Four-rivers project a terrible boondoggle

Well, I'm leaving the country soon and one place I regret not visiting is Taebaek in Gangwondo, the start of two of South Korea's four major rivers.  While in Gangwondo and somewhat afterward, I was a keen observer of the Four Rivers project started by past president Lee Myungbak.  Now the project is mostly finished and considered a mess.  I still want to visit Taebaek, but perhaps the sights will not be as wondrous and natural as they could have.

People became suspicious of the project immediately, not due to evidence of poor planning but due to the connection to a previous proposal.  The first plan was to build a series of locks on the Han and Nakdong Rivers so that goods could travel by ship from Seoul to Busan via Daegu on an inland route.  When there was too much opposition, he proposed similar work for a different purpose.

From the Donga Ilbo, November, 2009:

In his 2007 presidential campaign, President Lee had pledged to build a cross-country canal in Korea, but strong resistance from the opposition and a faction in the ruling Grand National Party prompted him to give up the project to prevent dividing public opinion. He then suggested the restoration of the country’s four major rivers.

To me, this was definitely suspicious, but being ignorant of the details I had to accept that there could be some truth or idealism to President Lee's plan.  This statement of his contains both a reasonable rationale and remarkable naivete:

Some civic groups say that the four-rivers projects will hurt water quality, but it makes little sense to leave already polluted rivers alone without even trying to improve them. As the president remarked, would a head of state carry out a project to deliberately pollute the environment?

And so, at the start of the project, I was suspicious but unable to form a conclusion.  I used the 'foreigner card': "I can't vote here and can't read the relevant technical information; it is not really my country, I guess I'll wait."

One other possible defense of the project was flood control, including maliciously released water from North Korea.  It is not really on point, but here is a link to a post on the subject from 2009.

Before I get to the bad news about the four rivers project, let's look at what Arirang TV had to say.  Follow the link to the video.  Here is the 'About' info:

Published on Apr 29, 2012We take a look at Korea's multi-purpose green growth project, the Four Major Rivers Restoration Project, along with a group of special guests.

Well, Arirang is the national cheerleader station and nothing in the video is wrong.  I'm sure there are beautiful parts of the river and had personally enjoyed the riverside biking trails.  I guess I just feel they left a lot out.

Okay, enough suspense.  What are people saying now that a new report has been released.  Briefly, "Effed-up", "a train wreck" and a "Scathing study".

"Due to faulty designs, 11 out of 16 dams lack sturdiness, water quality is feared to deteriorate... and excessive maintenance costs will be required," the report said.
Silting would require another round of dredging at an estimated cost of 289 billion won, it said.
Driven by tight timetables, work was pushed through without proper inspection and the river bed protection of 15 dams has partially subsided or been washed away.

A common though minor complaint about the work was the algae outbreaks seen after construction.

Global voices reports:

However, mass algae-outbreaks have been reported in several rivers in 2012, which many believe somehow correlate to the construction.

Note the cautious language used.  The best phrase in this regard is "many believe somehow".

The Minister of the Environment rebutted the claim:

The Ministry of Land and Maritime Affairs and the Ministry of Environment convened a joint press conference yesterday. 
They said the reservoirs are strong enough to bear an influx of waters and the algae was not related to the project. 
“The appearance of algae occurred before the construction,” Yoo Young-sook, Minister of Environment, said. “We need to take a long-term perspective in evaluating water because it’s been only a year since the construction was completed. Water quality can be affected by many factors, such as weather conditions.”

While I don't know what the cause of the algal blooms is, they are reported world wide these days so I am willing to accept the minister's defense, for now.

At this point, January 22, it seems President-elect Park Geun-hye is taking a wait-and-see approach. it is probably wiser than leaping in.

As my in-laws farm on a floodplain, I hope the expectations of increased flooding prove exaggerated.

------------

Background at Gangwon Notes.

Seaways, Canadian and Korean

Time to learn about the four rivers project

How could government...

I thought it would change after I left.

Gangwon is apparently full of fatties.

From the Chosun Ilbo:

In the study of data from 9.88 million people who had checkups in 2008, Dong District in Ulsan topped the list with 43 percent of its residents overweight, followed by Yanggu in Gangwon Province with 42 percent.

Four other areas in the Gangwon Province recorded obesity rates of over 40 percent: Inje (3rd place), Yeongwol (5th), Yangyang (7th), and Cheolwon (9th).

Of the 230 administrative areas nationwide, Gangnam and Seocho districts in Seoul ranked the lowest with 28 percent.

I have never noticed any place in Korea having a third of the population obese. I think someone's definition of 'obese' is wrong - it could be mine.

To look for a silver lining, this may mean Gangwon residents are less dependent on pharmaceuticals (wow, I spelled that right on the first try). From the Chosun Ilbo (note the obesity rate and compare it to the above article - consistency, guys!)

Korea's use of slimming pills and appetite suppressants ranks near the top in the world despite an obesity rate of 3.5 percent, only a quarter of the OECD's average 14.6 percent.

Production and import of obesity drug Sibutramine rose 11 times from W4.4 billion in 2003 to W49 billion in 2008 (US$1=W1,140). The market for psychotropic appetite suppressants, which are categorized as narcotics by the International Narcotics Control Board, also grew four-fold.

