The slight differences

Yes, it has been a while but between work and soccer, it's been a little crazy around here. Still no answers to the previous post, but working on it :).

I previously mentioned that being a Korean-American from southern california did not prepare me for life in Korean society. I had a chance to encounter two very separate, very cheesy examples of this in recent days.

The soccer matches. Oh, the soccer matches. The brilliant win against Greece, the disappointment against Argentina, the subdued hope for the upcoming game against Nigeria. It's not just about the masses of people gathering in public spaces, it's not just about the snickering over the 500% spike in condom sales on the night of the Greece game, it's not about the Korean women revealing their inner hoochie by wearing revealing outfits. It's about a country of 50 million people, stubbornly demanding a place at the big boy table despite the logical explanation that says Korea has no business being there. People asked why I cheered for Korea over the US when it comes to these national sporting events... its this sense of pride, a sense of being proud to be a part of something, a sense that even in sport, a country can find a common bond. The United States, because of the immigrants, because of the melting pot/salad bowl, does not have this bond. The Olympics, the World Cup, the WBC, or any other international competition does not stir this same sort of emotion.

North Korea. People in America have asked if people in South Korea are scared about a possible war. Yes, people are scared but people still go to work, people still carry on with their everyday lives. My previous belief had been that hell to that crazy dictator, let's go invade those fools and plant the South Korean flag in Pyongyang. But... those people, despite the fact the spell the name Lee differently, despite the fact the leadership has brainwashed them into thinking their way of life is the best, despite the fact they may start a war based on one man's political manuevering... they're still OUR people. I saw a movie this weekend called 포화속으로 (roughly "Into the Cannon") based on a true story about students that were drafted into the South Korean army in the Korean War. It was violent and action packed and generally a decent watch for 2 hours. There is a scene, where a South Korean high school student severely wounded a North Korean "solider" that cannot be more than 15 and is debating whether or not he should kill him; someone else has to come up and shoot him when the North Korean reached for his gun. When asked why he didn't "finish the job", the simple answer was this: when faced with death, this boy was asking for his Mom... in Korean. That's the simple answer... Kim Jong-Il might be the face of the dictatorship, but the people that will suffer is still our people. Am I a sentimental fool for letting a movie scene affect me in such a manner? Sure, I can live with that designation.

Finally, the USC sanctions... well, I have nothing to say really other than the fact that the NCAA invented a new standard of "You should have known because these athletes were high profile" to punish USC. I hope they now apply that standard to every school that is blessed with incredibly talented young men who are often led astray by unscrupulous businessmen.