Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Smithington]

Honestly, I'm always amazed at the "do nothing" attitude, and sheer incompetence, of Korea's police. We all know how they enforce traffic laws, spitting laws, littering laws, and so forth. But their inability to catch the owner of that ferry is mind-boggling. How incompetent do they have to be? But I'm not terribly surprised he slipped through the net. They sat outside the compound for over a week as trucks and cars went in and out unchecked by the police. Robert over at Marmot's Hole even posted about visiting the compound and talking to some of the cult members. He said that he saw three police cars near the gate. They weren't checking any vehicles going in or out. He even took a photo of the cops in one car - they were fast asleep.

Honestly, the incompetence is really hard to comprehend. Not finding this guy is just the icing on the cake of sheer incompetence that has characterized every single detail about this disaster.

No wonder people are pissed off.

[Lucas]

Steelrails:

[Steelrails]

Are you wondering why the police are leery of storming a religious building, amidst a media circus, that has a bunch of cultists inside, where said cult has a history of suicidal incidents?

This isn't just a Korean culture thing. Most governments that aren't run by autocrats tend to be cautious about such things. Something about said cult leader ordering his followers to all drink the kool-aid should he be arrested or the like tends to hold the authorities back as 500 dead people tends not to go over too well.

And yes, the what Lucas said about the history of the police and the military dictatorship. This isn't culture, this is history.

Or you could go live in the US and have the cops bust into your house and mow down your grandmother and blame it on her "resisting arrest" when she stands up holding her phone and some hopped up SWAT dude says "She's got a gun". Everyday we seem to get new viral videos of cops going crazy and abusing their authority.

Anyways, have you ever tried talking to KCops and asking them why things are the way they are? Or do you just sit from afar and mock them?

[Captain Corea]

[KimchiNinja]

[orosee]

Korea would be the perfect place for paid vigilantes (actually a business idea of mine)! Imagine the money you could make by just taking 25% of Western-level fines (especially European fines) on every car that's parking on the pavement or blocking a pedestrian crossing in Itaewon alone? Or the "valet parking" at Between or Prime Cut or the cool dudes who drive through the walking street area behind Hamilton every weekend? Or the Harley owners who speed along at full blast every 3AM? Environmental fines for all honkers who honk without a hazard, red light runners (3 for every traffic light, every cycle) and a mandatory arrest where pedestrians are even close to being in danger of being hit.

You could work a single pedestrian crossing for an hour between lessons and return from Korea a rich man/woman after a single tour of duty, or simply extend your holiday (get a working holiday visa first).

First to be fined by my fine troupe of traffic vigilantes would be the three police cars that block road and pavement in front of Itaewon police station, next would be all tour buses, in particular the ones that stop in front of the fire station.

Get all traffic lights at Jeil Building intersection and write at least 6 fines every red light cycle (about 3-4 minutes), set the fine at $100 ($25 commission) and you do the math if that's more profitable than doing privates. All it needs is a presidential decree to create a voluntary vigilante waygukin police force.

Unfortunately since Itaewon is now 90% Korean visitors, nobody but me seems to care... so sad...

[Mix1]

[Mix1]

[jvalmer]

At least Korean cops don't have quotas to fill. As, for speeding, you know some of the speed camera boxes on the highways do have cameras in them. A few of my ct's have been nailed with a ticket in the mail.

[Squire]

I can't complain. I've never bothered getting a license or insurance for my scooter and I've been on the roads daily for almost three years here. Never even spoken to a police officer in all of my time here

[BackRow]

I don't know, they seem to do a pretty good job standing around in clumps all day in jongno doing...uh, stuff, I'm sure

[r2b2ct]

Coming from the US, I actually find it refreshing to live in a country where cops do very little and often actively avoid arresting people. Sure there are trade-offs, but this is one thing I prefer about Korea. A little chaos here and there isn't so bad.

[optik404]

No complaints about the police. I'd like to see them go hard on scooters on sidewalks and littering, but I don't want them ticketing me for jaywalking. I also like that in my time here, I've only seen them set up traps twice. One in Sinchon for people jaywalking and riding without a helmet. And once in Mokdong for cars not stopping at the crosswalk.

[Fox]

[Fox]