It is a paradox that one of the skinniest countries in the world consumes the largest amount of diet drugs. In a survey of 1,000 Koreans aged 15 to 59 by Consumers Korea, 86 percent had gone or were on a diet in 2008, while 13 percent said they had resorted to diet pills.

So, are gangwon residents obese? Is the rate 3.5% or 35%?

Volunteering might officially be legal

I couldn't find any reports from the 2006 bust of a group of performers in Busan who were charged with illegally staging a volunteer performance.  Actually, they seemed to be charged with illegally volunteering as the performance was for a charity...I think.  it was well-covered in the k-blogosphere but not be me and now I cannot find any of those posts.  Here is what i quoted from the Korea Times:

Foreigners may face deportation or fines if they volunteer at orphanages or organize performances without reporting them to the authorities.

The interpretation came from Joo Jae-bong, an official at the Ministry of Justice. He said there should be no problem with joining a poetry club but that volunteer activites should be registered with the ministry.

``If it 's just a gathering of friends, there should be no problem,’’ he

said. ``But if they are organizing performances, they need to register to do

those things because they are changing the purpose of their stay here.’’

He said the same rule applies to those who wish to volunteer in an orphanage.

Foreigners need to register those activities with the ministry

some strange formatting there, at least in the editor.  If you can't read it here, follow the link, although there isn't much there.

Anyway, in Friday's Korea Herald, we are told that volunteering is legal, but if you are doing a long-term thing, the immigration office should be told.

According to the Immigration Control Law & Relevant Rules, Chapter 4, Article 20, "When a foreigner staying in Korea intends to engage in activities corresponding to a different status of stay in addition to those activities corresponding to his/her original status of stay, s/he shall obtain permission for activities beyond the current status of stay from the Minister of Justice in advance."

Though no part of the law specifically mentions volunteer work by expats, this clause - as well as rumors circulating in the expat community - has discouraged them from such activities in the past.

...

Baek said that he received advice from a government-run office that volunteering was discouraged, but eventually learned through Korea Immigration Service that it is legal. In fact, he was told Baek that teachers on work visas can not only volunteer, but even receive compensation for transportation and food expenses while volunteering.

"We found it astonishing," Baek said of the experience. "I was even more convinced that I needed to do something about it."

All this took place a year ago, and Baek said he believes that the government agencies that have advised teachers against volunteering no longer do so.

HOPE began its own activities in May 2008. Currently 27 foreign teachers and 20 Koreans are volunteering with the organization, and about 50 have worked with it since it began. Those who volunteer with HOPE sign a three-month contract to teach English to underprivileged children at places like welfare centers and childcare centers who don't have access to English education elsewhere.

HOPE sounds like a good organization to work for, if anyone is interested.

Healthcare- Korea gets quite a bang for its buck

Via Kottke, I found a National Geographic graphic comparing the cost of health care vs the average lifespan for several countries.  As has been in the international news lately, Americans pay so much that they don't fit on the scale, yet have a below average life expectancy.  My summary of how the authors describe the American system is comparing it to auto repair technicians.  The technicians (and health care workers) are paid for piece-work so they recommend medical services that are optional or cosmetic rather than life-span enhancing.

Even more remarkable is how South Korea's health system appears.  Americans pay, on average over $7000 per year for a life expectancy of 78 years, Canadians pay almost $4000 for 81 years, yet South Koreans pay less than $1700 per person for 79 years life expectancy. (click to enlarge)

This is great, but recent problems that have been described in the English K-blogosphere show a weakness in the Korean system.

John Yost broke his back -and I don't blame him, his actions were done to help others- by engaging in extreme sports.  He needs $50,000 to pay for his surgery.

Matt Robinson needed surgery to save his leg.  Expensive surgery.  Shamefully, I have not followed up on his predicament and can only hope he is okay now.

Bill Kapoun and Nerine Viljoen died after sustaining serious injuries here.  I am not certain that money would have saved their lives or sped up surgery and I don't want to suggest that doctors were waiting for money before performing life-saving surgery.  So far as I know the Korean medical system offered the best care possible.  Still, if Kapoun or Viljoen had survived, they would have been under crushing debt.

Despite what Michael Moore said in Sicko (I haven't seen it but have heard clips), Canadian health care isn't in great shape; it is merely limping along.  However, if I needed expensive surgery, I would get it and not suffer from horrible debt afterward.

K'brian was wrong about 'Slow Cities'

In March of this year, I discussed the Slow City movement in Korea.  A 'slow city' - which could be a small town, I think the translation from Italian is a little misleading - is an idyllic place where people live as they have for centuries, in a quiet, peaceful place where everyone knows their neighbors and nobody hurries.

This sounds very nice, but the examples I looked at in March were of slow moving town which were slow because the young people had left and people were dirt-poor and insufficiently educated to find better work.

Today's Joongang has an article that works to change my mind somewhat.  It describes  a slow city that is attracting tourism with its relaxed ways and is working to be successful; quiet, but successful.

It does sound like a pleasant place but I hope it is more than a gimmick.  Should visiting these slow cities feel like visiting an Amish colony in the US?

Anyway, Korea has slow cities that are 'slow' by choice and not by economic failure.  I was wrong.

HT to Bizarro Brian.

