Westlaw

Krispy Kreme in Korea

Krispy Kreme in Korea.  This is great.  For all of you in Korea, you need to head over to Shinchon immediately and buy yourself a Krispy Kreme donut and a hot chocolate.  Hopefully, take a little bite out of that brutal winter. 

Korea's Slow Growth

Well, this isn't too good.  Korea's economy is 2nd to last in economic growth.

Newbridge Capital Eyeing Samsung Life

This might be interesting.  Private equity firm Newbridge Capital is working on a deal to buy an 18% stake in Samsung Life.  There are potentially large returns for Newbridge if the deal goes through and Samsung Life then goes public in the future--though those plans seem to have been around for awhile. 

As an aside, I would love to work at Newbridge so if anyone would like to intro me, I'd be in your debt.

50 Jobs Worse Than Yours

I was supposed to meet a friend to go buy X-mas presents yesterday.  I arrived at our meeting location (which happened to be in front of a bookstore) a little early.  So I went and browsed a little and came upon this book titled 50 Jobs Worse Than Yours.

The Worst 9 Jobs were:

1) Sherpa

2) Afghan Travel Agent

3) Person who operates "It's a Small World"

4) Chick Sexer

5) Saddam Hussein double

6) Fast Food Condiment Prep Cook

7) Telemarketer

8) Cheesecake Tin Quality Control

9) Mop Duty

After hitting #9, I realized I've actually had two of the jobs mentioned above--kind of let out a chuckle and was afraid to go further, figured attorney would be #10. 

If anyone is looking for a funny, light-hearted book to give as a X-mas gift to a co-worker, this book fits the bill.

Christmas Concert

Went to a great Christmas concert yesterday.  Though all the music was outstanding, there is just something about Latin...

O magnum mysterium et admirabile sacramentum, ut animalia videren Dominum natum, jacentum in praesepio! Beata Virgo, cujus viscera meruenrunt portare Dominum Christum.  Alleluia!

O great mystery and wonderous sacrament, that animals see the new-born Lord, lying in a manger!  Blessed Virgin, whose womb was worthy to bear the Lord Christ.  Alleluia!

BYU & Norm Chow

I doubt BYU's fall from the national football scene would have occurred or at least been so precipitous had Norm Chow been retained as head coach.  From Yahoo sports...

He left BYU for North Carolina State a year before Edwards retired, in 2000. That raised eyebrows, because some observers felt Chow was the heir apparent in Provo.

"There had been a change in administrations there, and it was obvious they were not interested in keeping the old guys around, so I left," Chow says. "A lot of people assume I was sitting around waiting for LaVell's job, which is totally wrong. I never did that. I knew the end was near, and I wasn't about to be without a job, so I went out and looked for something."

As a BYU alum, all I can say is what a shame.

North Korean Economic Development

Article by Professor Lankov on "creeping capitalism" in North Korea.  He mentions two interesting groups that might be a possible source for economic development in North Korea--the Japanese-Korean emigres and the ethnic Korean population in China.  As an aside, Professor Lankov is an expert on North Korea and a top-knotch Korean scholar and I've had the opportunity to read some of his work during graduate school.

A creeping revolution, both social and economic, is under way in North Korea and it seems there's no turning back. For decades, the country served as the closest possible approximation of an ideal Stalinist state. But the changes in its economy that have taken place after 1990 have transformed the country completely and, perhaps, irreversibly.

Friedman Editorial in NYT

Friedman has a great piece in the NYT today about Iraq, elections, and the Middle East.

In a nutshell...

The situation in Iraq is a microcosm of what is going on in the whole Middle East today. Everywhere you turn, the debate is over but the fight is not - because determined minorities are determined to thwart the will of majorities, and the majorities are too weak or divided to push back. The vast majority of Israelis want to get out of Gaza, but a determined, potentially violent, fanatical Jewish minority has been holding them back. Among the Palestinians, the debate is over, but the fight is not. Most Palestinians clearly want an end to the conflict with Israel and a chance to live a normal life, but a determined minority from Hamas has been resisting. Most NATO countries (I hope) would prefer a decent outcome in Iraq, but a determined minority, more worried about an American success than an Iraqi failure, is holding NATO back.

Friedman's money line...

"We in Iraq have a lot of disappointment with many of our neighbors," Ghazi al-Yawar, Iraq's interim president, told me the other day while he was visiting Washington. President Yawar described Iraq's neighbors as sitting on a fence "dangling their legs and munching on pistachios," while "the forces of darkness" try to rip Iraq to shreds. "We do not understand why a vicious suicide bomber who claims the lives of innocent civilians is a terrorist in one country and in Iraq he becomes a freedom fighter," added Yawar, a bright and decent man.

Status of Women in Korea

Recent newspaper articles highlight some of the problems women still face in Korea.

1) Gang rape of middle school/high school girls by male high school students.  Recap can be read here and here.  First, the behavior of police officers in the case.

Meanwhile, it has been found that on the same day, Kim (39), a police senior patrolman of South Ulsan police station, insulted “A” [Victim A] in his office, saying, “My hometown is Miryang, and you girls have brought disgrace on the city.’’ The South Ulsan police station is planning to submit Kim to grave disciplinary punishment.

