Korean Job Discussion Forums

[mcgeezer]

Let me state that I'm not a hate-mongrel....
However, I've had this interesting thought since I came to Korea.....
Everyone is weird in their own way, I mean we all do unique silly things that some people might deem 'weird'...For this post, I'm not talking about the aforementioned 'weird' people, because we all are in a sense...
I'm talking about people like this Chris Neil fellow...On the surface, a nice well-liked guy..underneath, he was a child-craving sex maniac...
Now in my opinion, there are a lot of these kinds of people in Korea...people who come here because things that are extremely taboo in the west are somewhat available in asia (rampant prositution, underage sex etc..) furthermore, because of this avialability many people come here because they can't get anything back home, where here, they can get sex a couple times a week for a 'reasonable' price and they know it is somewhat 'acceptable'.

But it's not just the sex weirdo's in korea....there are many 'social outcasts' here who just totally freak me out! I'm not talking about people who look differently, or maybe have a unique sense of style or watever, I'm talking about borderline psychos...
I met this guy in Incheon during a camp, and i kid you not people, if this guy came into the school he was working at and shot a bunch of people, it wouldn't surprise me one iota..not one...

I've been here for almost two years and I'm really concerned about the people that korea is letting in here from the west! I mean are they ignorant/blind/uncaring what is it?

Does anyone share this same thought as me, or am I the crazy one!!

[RACETRAITOR]

You're absolutely right. There are a lot of freaks who come to Korea.

[nateium]

First of all there are what�.30,000 to 40,000 teachers in the ROK at any one time?

Of course a lot of teachers stay, but many pass through, meaning that perhaps hundreds of thousands of teachers have taught here. Out of numbers that high, you are bound to get a few sick and twisted criminals.

What about the weirdness? So what? I don�t know what portion of ESL teachers are the odd balls you mentioned, but what can be done about it? What should be done about it? Besides criminal background checks, I don�t see what can be done. They don�t make standardized personality tests that rate your level of social conformity.

This is an economic situation of supply and demand. There a huge demand for native English speakers, and they can�t meet the demand. Most schools don�t have the luxury of discrimination. That�s why most of us make more money than the Korean teachers and do less work. We are highly in demand, so quality is less of an issue.

[cbclark4]

Yeah what's with the weirdos?

Check out the link.

http://www.rumdesign.com/wrong/

[crazy_arcade]

It would be very simple. However, it would also mean not fulfilling the incredible demand. The solution: no more free airfare.

Hell...it doesn't even have to be that. It could be paid airfare after the end of a full contract....or something. I guarantee a large number of freaks would be gone.

[faster]

The reason screwed-up people are attracted to teaching abroad (btw I'd say southeast Asia has far more "weirdo's" per capita than Korea) is the irresponsibly low barrier to entry in the ESL profession.

What's with all the superfluous apostrophes in Korea?

[ceesgetdegrees]

[cbclark4]

[whatever]

Loved it!

[sojourner1]

The foreigners I know are not weird weird, but they are mostly anti-socials who shoo fly everyone away. I want to be their friends and do activities like talking, hiking, and shopping, but they just shoo away into their apartments and shoo you away. The few nice open minded people confident enough to socialize are almost always married to a Korean and occupied with married life and raising kids so they don't have time to run off on a hiking trip or just sit all evening with other foreigners over a beer.

Perhaps the OP is talking about the fact that many independent loner types are drawn to Korea who don't open up or express themselves. They are so discreet that I don't know who I know and that's the honest truth. I don't really know who I work with. I am kinda an independent self led loner myself who's still not married, but I do like to have friends and talk with everyone, even small talk, but they seem to never be talkative or all that friendly. This is the weird factor to me when it comes to other foreigners as I was accustomed to speaking with 10 or more people day on a regular basis at home. I like to share travel experiences and cultural insights with others, but it only happens on the Internet in Korea. That's wierd. It's great to read all this stuff online, but I want smart intellectual people that can talk and be friends with others in the same situation.

The socially dysfunctional environment present in Korea is what makes Daves ESL cafe so big in Korea. I don't knock the site though, because it's got a lot of great travel info on both, Korea and Thailand. It's funny, I bet most teachers are reading it, but they won't ever talk about this site in person.

[Sincinnatislink]

[peppermint]

[faster]

[jajdude]

Sorry, but have to say it: what's with the misused apostrophes? I guess it's an easy mistake, as it seems to have become all too common in recent years. Even commercials on AFN do it. "Delicious steak's" or whatever.

[peppermint]

Raoul Mondegreen. I like it