Clownfish

In an interesting coincidence, I received January's National Geographic with an article on clownfish about the same time I read the Dong-A's article on the Finding Nemo star.

The Nat Geo article (which I read in hardcopy- I don't know the exact contents of the online version.  The magazine photos are fantastic) mostly describes the symbiosis between the clownfish and the host anemone., but also mentions how the movie's success has lead to some locations being fished out to supply the aquarium trade.

Beautiful Friendship

 

(image from the National Geographic article)

The Dong-A article mostly describes how the fish are new arrivals to the area, possibly due to increased water temperatures which are making Jeju waters sub-tropical.

both articles are interesting and mostly well written, although the Dong-A briefly reaches Korea Times-quality editing:

A scuba diver said he witnessed a 30-meter long green sea turtle, which is likely to spend winter in neighboring waters.

That's one Hell of a sea-turtle!

updates on e-books

Three of Korea's online English papers discuss e-books today (well, still in the headlines today - the articles could be a day or two old).

The Herald describes how e-books and reader devices have helped the publishing industry:

The year started off poorly for booksellers.

The outlook for the overall publishing market was largely negative in January. The economy was in the doldrums, and readers put off book purchases.

Kyobo, the country's biggest bookstore chain, said its preliminary yearly sales rose 8.9 percent from 2008, helped by the stronger-than-expected revenue from e-book sales. The lackluster figure illustrates that books sold in electronic form were the main drivers for growth.

While offline book sales remain stagnant, publishers and IT companies began to pay attention to the potential of e-books. Even though there have been a handful of attempts to kick-start the potentially huge market in the past few years, writers, readers and publishers have not paid much attention. That changed dramatically this year.

Device makers such as Samsung Electronics and iriver introduced new e-book readers, raising the possibility that Korea might see a boom in the new platform in the near future following the success of Amazon.com's the Kindle in the United States.

The Joongang discusses how Sony has chosen to keep it's reader device dedicated to reading, and not add a variety of other features.

NEW YORK - The way Howard Stringer sees it, Sony’s digital e-readers should focus on the printed word and making reading “comfortable,” even though the consumer electronics giant could turn it into a multimedia machine. Stringer, chief executive of Japan’s Sony Corp, admits there is a lot of “energy” behind Amazon.com’s Kindle, which is seen as the leader in a burgeoning market for portable reading devices. 

As speculation grows that Apple Inc. may introduce a tablet-style computer that could also address the e-reader market, Sony could differentiate itself by adding more powerful chips, displays and media features to the pocket sized readers. 

But Stringer says that, given the nascence of the market, it is smarter to wait and see how consumer warm to the current makeup of the devices. 

“The consumer will tell us if this format is comfortable and helpful and convenient and all those things before you start plowing on a thousand apps or making the ‘Vaio Reader,’” Stringer said on the sidelines of a press conference in New York on Thursday. 

Although I do like the idea of carrying one device that can do everything, in practice it often seems a challenge for me to shift between features or use two at once.  I guess people better at multi-tasking will feel differently, but I don't mind the idea of having a device that only offers books (and magazines and textbooks...) for reading.  If I want to jog or walk with music or a podcast, I won't want to carry a full-size e-book reader, so I'll need a dedicated MP3 player anyway.

The Times describes a serious problem with using e-book readers in class.  Korea has worked to set up electronic whiteboards - that function as a computer screen you can write on -and e-books for the students to carry that will be lighter than a stack of textbooks.  Those textbooks are copyrighted and the copyright holders aren't interested in offering the material in an easily copiable format.

The government plans to have digital devices replace books and blackboards in schools, a transition it claims will open a new chapter in education. However, the ambitious e-learning initiative appears to have been derailed from the start, with a problem that is less about technology than it is with content. 

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology has spent 300 billion won (about $255 million) to install "electronic blackboards," or interactive monitors for showing electronic content, in 256 middle and high schools across the country.

However, these neat screens don't see much use in classrooms, as the e-book content to replace printed textbooks is non-existent. 

Critics ridicule the government for putting the cart before the horse, spending lavish money on the e-learning equipment when there has been little progress in plans to convert state-authorized textbooks into digital formats. 

It does seem poor planning to spend all that money to set up the framework and not check up on the content.  Still, there will be no e-book content if there are no e-book readers.  Perhaps the government were attempting to be visionaries, leading the market and the market itself failed in taking advantage of the opportunity.

I've been writing a lot in the last few weeks about e-books but still have no plan to buy one.  Partly, the price is holding me back and partly the range of books and their prices are holding me back.   I don't understand how a paper version of a book is only a little more expensive than the e-version.  There is no need to print the books or store them or transport them; the price should be significantly lower.

Solving the birthrate crisis.

Birthrate incentives need to focus of returning women to the workforce.

Korea's incredibly low birthrate has been in the news a lot lately and I recently promised a serious post on the subject.  I will try to keep this post 'serious' but I am not sure how deep or authoritative it will be.  It may be serious in tone, but not so much in length.  alright, it is finished and it is a serious length, I would say.

From the Herald:

The government will soon launch a nationwide anti-abortion campaign and aggressively seek more foreigners to come and settle down here as part of efforts to keep the country's population from shrinking, a presidential council said Wednesday.

According to Yonhap News, the move comes as the country again marked one of the lowest birthrates in the world this year.

