 40
If they’re throwing eggs at the Taiwan government officials, how is that hating on the US?
Let’s be consistent here: The 2008 protests were really about the chinboistas ousting President Lee Myungbak, using the beef issue as a pretext. In Taiwan, it appears that the left-leaning DPP are using this issue to channel anger against the ruling KMT, not the US.
Both countries have people with legitimate concerns about American beef, but the protests themselves are anti-government in nature, not anti-American.
12:29 pm on April 26th, 2012 41
Funny how americans want to discuss about korean cows when the mad cow desease was found in their country … It is also funny to see them getting nationalistic because of beefs …… irrational, ignorant, emotional … words that comes to my mind reading their comments … now imagine what will happen if we argue about one of the most popular symbol in the world …. Mc.Donalds …. They will nuke us …. total obliteration !!!!!! kkkkk
1:34 pm on April 26th, 2012 42
“As for the latest mad cow outbreak, I noticed that the Hani’s editorial on the issue today fails to mention even once that the cow in question was a diary cow that had been retired, and therefore was never in danger of entering the food supply. How “convenient” of them to forget to mention that!”
- Yes king baeksu, how convenient of the US to mention that it was just a ‘dairy’ cow, so no worries.;-) If you really believe that, and that they don’t use dairy cows as low grade beef in your fast food restaurants as well as for exports, then I really am a Beijing agitprop.
4:28 pm on April 26th, 2012 43
AS ALL THE KOREANS SAY…….”WHERE IS THE BEFF???????”
AS THEY WALK BY AN AMERICAN BBQ AND RUB THEIR STOMACHS WITH THAT, I HAVE NOT EATEN IN WEEKS LOOK IN THEIR EYES. IT REMINDS ME OF A LITTLE CHIWAWA SITTING ON THE FLOOR BESIDES THE DINNER TABLE BEGGING FOR SOME TYPE OF SCRAP FROM ALL THE FIXINGS, SO CLOSE BUT YET SO FAR FROM THEIR REACH.
I REMEMBER I WAS HAVING SOME FRIENDS OVER FOR A COOKOUT ONE DAY ABOUT FOUR YEARS AGO. I LIVED ON THE SECOND FLOOR OF THIS PARTICULAR APARTMENT BUILDING AND WENT UP STAIRS TO GET A PLATE FOR THE RIBS I HAD BEEN COOKING. I CAME DOWN STAIRS AND WHAT DID I SEE…A KOREAN MAN IN HIS 40′S, VERY WELL DRESSED, TRYING TO GRAB ONE OF THE VERY HOT SLABS OF RIBS. I QUICKLY LET HIM KNOW NOT TO TOUCH THINGS THAT DON’T BELONG TO HIM AND HE RAN LIKE A SCARED GI ON HOOKER HILL AFTER SETTING A OFF LIMITS BAR ON FIRE. HE DID COME BACK ABOUT 45 MINUTES LATER TRYING TO APOLOGIZE AND ASKING IF HE COULD HAVE SOME, BECAUSE IT SMELT SO GOOD AND LOOKED VERY DELICIOUS.
OH BY THE WAY TOM….IF KOREANS HATE AMERICAN BEEF SO MUCH WHY IS IT THAT EVERY YEAR AT CHUSEOK THE KOREAN DEPENDANTS COME INTO THE COMMISSARY AND BUY ALL THE MEAT THEY CAN GET THIER HANDS ON??? ESPECIALLY “BEEF SHORT RIBS”
I THINK THE PROBLEM HERE IS THAT KOREANS DON’T HATE AMERICAN BEEF IN FACT THEY ARE QUITE FOND OF IT. I THINK THAT TOM JUST HATES AMERICAN BEEF AND RIGHTLY SO HE HAS BEEN TAKING AMERICAN BEEF IN THE BROWN EYE FOR SOME TIME NOW!!!
IF I WAS STILL IN MY CRAZY YEARS I WOULD CALL AND ASK YOU TOM, “IF YOU HAD ANY LUNCH PLANS FOR TOMORROW?” YOUR RESPONSE TO THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE “NO”. THEN I WOULD TELL YOU “HOW ABOUT I FED YOU THIS (OTHER WORD FOR A ROOSTER) SO THAT YOU WILL SHUT YOUR PIE HOLE AND LET THE GROWN UPS HAVE A SERIOUS CONVERSATION ABOUT SOMETHING OTHER THEN YOUR HATRED FOR EVERYTHING AMERICAN!!!!”
4:31 pm on April 26th, 2012 44
# 15 Tom,
“It’s the fat tub of lard Americans like TRUTH,”
How do you know TRUTH is fat?
Fat is good, so much so that Korean men(and women) are buying padded underwear
“Koreans Shop For Bigger Bottoms”
http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2012/04/25/2012042500510.html
“Online shopping malls are stocking up on padded boxers for men. On online marketplace Auction, sales of those products rose 33 percent in March. “Men shop for their own clothes now, and they are turning to padded underwear and other apparel that were once the domain of women’s clothing,” said Song Ha-young at Auction.”
Sir Mix A Lot ~ Baby Got Back!! (I Like Big Butts and i can not Lie!)
5:12 pm on April 26th, 2012 45
FLASH GORDAN wrote:
In your crazy years you were a menacing homosexual?
6:14 pm on April 26th, 2012 46
Since we can’t be to mean on this website I was trying to dumb it down for you #45. Besides don’t make me blind fold you with a some dental floss and show the other side of me that you so conveniently called a “menacing homosexual” or are you and Tom actually sharing a large summer sausage and pouring hot wax on each other as we speak in a Off Limits Tranny Bar on Hooker Hill???
6:19 pm on April 26th, 2012 47
It seems you’ve put a lot of thought into it in order to come up with that comment, Flash.
And by that I mean you probably didn’t have to put much thought into it at all.
6:42 pm on April 26th, 2012 48
ANYWHO THAT MADE ALOT OF SENCE SO IN THE INTE”RIM”, TELL TOM TO BE GENTLE!!!!
12:18 pm on May 8th, 2012 49
Australian beef is popular in South Korea, and they will do even better now that American beef has been proven to be unsafe.
More than luck helps Australia beat US in beef war
http://koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2012/05/116_110587.html