Last Two Weeks: South Korea advances to the World Cup Round of 16

 Not sure what Americans eat while watching the Super Bowl, but it is ChiMaek, Chicken + Maekju (Beer),  for Koreans when they watch the Korean team play in the World Cup in Qatar. Bad day for chickens on Dec 2 as many South Korean soccer fans enjoyed ChiMaek at midnight, watching the national team beat Portugal 2-1 with a dramatic 90th minute goal by Hwang Hee-chan to edge out Uruguay for the next round of 16. S.Koreans are proud that Qatar 2022 is S. Korea’s 10th consecutive World Cup since Mexico in 1986, a huge accomplishment that only five other soccer giants were able to do so.(Brazil, Germany, Italy, Argentina, Spain). S. Korea is also the only nation to reach the semi-final,  2002 World Cup, of all the Asian and African nations in World Cup history that started in Uruguay in 1930 where, believe it or not, the U.S.A went to the semi-final.  S. Korea will square off against 5 times World Cup champion Brazil for a ticket to the quarter-final on Dec 6. 

The S.Korean team has been coached by Paulo Bento, former Portuguese soccer star who played against S.Korea in the 2002 World Cup.  Apparently, Bento created a new tactic called  “ Confuse Opponents”  by filling the start line up with players of the same family names, with five Kim's and two Hwang's of the 11 players.  Voila! It worked!  

Halloween festival turns into a disaster

S.Korea in mourning with 153 lives lost from the crowd crush in Itaewon, Seoul, during the Halloween festival at 10:15 pm Oct 29Sat). A Halloween costumed crowd estimated at 100,000 was jam-packed in Itaewon district of 82,000 sq.m (20.2 acres) during Halloween revelry. People departing the area ran into people arriving in tightly packed alleyways around Hamilton Hotel. The crush occurred when a group chanted "push, push" to make their way, and the people in front fell. The slope on the narrow street next to Hamilton may have contributed to the disaster as people were sliding under the crowd, falling over each other and toppling like dominos. Most of the deceased were teenagers and people in their 20s, and there were 25 foreign victims. President Yoon Suk-yeol was at the scene the following day and declared a week of national mourning. This is the worst disaster in Korea since the Sewol Ship sink that claimed 304 lives in 2014.


Itaewon has been known for its vibrant nightlife and shopping area for foreigners, and a hot spot for S.Koreans who come to feel American and international cultures since the U.S. 8th Army HQ was stationed there during the Korean War. With the relocation of the 8th Army HQ to Pyeongtaek a couple years ago and with the curse of Covid 19, the business in Itaewon has lost its reputation, and many hoped the first Halloween festival this week in three years without a mask would bring vibrancy to Itaewon. May the young victims rest in peace.

Last Two Weeks: South Korean defense industry goes into hey day

 The S.Korean defense industry hit a jackpot to export tanks and howitzers to Poland as Hyundai Rotem and Hanwha Defense signed contracts with Poland to respectively supply 80 K-2 battle tanks, and 212  K-9 howitzers, which totals $5.76 billion.  Korea Aerospace Industries is also in negotiation with Poland to ship 48 FA-50 supersonic jet fighters. S.Korea has now become the 6th largest exporter of arms and weapons in 2021, ahead of Italy and China,  through a "More value for the money" sales approach to compete against main rivals.   This success would not be possible without Vladimir Putin and Kim Jongun.  Putin's recent invasion into Ukraine forced Poland to provide existing weapons to Ukraine and fill the vacuum with those from S.Korea. Kim's constant sabre-rattling  has been prompting S.Korea to invest in the development and production of sophisticated, lethal and reliable weapons that have global competitiveness. 

 A big contrast to 1950 when  S.Korea had no tanks in the Korean War. The North Korean army with Soviet made T-34 tanks showed up in Seoul without much resistance just three days after they crossed the 38th parallel.   While S.Korea has become a major player in the modern weapons industry,  it also has sharpened weapons for traditional battlefields.  Arrow combat.  S.Korea won 4 of 5 golds in archery in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

GM shows no plan for EV production in Korea

 A key GM official threw a wet blanket on the Korean auto industry that has hoped GM may manufacture electric vehicles in its two plants in Korea. Steve Kiefer, GM International President, said in a press conference on Nov 12 that GM Korea will launch 10 new EV models in Korea by 2025, but none will be made locally. Mr.Kiefer added GM Korea will launch a new crossover model in 2023 at its Changwon plant. The crossover model will be a key product  for GM Korea to sell locally as well as export to overseas, following the footsteps of Trailblazer SUVs that have been exported  over 100,000 units since its launch in 2020 at Bupyeong plant.  When closing its Gunsan plant in 2019, GM Korea made a commitment to the Korean government to invest 900 billion won($7.5B) in its Changwon plant for the next four years. 