Let me start with the bad.  I am moderately pro-choice: there are good reasons to have an abortion and there are terrible reasons for having an abortion.  With one exception, I would like to separate this the subject of abortion from birthrate.  That exception is abortion due to the gender of the fetus.  I may return to this point later.

The plans to increase immigration are interesting.  I've been in Korea for a long time, possibly too long, but am not sure how educated I am about the culture (Two humourous links on the subject: asktheexpat, dokdoisours - back to serious-stuff) but this contradicts everything I know about minjok and keeping bloodlines pure.  I like the idea of Korea being more multi-cultural and being more a part of the world than it currently is, but it's clear we aren't thinking about birthrates anymore.

From the Times:

Recognizing the grave nature of this matter, the Presidential Council for Future and Vision proposed Wednesday a package of measures to lift the birthrate and provide support for childcare and education. One of the steps is to offer incentives for families with three or more children which include special interest rates on their mortgages. Third or additional children can also receive bonus scores on college entrance exams and job applications

...

The government has so far announced a series of different measures to promote marriages and childbirth to avert a looming population crisis. But we have to admit that those measures have proven to be unsuccessful at producing tangible results.

The Times also mentions immigration and the seriousness of Korea's low birthrate, but that's not the focus of this post.

The news about mortgages and universities is definitely part of this post.

I can't hold back from saying that it is so weird reading about such a strong government involvement in increasing the birthrate, when in the recent past, having more than one child in China would invite negative government involvement.

Alright, mortgage relief does sound like a good idea and it directly addresses the problem of finding a home big enough for a large family.  Scholarship and financial assistance would also help.  On the other hand, boosting a university entrance exam score and moving a job application higher in it's queue sound terrible.

The Chosun describes two reasons for the low birthrate.  The first is the high cost of raising a child, and the second, related, is the high cost of being a senior citizen:

Advanced countries offer comprehensive welfare benefits. They not only support the cost of raising children, but also guarantee the financial stability of elderly citizens after retirement. But the situation is quite different for the average Korean worker, who faces the constant threat of layoffs, may have already cashed in his pension, and lives in a nation where programs such as annuity insurance to prepare for life after retirement are just budding. Everyone feels pressured to have fewer children so they can save for retirement.

Here is a point that sounds exactly right to me.  I already see myself working until I am grey and bent over, then moving into a grim storage locker for my final days.  I will spend whatever it takes to raise a great child, but fear the cost of a second child.

We've heard enough from the papers; here are my thoughts.

I like the increased immigration plan for a variety of reasons.  It will bring more productive people to Korea and possibly decrease overpopulation elsewhere.  There might be a win-win thing going here and that always feels good.  I hope that immigrants can send some money home and take home some expertise to further assist other countries.  Unfortunately, this would dilute Korean stock and culture - while I don't have much respect for 'pure blood', I don't like the homogenization, the McDonald'sification  of the world.  I guess this is a luxury that we must do without to better care for our seniors.

While I do like the financial aid, I don't think it is fixing the specific limiting reagent involved.  I am a feminist and know that, in my profession, women are at least as capable as I.  Yet, somehow, women must be convinced to give up a year of professional growth, and probably longer.  Indeed, it almost has to be longer; after a year away from work, upon her return, a women might reasonably be less efficient than a man who has not taken time from work.  Presuming this is a traditional family with a wife and husband, it makes better financial sense for the man to keep working and the woman to stay home as long as is best for the child.

I love my son and love most of the time I spend with him but I also enjoy working and my job.  Most women feel the same way, I expect.  If a woman is being asked to have two or three or more children, that is a long time away from the workforce.

All this means women need educational and employment assistance for themselves as much as their children do.

--

Near the top of this post I mentioned abortion and new restrictions.  I can see that a lack of abortion services might raise the birthrate, but I foresee not only more children, but more miserable children.  I felt this way in the post leading up to this one - it described plans to lower the minimum age to enter school.  As a childish adult, I want to see happier children; children who are able to enjoy childhood, more than I want to see more children in general.  The Times touches on this point with "some education experts express concerns that the measure may bring about side effects such as children's difficulty in adapting themselves to school life at a younger age. They point out that education should not be tackled only from the point of economic efficiency."

E-books in the classroom

I have mentioned E-books and their readers (by 'reader', I mean the electronic device, like Amazon's Kindle.  Hmm, I wonder how many ---er words now refer to electronics, rather than people.  Computer, Rice steamer, Typewriter....) at least once on this blog, and have been considering getting one for years.

Although my Korean language studies have stalled, I think e-book readers would be great: many allow you to store a book and an MP3.  You could easily read and listen at the same time.

Also, as an opinionated person, I often want some evidence close-to-hand to support my claims.

Finally, I love to read and even if a book file were as expensive as a paper book, I would save on postage.  If/when I start my Masters, having the necessary books in a convenient device instead of going without-
I am unlikely to visit the University in question often - will be very valuable.

The Korean Ministry of Education, Science and Technology is looking at e-books for Elementary school students.

Korea envisions digital school books ushering in a new chapter in education. Now, if only government authorities could find a company to make e-book readers for the schools to use.

The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology is planning to spend 18 billion won (about $15.5 million) to establish e-book infrastructures in 110 schools in rural communities around the country, where the digital transition is to be tested first. 

