Wednesday, January 11, 2006

Aren't I so special!

I do not know if I am just in bad mood this morning, or "the stupids" are made the rounds in Korea yesterday. Apparently Korean President Roh Moo-hyun thought the best way to encourage everyone was through an email:

"Let’s dramatically boost the competitiveness of the government"

Exactly which other government in South Korea is Roh's government competing with?

"[Let's] establish many examples regarding innovation so that the world can learn from us. Let’s enhance our national image so that the world can perceive Korea as a ‘nation in the vanguard of innovation.’”

"Examples regarding innovation"? "Nation in the vanguard of innovation"? I suggest the blue house (or the Dong-A) get a new translator/editor team first. Other than that pithy comment, one would think the post "Hwang" era, one would make a point of the necessity of HONESTLY enhancing the national image.

“I have just finished a book, ‘Jangseong County Inc.’"

Wow! A whole book! Were there nice pictures? Did you get help?

"The book taught me that people can change the world, and education can change people."

A leader recommending little books saying how people can change the world and education can change people...hmmm...where have I heard that before?

"This made me reflect on ourselves if we had not underestimated the important role of education in pursuing innovation, and if we could have done more to create the right environment where more Koreans can participate in the pursuit.”

"The pursuit"? The Pursuit of what, "education" or "innovation"? and for that matter what is this "we could have done" bit? Is it not in the past, and you want to talk about the future? For that matter Roh, instead of moping about the issue, what are you, as a leader, going to do to change it?

I also politely recommend that Roh read his countries own newspaper to learn the perils of creating an environment where the pursuit of innovation is more important than the pursuit of truth. Incidentally you, do you think society leaders glowering over innovation without mentioning honest would have anything to do with creating such an environment?

So lets summarize the message "Your leader read a book, now you should innovate more!" Great way to set an example!


3 Comments:

At January 11, 2006 3:59 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dram Man,

For a Korean employee, you have a penchant for biting the hand that feeds you. Criticism of our elected leaders -- and by extension the Korea people -- is a graceless act of bitching like a foreign slave.

Lets get some perspective here: you are a Korean sabbath goy in Korea; a sabbath goy was a gentile who did chores during the sabbath in behalf of observing Jews prohibited from such chores. You son-of-a-gun ... you can proof-read English better than a Korean and make your law firm look "International" on its advertizing brochure and website.

In otherwords, you are a necessary evil in our country: a white proof reader with a law degree prostituting his hard-earned legal degree for easy work in Korea. But, there is no free lunch in life: your job on easy street comes with a price -- professional suicide. Your experienced proofreading doesn't add-up as valuable experience on the event you choose to find a job back home.

I get it, you have resigned to live in a land you despise for the long run. Don't count your chickens before they hatch. There is an army of American educated Korean-American lawyers and we are planning to re-patriate back to our Korean motherland ... and take your job.

Korea ain't the playground for Whitey... it belongs to Korean blood.

That's right. Although you think you are your Korean law firm's cherished long-nosed mascot... your Korean employer secretly considers you a necessary evil (a pollution to the Korean purity of your organization). He will someday replace you with a Korean-American lawyer with a pedigree of pure Korean blood.

You should be worrying less about president Roh's cheerleading his government to successfully compete against the West, and more about your professional security.

It would be sad to see you flipping burgers in America with a law degree.

 
At January 11, 2006 4:07 PM, Blogger Dram Man said...

I will have you know I would be flipping burgers with an Economics degree thank you very much. You take that back!

 
At January 11, 2006 4:29 PM, Blogger Dram Man said...

As long as I get dental and still get to nail your wife its OK by me.

 

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