GM models are respected by Korean, evidenced by the word "Gemucee"(제무시) coined during the Korean War. Wowed at the performance of GMC military trucks used in the mountainous Korean terrain, Koreans called anything that is about power, strength, durability, or reliability as Gemucee.  For example, "Mike Tyson is a real Gemucee to beat his opponents with 19 straight K.O.s." Or, "You must be a Gemucee to have 11 kids!"  A few of these Gemucee trucks are still active in Korea over 70 years after the Korean War. Korean consumers respect GM products.  Korea has a strong auto supplier base including EV battery companies like LG Chemical, so many hope GM CEO Mary Barra sends Mr.Santa Claus instead  for the next press interview in Seoul. 

Squid Game from Korea turns into a whale gain for Netflix

The Korean entertainment business has kept standing out in the world.  PSY taught 5 billion people how to horse dance.  The boy band  BTS is commanding an Army of millions of fans around the world.   The Parasite was the first foreign film to win  the best picture Academy Award in 2020.   Now  the turn for K-dramas.   The "Squid Game '' released on Netflix on  Sep 17  now ranks  No.1 in all the 83 nations where Netflix service is available   The New York Post reported that over 14 billion videos with the hashtag #SquidGame have appeared on Tik Tok since Sep 17. Ted Sanrandos, co-CEO of Netflix said 'Squid Game will definitely be our biggest non-English language show in the world, for sure."   The Squid Game revolves around 456 debt ridden players betting their lives to participate in a series of survival games planned by mysterious hosts, in which the last winner earns prize money of 45.6 billion Won( $38.7M)

I watched the Squid Game a week ago. Pretty harmful. The UN or WHO should ban it immediately for the health of people around the world for its addictive contents. Once your eyes are on it, there is no way you can get away from it for the next 9 hours, turning you into an instant insomniac, worse than a heart attack each time  a new  Louis Vuitton or Prada handbag pops up in your living room. 

 

LTW: Iran's Revolutionary Guards captures S. Korean oil tanker to get oil money back

Good morning,

While the whole Korean peninsula turned into Kor-beria with temp dropping to -24 Celsius, the coldest in 35 years, Iran seized a S.Korean oil tanker in Strait of Hormuz on Jan 4, holding 20 crew members. Though Iran cited environmental sea pollution by the tanker, it was clear Iran's move is aimed at pressuring S.Korean government to speed up the release of the 7 billion oil dollars S.Korea is holding to follow the U.S. sanction against Iran.  The two countries have been working on finding a solution such as paying with Covid 19 vaccines, but not much progress.  S.Korea immediately dispatched top officials to Tehran for dialogue, despite Iran's refusal to their entry. It is feared the seizure will last long as there is no easy solution under the current hostile U.S.-Iran relationship. S.Korea turned into a  shrimp caught between two fighting whales or suffering grass under fighting elephants.

There is only one street in Seoul named after a foreign city.  Tehran-ro. Ro meaning street.  One of the busiest streets in Seoul, Tehran- ro was named  so when President Park Jung-hee and Iran's King Pahlavi agreed to name a street for each capital city in 1977. Total of 3.7km (2.3mi) long, Tehran-ro stretches from Gangnam Station through Renaissance Hotel  to Samseong Station where  Intercontinental Hotel is located.  A must visit street when you are in Seoul with your family, but just don't get close to a large beige building next to the Intercontinental Hotel for peace in your family.  Hyundai Department Store filled with Prada, Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Gucci, Cartier, Tiffany, Rolex....

Regards,

H.S.

P.S: Hyundai Motor stocks jumped 19.2% on Jan 9, the highest daily pick-up since 1988, after news of talk with Apple. So confidential, even a key direct report to Hyundai Chairman was not aware of this deal. More to follow when the deal is finalized.

LTW: Supersonic Son wins FIFA Puskas award for his stunning goal

Good morning & Merry X-Mas, 

S.Korean Son Heng-Min of Tetterham Hotspur won the 2020 FIFA Puskas Award for his fancy goal on Dec 17, 2019 against Burnley. Son picked up the ball on the edge of the Spur's penalty area, ran the entire length of 80meters for 12 seconds with 12 touches, ridiculing 6 Burnley defenders. You gotta see the video below as words cannot describe this "Sonsational" performance. 

The Puskas Award was established  in 2009 in honor of Hungarian Frenc Puskas who scored 512 goals in 528 matches in the 1960s to award the male or female, professional or amateur, who scored the most beautiful goal of the calendar year. Past winners include big names like Christina Ronaldo, Neymar, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and  Mohamed Salah. Son is doing well this season also, leading the EPL with 11 goals. 

  Another Korean soccer star as well known is Cha Bum-keun. He was a striker in Korean national team, served in the Air Force, began to play in German Bundes Liga late age of 26 in 1979, and scored 98 goals in BundesLiga until retirement in 1989. He was the Asian soccer player with most goals in European leagues until Son broke it this year.  Cha owes his success to his high school coach. Cha being a devout Christian, and a gentleman reluctant to make foul plays, the coach used to take Cha to a slaughterhouse, forcing him to cut the cows into pieces, to instill vicious character inside Cha.  Very likely my wife also got trained by Cha's coach, from the way she pushes me into Gucci and Prada shops.   

Regards,

H.S.

Please click  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SATljljXCY if you missed the above.