However, there are concerns that the project could be derailed. The consortium that the government picked to provide the e-book readers, led by LG Dacom (LG Group's fixed-line telephony unit) and American computer giant Hewlett Packard (HP), is showing signs of bailing. 

More than 9,800 e-book devices are required for the project, and the government insists it won't be spending more than 1.1 million won for each unit. However, LG Dacom and HP are finding it hard to keep the price of the device below 1.3 million won.

Another company offered to build the readers for 900,00 but they offered "an inferior device".  I would love to see the readers in question.  The top-of-the-line Kindle goes for around 400,000 won so I guess these ones would have homework and some interactive capabilities.  a commenter at the Korea Times article described how American test users were unhappy with the ability to take notes.  I think most readers have some bookmarking, and highlighting functions as well as the ability to take some notes.

The Herald is also looking at e-book readers:

For starters, Samsung Electronics, the country's biggest electronics firm, unveiled an e-reader that attempts to mimic what Amazon's Kindle can do, except for the U.S.-based bookseller's already sizable library. The smaller yet recognizable Korean firm iriver, known for its MP3 players, also put out a similar e-reader armed with a 6-inch screen and QWERTY keypad.

The e-book reader initiatives by the major device makers have helped create a growing list of news articles about the fledgling market in recent weeks, and Korean publishers are now duly set to focus on the topic of digital publication in the forthcoming Paju Bookcity Forum (www.pajubookcity.org), which will kick off its two-day run on Nov. 19 under the theme of "Evolution of Books & Future of Digital Publication."

...

...experts said the e-book market in Korea will confront many difficulties before taking off. Among the thorniest issues are the standardization of e-book formats and new practices for copyright arrangements regarding e-books and other new platforms.

Baek Won-keun, chief researcher of Korean Publishing Research Institute, said that publishers will struggle for a while to come up with a viable vision about the act of reading itself at a time when other options such as video gaming, Web surfing and mobile texting are widely available. "At the heart of the problem is that people are spending less time reading books in general and we have to think about whether we can persuade them to read books again by offering a digital version."  

Although standardization is an important issue, the thorniest issue I know of is sharing books and efforts to stop same.
At No substance, All Eloquence, Clay discusses the problems with Digital Rights Management (DRM, software that controls what rights you have toward your MP3 files, e-books, and videos).  Quoted with original bolding:

So long as DRM is used in digitally delivered literature, it will never be “permanent” in the way a wood pulp-based text is. So long as its possession is revocable, an e-book will only ever exist as a disposable, ephemeral set of data, unsuitable for the sort of long-term collection we build upon our bookshelves.

Did someone talk about DRM?  Cory Doctorow must not be far away.
Hmm, after a second glance, it is still Boingboing, which Doctorow is editor of, but Rob Breschizza wrote the article I am currently looking at.

I recently talked to Sony's Steve Haber, President of Digital Reading, about its flagship ebook reader. Named the "Daily Edition," it hits stores next month. Notwithstanding differences between each manufacturer's respective libraries, it offers all the best features of its main rival, the Kindle. But Sony says it offers one thing that Amazon won't: actual ownership of your books.

Breschizza also compares a few readers:

Sony's new reader also features a 9" display, page-changing swipe gestures, annotations and a cellular connection to download new titles on the go. At $400, however, it's as pricey as the top-of-the-line Kindle DX that it resembles; Sony already has a new generation of cheaper e-readers out which lack the fancy features and big screen.

Barnes and Noble announced its own reader, the Nook, a few weeks ago. At $260, it's competitively priced and has a secondary LCD display. It also focuses hard on consumer-friendly features that Amazon seems unwilling to indulge: in its case, books can be shared between devices and even with friends. Not all books will be available, and shares are limited to 14 days at a time.

I remain interested in buying one and I like iriver's other products but it remains difficult to choose.  The keys are 1) owning the book (or it being clear that I don't), 2) able to read a variety of formats - I want to read text files, PDFs, HTML and whatever formats Amazon and others use and 3) the ability to take notes easily.  I don't need many other features - I am willing to do my up and down loading connected to my computer so I don't need wireless capabilities - but having an included MP3 player would be nice.

No flu, flu and Bird Flu/ no jets today

Editted before posting: The links are good. I had to search for sentences in the article, and google gave me full URLs for linking purposes.

I am using my old computer at work. I seem unable to see the full links for newspaper articles. The URLs I am using here for linking are only to the newspaper main page. I'm sorry but you'll have to hunt through to find the articles I am describing. I will edit the post this evening to include links.
From the Dong-a, I learned there is no swine flu in North Korea:

North Korea officially refers to swine flu as new influenza, but many in the North call it swine flu because of international media.

The communist country said yesterday that it has no cases of the flu so far, adding it has no reason to hide any flu outbreaks.

Pak Myong Su, in charge of infectious disease control at the North’s Health Ministry, told the Japan-based daily Chosun Shinbo Oct. 14, “A weakened health infrastructure doesn’t lead to the outbreak of the new flu. If so, this will not undermine our image.”

I recall the communist countries of Europe denying that AIDS existed in their pure and more-wholesome countries. They certainly feared that news of such diseases would undermine their image. Of course, it would be challenging to undermine my image of North Korea.
I was interested to read, though, that it was known by the public as swine flu because of 'international media'. I guess international bad news is transmitted there.

