Korean Job Discussion Forums

just because · Joined: 01 Aug 2003 Location: Changwon - 4964

Things have gone quite silly, just looking at tomorrows papers and news sites and I think Koreans have gone nuts for Dokdo.

This one is a goodie

March 13, SEOUL, South Korea -- Pre-schoolers accompanied by their parents receive complimetary Dokdo towels at a Seoul department store on March 13.

Even on the ski slopes they are getting across the point

And always a good ol flag burning just to make sure you get yourself on TV

If the Japanese government do allow these new textbooks I think Korean-japanese relations are going to go back 20 years. Goodbye japanese tourists, good-bye frigging Bae Yun-Joon, Winter Sonata bye bye.

To be honest i think the japanese are being pricks but will be fun to watch.

Ya-ta Boy · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Location: Established in 1994

I know what you mean.

I miss the days of China claiming Kogyureo as theirs.

Guri Guy · Joined: 07 Sep 2003 Location: Bamboo Island

China is still claiming Kogyureo. North Korea is quite pissed about it apparently. I suppose once Taiwan is absorbed by the BORG, North Korea will be next. Resistance is futile... Razz

jinglejangle · Joined: 19 Feb 2005 Location: Far far far away.

indytrucks · Joined: 09 Apr 2003 Location: The Shelf

I'm thinking of claiming the Buy the Way at then end of my street as mine. God knows I spend enough time and money in there.

Watch this space for further developments and/or flag burnings.

komtengi · Joined: 30 Sep 2003 Location: Slummin it up in Haebangchon

the CIA have come out and proclaimed it as Japanese land. There was an article on Naver about it... but too lazy to look it up.

Cedar · Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2005 8:24 am Post subject:

Many people seem to miss the point, including Koreans.

In the world, the rule is 200 nautical miles from land, that's yours. But Korea and Japan are CLOSER than 400 nautical miles from each other, so they can't both get the full 200 miles of turf. So, where do you draw the little dotted line?

If the dotted line is halfway between Dokdo and Ulleungdo (the next Korean island closer to shore and populated by Koreans, therefore uncontested) then Korea loses underwater exploration/exploitation, fishing and control of shipping lanes for a lot of ocean that they'd rather keep control over. Japan, of course, feels the same way. If they can get Dokdo, the dotted line moves much closer to Korea than it would be otherwise, extending Japan's share of the East Sea (Sea of Japan).

There is, incidentally, another island that is uncontestedly Japan's to the southeast of Korea, closer to Korea than Jejudo, but farther to the east. That island is Japanese soil, even though I think it might be uninhabited right now. That brings the dotted line near Busan REALLY close to Korea down there. The thing is, Korea had dominated and subdued the pirates who lived there several times in history, every time the pirates stirred up trouble long enough that the powers that could be wanted to beat them down. But Korea never colonized that island. Why? Records show that they thought they didn't have the extra population to stick out there, and that since it was such unproductive land (that the population lived by being pirates, not off the land) that Korea didn't want it anyway. I am too lazy to look up the name of the island right this minute, sorry.

dogbert · Joined: 29 Jan 2003 Location: Killbox 90210

It's Tsushima, and it's populated. You can take tours there.

just because · Joined: 01 Aug 2003 Location: Changwon - 4964

Cedar · Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2005 9:00 am Post subject:

Oops, didn't know Tsushima was inhabited. Can you take tours of it out of Busan?

dogbert · Joined: 29 Jan 2003 Location: Killbox 90210

mithridates · Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2005 10:00 am Post subject:

The name tsushima itself comes from Korean, from the word �� for two islands. Back then though it was �� together with �� and �Ŷ� helped out a little bit against big ��; there was no concept of Japan and Korea back then and people up north were the enemy.

yodanole · Joined: 02 Mar 2003 Location: La Florida

Dokdo, Dokdo! Oh, Dokdo!
I love thee so much I'll cut off my finger!

_______________________________________________________

I like to think of myself as the harmless drunk George Bush could have been.

mithridates · Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2005 5:17 pm Post subject:

In case you're wondering why they cut off the finger, it's because of that saying that "even something as small as your pinkie still hurts when you cut it off" meaning that even a 150 metre long tiny piece of land is still important and necessary to them.
Not that the cutting off of a finger really demonstrates that point to the world with any degree of effectiveness. People watch that and think "that's wacked out" and little else.

Universalis · Joined: 17 Nov 2003 Location: Seoul

Which is a discussion I've had with students before: how protests are culture-based like everything else and don't have the same meaning outside of one's own culture.

For example, after the unfortunate death of the two girls, some Korean protestors went to the white house and were writing signs in their own blood. To Koreans, it shows sincererity and commitment, to Jack and Jane Smith watching TV in Lincoln, Nebraska, it's fucking bonkers.

Likewise, if nude protestors came to Korea to protest something, the locals would find it as a source of amusement more than anything else. The message would be lost.

Brian