Of course, this type of behavior is not just found in Korea. Unfortunately, it's all too common when any sort of sexual assault/rape occurs.  More often than not, the woman-though the victim-is often assumed to have done something wrong (e.g., dressing in a certain way, drinking too much, etc) or otherwise be at fault.  The above example is even more shocking since it originates from a police officer.

Second, is the behavior of the assailants' parents.  Instead of being shocked by the behavior of their sons they respond by threatnening the victims at the police station.

Prior to this, “A” was beseiged by “H” (22) and other family members of the assailants as she was heading to the police station, receiving threats such as, “Let’s see if you can sleep well after reporting to the police. Watch out.”

Third, is the lack of resources in Korea to assist female victims of either sexual assault or abuse.  As a result, many crimes often go unreported (which is true in the US as well) and when they are reported, Korean women often have to deal with inept investigation by Korean police and a society that views them as damaged or somehow flawed or at fault. 

2) Korean actress Choi Jin-sil is being sued by a construction company b/c of her divorce.

Twenty-five lawyers have volunteered to defend an actress sued by a local construction company for allegedly damaging the firm's image due to her divorce, causing losses to an apartment project.

The suit is based on a clause in her contract with the construction firm (which she advertised for).  The clause reads "not to cause libel damage against the company and its products by losing her social and moral honor."  First, legally this is a big stretch.  Since when does divorce = libel...more specifically, when does divorce cause a loss of honor that leads to a company incurring libel damages...I mean we're talking about a construction company, not an organization that deals with family counseling, marriage, etc...

More importantly is the perception that Choi, who was a victim of domestic violence in her marriage, is somehow at fault for getting divorced.  Though I'm not a fan of divorce in general, it's unfortunate what this lawsuit indicates about Korean culture.  Especially when considering that her ex-husband, a professional baseball player, is not being sued by companies that sponsor him or the team he plays for, even though he is divorced and a wife-beater and brought "dishonor" on his team/sponsoring companies.       

How to Get Girls...

Though I usually don't post stuff like this, I thought it was pretty funny when I read it...who knows, maybe it will help someone out =)

HOW TO GET GIRLS:
[What made me the leading expert?  I'm a girl.  I'd usually keep these secrets sacred, but I don't want to study and I'm feeling particularly generous today]

BE INTERESTING.  Have unusual passions and good taste in music.  Sounds tough, but it's not.  This is mucho importante.  I can't tell you HOW many guys I've given the benefit of the doubt based on this one qualification. 
-- Be passionate about more than basketball or playing acoustic guitar -- boring.   Girls like guys who're a little weird, kinda special.  If you MUST be into sports, please expand your horizons beyond basketball or football.  Don't talk about your fantasy league all the time. 
-- Whatever your passion, be an expert.  Girls like that.  We like when you're smart.  But don't be a smart-ass about it.
-- Music.  Go beyond pop and hip-hop.  Invest in some jazz albums, listen to indy stuff, go back to the source and listen to some classic rock.  There's a ton of good stuff out there.  Tap into some of it.  Chicks love musicians.  Take her to cool shows, tell her the back-story to the lyrics.  She'll think you've got a  cool, sensitive side.       

BE CONFIDENT, BUT QUIET.  You'll seem mysterious.  Build up hype, make her wonder about you.   
-- She'll think she's real special if you decide to talk to her.
-- Don't be an ass, but be an individual -- don't care what everyone else is doing. 

DON'T BE AMBIGUOUS.  Sure, get to know her and become friends, but don't linger in that vague "friends" category.  It gets old.
-- Give her something substantial to talk about with her girlfriends.  Give her girlfriends material to dish and gush about, make her know you're interested, it'll make her more interested too.
-- There's nothing more irritating than a guy who's clueless and pisses all over the toilet seat.  Take aim.

HAVE DIRECTION.  Know what you want.
-- You're too old to be a wanderer.  If you're still wandering now, you're too immature and lost to pursue her.  It's a real turn off.
-- Know what you want in life, know that you like her.  Have backbone about getting the things you want.  Be a man: see what you want and get it.

TALK ABOUT YOUR FAMILY.
-- If you're tight with your family, chances are, you probably come from a good one.  Girls want to make sure you don't come from the family from hell -- that brings extra baggage that she won't want to deal with.
-- If you like your family, chances are, you'll like your future family too.
-- Family man = will be a good dad, won't cheat.
-- But don't talk about your mom too much -- no one likes a mama's boy.
-- Don't rag on your mom's cooking.  It says you're an ingrate son who'll probably hate my cooking too.

GOOD HYGIENE.  You've gotta make sure the girl can stand being near you.
-- Don't smell.
-- Wash your clothes.
-- Sorry, but use lotion if you've got dry skin.  No one likes a flaky guy.
-- Use Head & Shoulders if you need to.
-- If you're asian and are inable to grow substantial facial hair:  SHAVE.  Nothing's grosser than little bits of pubic hair growing out of your face.  On the other hand, if you CAN grow facial hair, go for it.

DRESS WELL, BUT DON'T BE A METRO.
-- When in doubt, wear white t-shirts and jeans.  Can't go wrong there.  Just make sure they're neither too small nor too big.  You're not in junior high anymore, please buy jeans that fit. 
-- Baseball caps are ok, but refrain from wearing them EVERYDAY.
-- When in doubt, ask a gal pal to help you out. 
-- While you don't want to date shallow chicks, even the non-shallow chicks will overlook you if you're unkempt.