Elsewhere in the article, I learned that there is a new flu from China that medicines don't work on and that North Korean doctors don't have the ability (testing materials or knowledge, I don't know) to recognize the swine flu. But there is no swine flu in North Korea. And it there were, it wouldn't reflect badly on them.

There is swine flu in South Korea but today is the University Entrance Exam and there is no second chance to take it. You take it today or you wait a year.

From the Joongang:

High school seniors nationwide had their temperatures checked at schools where they gathered for last-minute preparations yesterday, and re-takers underwent the checkup process at regional education offices. Some 677,000 people, up 18 percent from last year, will be taking the state test, which will decide their college admission next spring.

Under the Education Ministry guidelines, there will be two separate rooms at each school acting as a CSAT venue for students who are confirmed with and suspected of having the flu.

Each room can house between 15 and 28 students. Some 14,000 teachers nationwide who have been selected as supervisors of the flu rooms have been vaccinated. Anyone showing flu symptoms during the test will be relocated to the separate rooms.

Wow! "Yes, we know you have swine flu and, hysterical exaggerations aside, it can kill you. You can take the test in that room, over there. Feel a little dizzy? Just hang onto the sides of the desk a moment. We'll give you until six PM to finish the exam. You can see a doctor or take your medicine after that."

Although my sympathies go out to all the Entrance Exam takers today, I particularly feel for the sick ones. Fighting!
I am thrilled though, to be teaching today without the frequent roar of fighter jets training overhead. The whole country changes it's behaviors to allow the students the best conditions to work.

I don't know if the migration patterns of birds are responsible but bird flu virus has been found in South Korea recently. From the Chosun (and a good link!):

The resurgence of bird flu in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province is causing concerns to health authorities as the H1N1 flu scare continues. A low pathogenic bird-flu virus was found in excrement of migratory birds in a reservoir in Chuncheon. Despite the low infectiousness, health authorities claim they cannot rule out danger to humans or mutation and pledged to stay alert.

The worst-case scenario is that patients infected with the H1N1 virus could additionally contract bird flu, leading to a mutation that gives rise to a new supervirus. "But that doesn't necessarily mean that a new form of virus will be formed when the bird flu virus appears amid the spread of H1N1 virus," a health official said. "But if that did actually happen, the situation we've seen so far would be a mere shadow of what lies ahead. That's why we have to take preventive measures."

Viruses can share genetic information so I guess a 'supervirus' could be created. As I recall (Bird Flu is so 2005), bird flu wasn't very contagious between people. You could catch it from a bird but not spread it to other humans. Simply making it infectious among humans would be a big step toward 'supervirus' status.

Remembrance Day

There were a lot of kids buying Ppeppero at the store this evening. Ppeppero Day sounds like a fun day and not more commercial than Christmas, just more focussed on what should be bought.

For me, on the other hand, it is Remembrance Day. Image from Wikipedia.

Canadian-style poppy worn on lapel

Also from Wikipedia:

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

— Lt.-Col. John McCrae (1872 - 1918)

There was more on a Canadian veteran's website.

I know that a few people from my hometown fought here in Korea. I regret that I cannot find the photo I took of the memorial at Memorial Park in Bracebridge.

Guess its time to learn what the four river project actually is.

This seems like a difficult project for a westerner, particularly a Canadian, to accurately judge the value of. My country is thinly populated and we have a surplus of water. Korea, on the other hand, is densely populated and inland Gangwondo has suffered severe water shortages in recent times. I do want to protect ecosystems, but people are part of the ecosystem and we naturally have to count ourselves as at least as important as the other parts. Further, Korean rivers don't run steadily through the year. When water flows increase, they can increase dramatically and cause flood damage.

From the Times:

Korea's 22 trillion-won civil engineering project, aimed at restoring the basin areas of four major rivers, has passed an environmental impact assessment test, giving momentum to a project critics argue will devastate the country's ecosystem.

From the Joongang:

The controversial four-river restoration project will begin tomorrow following an announcement that the government-led evaluation of the environmental impact of the project was completed last Friday, according to the Land Ministry yesterday.

The report concludes that the quality of the water in the rivers will have improved on [I think they mean 'improved to 2006"] 2006 levels after the project has been completed in 2011, the ministry said.

From the Donga:

President Lee Myung-bak’s project to restore the country’s four major rivers will finally begin this week with the construction of 15 dams to start Tuesday.

The venture has long faced resistance from opposition parties but is set to proceed this week. With the completion of the government assessment of the project, operations are expected to be accelerated.

In his 2007 presidential campaign, President Lee had pledged to build a cross-country canal in Korea, but strong resistance from the opposition and a faction in the ruling Grand National Party prompted him to give up the project to prevent dividing public opinion. He then suggested the restoration of the country’s four major rivers.

The Donga article seems to best summarize why the project is controversial. Building fifteen dams seems a strange way to help river ecosystems recover, and the apparent connection in the final quoted paragraph is what seems most ominous. No canal? Okay, let's call it river restoration.

H1N1 prevention measures: good work Korea

According to the Korea Times (my bolding) "South Korea's health authorities Tuesday reported two more deaths from the H1N1 virus infection, bringing the nation's flu death toll to 20."

I can accept that any death is one too many, but compare the death toll from Korea, population 50 million+, to that of Canada, population 32 million (my bolding):

FluWatch, will be published every Friday at 4 p.m. to provide a detailed analysis of the impact of the H1N1 flu virus in Canada. Bi-weekly and cumulative number of deaths due to Pandemic (H1N1) 2009, by province/territory, Canada, as of 15 October, 2009, 11h00 EDT

...Total 80

Ontario alone has had 25 deaths.

I understand that the flu appears to have started in Mexico (that's still the consensus, right?) and Canada shares a continent and a free trade agreement with Mexico so people and products are more likely to cross into Canada, but this might be support for the measures Korea has taken.

I didn't care for Korea's prevention measures and didn't like having a thermometer stuck in my ear when I got to work, but it may have saved lives.

hmmm... Sounds good. (2)-F1 racing Jeollanam

In Jeollanam Province, plans are underfoot for an F1 Grand Prix race track and events.

Here are some excerpts from the Joongang with my commentary.

...How does the South Jeolla provincial government plan to sell some 130,000 tickets?

A. ...We intend to sell up to 100,000 tickets to locals and around 30,000 to 40,000 to foreign tourists. The 2002 World Cup in Sangam, western Seoul, had crowds of up to 65,000. Given this past experience, we are not worried about ticket sales.

I am not an auto racing fan but I am sure there are many. Still, I don't think that the Seoul World Cup Stadium is a good example. To my knowledge, it is not chronically underused. I suspect there will be many people eager to attend the first car races, and even one or two -or even ten- races a year. I also have to wonder about more local stadiums. Why didn't they discuss the success -or lack- of Jeonju, Daejeon or Gwangju stadiums?

(Answer to a different question):

We will keep the hat-shaped circuit in the north running more than 200 days of the year by attracting other existing motor events such as A1 Grand Prix, F3 Grand Prix, Kart racing and drag racing.

I suspect they can find people to use the track 200+ days a year, but would be surprised (pleasantly, I really would like it to succeed) if it were profitably used 200 days a year.

(Regarding the distance from Seoul and Incheon Airport)

Both locals and foreigners take four- to five-hour road trips to get to Silverstone in England and Magny-Cours in France for Grand Prix events. The distance seems like a big deal for us Koreans, but it isn’t. We intend to focus on the “fun” part of going back and forth between Yeongam and other tourist attractions across Korea. We are in the middle of developing tourism products such as temple stay programs and cruises along Yeongam’s coast, which is surrounded by dozens of islets.

I can see four and five hour road trips for 'events', but there are unlikely to be "200" events a year. Still, this response has the most encouraging news. The organizers do seem to be looking at tourism in Jeollanam as a whole, rather than considering the F1 racing in a vacuum.

I do want the enterprise to succeed but we've already seen the World Cup Stadiums, empty since 2002, and various airports, empty since they opened.

Hmmm... Sounds good.

A few months ago, I helped, in a marginal way, with producing motivational slogans for an organization in Gangwondo. Based on the way it was described and the examples they gave from other groups, it seemed they felt slogans would be more cost effective than actually fixing things or making improvements. Improve attitudes and you don't need to improve facilities.

The Dong-a notes that,

To encourage childbirth, the Health, Welfare and Family Affairs Ministry has announced six slogans.

Here are two that particularly seemed interesting.

“Childbirth is touching, childcare is rewarding, and families are happy”; “The joy of childbirth, growing happiness, younger Korea”

I am the father of a usually wonderful boy and the highs I feel when things go right are very high. My son can make many things go right. He can make a similar number of things go wrong, however. My understanding is that parents experience highs and positive emotions in greater intensity than the childless can but that we also experience as much or more time at the negative side of the scale. Dealing with temper tantrums, endless negotiations for everyday things - everyday* - and guilt when you feel happy to get away for a time are all part of parenting, too.

I'm satisfied with being a parent and don't want to stop; being a parent is now part of how I define myself. Still, I'm not wearing rose-colored glasses; "families are happy" is an oversimplification, at best.

My favourite slogan, though, is the second one listed. "The joy of childbirth" -ha, ha, ha.

-------

* Every night, I spend ten or more minutes working to convince the little one to brush his teeth, or, more accurately, to let me brush them. Every night, there are tears - only his, but I sometimes want to shed a few, too.

-------

Not completely on topic: Kevin recently summarized a review of a book about over-dependance on positive thinking.

Friends in the Herald

Two ex-coworkers were featured in the Korea Herald for their investing skills.

With no prior experience in investing, William McRoberts went into a securities company office about seven years ago and started a profitable hobby.

The securities company he invested with had a branch located on the same floor as the hagwon where he was teaching, so one day the Canada native went in and bought 200,000 won worth of stock in a Korean conglomerate.

That didn't buy a huge amount of shares, but by the time he chose to sell them, he got 540,000 won back. This has since become a trend for McRoberts, who is now a high school teacher in Gyeonggi Province who estimates that he's doubled his money since he started investing here.

McRoberts typically invests in common stock, as opposed to preferred stock, which carries priority in the payment of dividends, but doesn't see nearly as much change in value.

...

Daniel Costello, originally from Canada, first came to Korea in 1996 and started investing in mutual funds more than 10 years ago.

"Investing started because I had extra money and it became part of my monthly routine," he said. While it began to help him pay his debts, "When you get into the habit of paying off your debts you have this money left over."

Costello enjoys investing in mutual funds from Korea because "your income is totally your own and you don't have to declare anything until you become a resident (of your home country) again," he said.

In addition, he calls Korea "one of the better countries" with regards to taxes: While his home country taxes 35 percent on income, Korea's taxes are at 5-10 percent.

Nice work. I wonder if they are in the lending mood.

Searching for bike trails

This is great news - if only I didn't register my car today and so never expect to ride again!

The Donga Ilbo reports that "

The Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry said yesterday that it will search for 4,000 kilometers of coastal roads for pedestrians and bicyclers to promote the two activities at fishing villages." ... The ministry will introduce the selected places in its pictorial magazine’s December edition. The magazine will also contain information on 100 fishing villages, major fishing ports and coastal tourist attractions. A thousand copies of the magazine will go to libraries at major universities across the country, provincial and municipal government offices, and tourist information booths.

The Joongang has also reports on the news with the interesting title of "bike path to link coastline". I wonder what it will be linked to.

visit Happy Bikers (Korean) and Sea Tour (also in Korean) for more information, including maps when the routes are finalized.

5-Day markets in Korea

The Joongang Ilbo has an article about 5-day markets; usually farm produce and supply markets, that go on in rural Korea. These markets usually run every fifth day, not for five days straight or any such crazy thing.

Interestingly, Yangyang's O-Il jang ('oh' as in the sound of the letter is five, 'il' is 'day' and 'jang' is 'market') is not on the list. I suppose it is too small, although I have always enjoyed it.

Below is a description of five day markets and the days they run. Yangyang, not on the list, would listed as (4,9 jang) because its market runs on days with a four or a nine.

If you want to learn about five day markets in your region, follow the above link.
For more about Yangyang's unduly snubbed market look here or here.

Gangwon Province

4. Jeongseonjang (2.7 jang) - Here, the market is also a popular tourist attraction.

5. Donghae Bukpyeongjang (3.8 jang) - This is the largest five-day market in the Yeongdong area.

6. Pyeongchang Bongpyeongjang (2.7 jang) - Tens of thousands of people gather at this market in September when buckwheat flowers bloom.

I don't care who's #1, do we beat ....?

Here in Korea, the title would finish with "Japan".

I am not sure if I have mentioned Korea's apparent inferiority complex regarding Japan on this blog, but if not it is only because that is quickly one of the basic assumptions or filters every foreigner uses when interpreting Korean politics and attitudes. Birds gotta fly, tigers gotta hunt and Koreans gotta talk about beating Japan.

With Canadians, the same is true but the question would end with 'the US'.
From Yahoo Canada News:

UN index rates life best in Norway, worst in Niger; Canada is at 4th place

BANGKOK - Norway enjoys the world's highest quality of life, while Niger suffers the lowest, a United Nations agency said Monday, as it released a ranking that highlights the wide disparities in well-being between rich and poor countries.

Canada was listed fourth, well ahead of the United States which was in 13th place.

Some rankings are given on Wikipedia (No UN results came up on the first page of a Google search for "united nations quality of life ranking"). Sadly Korea (#26) is listed as significantly below Japan (#10).

So, Who's hosting next year's G20 summit?

One of these reports is not like the others.

From the Korea Times (Sept 25):

Incheon is emerging as the potential host city of the Group of 20 summit in 2010 with South Korea becoming the first Asian country to hold a gathering of the influential economic council next fall.

From the Herald (Sept 26):

Korea has been chosen as the venue for the next Group of 20 summit, which is to become the world's main economic forum, a Cheong Wa Dae official said yesterday.

Leaders of major developed and developing countries during the third financial summit in Pittsburgh agreed to Seoul's hosting of the next meeting in 2010, the official said.

From Yonhap (Sept 25):

WASHINGTON, Sept. 25 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's hosting of the G20 summit next year will be a boon to its image as well as its economy, equivalent in prestige to the Seoul Olympics in 1988, a scholar said Friday.

From the Bracebridge Examiner (Ontario, Canada, K'Brian's hometown, Sept 25):

My bolding:

Muskoka will be welcoming more countries than expected this June.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper officially announced this morning that Canada and South Korea will be co-hosting a G20 Summit in Muskoka, the focus of which will be the economy.

The summit will take place either immediately before or after the scheduled G8 Summit at the Deerhurst Resort in Huntsville and may be held at the same location.

“This is a great honour for Muskoka and for Canada,” said Parry Sound-Muskoka member of Parliament Tony Clement, who hosted a press conference with Huntsville mayor Claude Doughty following the prime minister’s announcement. “The eyes of the world will be on Muskoka and mark my words we will be ready for that.”

According to Clement, plans to host the G20 have been in the works for some time but a decision came to a head during the G20 Summit in Pittsburgh, held late this week.

The South Korean government was scheduled to host a G20 Summit in April but has rescheduled it to the fall in order to co-host it with Canada.

I suppose there could be more than one G 20 summit, but it sounds, from the Canadian report, that it will be a shared summit. {half amused, pseudo outrage}They don't care about Canada!{/}