And even if there is a calculation behind it, his statements still carry much significance outside of what is practical for the country.
There are times when what is right aligns with what is pragmatic.
And considering what Israel is doing, and continues to do,
this is one of those times.
But of course, having been a human rights lawyer, he likely deeply empathizes with the plight of Palestinians. When he was the mayor of Seongnam, he once said on social media that every time you drink Starbucks, you should remember part of that money goes toward weapons used against Palestinians.
Not to mention how Israel's actions in Lebanon have actively threatened the ceasefire.
In this context, Lee’s recent stance toward Israel can be seen as a pragmatic choice to stabilize Korea’s economic position. Perhaps to signal to countries like Iran that Korea does not support Israel’s actions.
That was how Korea was able to rebound quickly and sustain strong growth through the 70s when much of the global economy was struggling, achieving record levels of export and GDP.
A similar situation is now unfolding. The ongoing instability in the Strait of Hormuz is threatening Korea’s economy.
This succeeded. Arab states opened the doors of economic opportunities for Korean companies that went to the middle east for partnerships. In 1976, Hyundai won the contract to build the Jubail Industrial Port, at a value of 930 million dollars, equivalent to 1/4 of Korea’s annual budget at the time.
So in a move of pragmatism, Park Chung-hee distanced himself from Israel and courted the Arab states in order to secure oil supply. As part of this, Park donated a piece of land in Itaewon to the Korea Muslim Federation for the construction of the Seoul Central Mosque, the first mosque in Korea.
When the oil shock happened after the OAPEC announced it was implementing a total embargo against countries that had supported Israel at any point during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Korea suffered heavily as a result. The annual inflation rate spiked to around 20-25% by 1975.
While Lee Jae Myung's criticism of Israel is refreshing and welcome, it is also one of pragmatism, because this isn't the first time that a Korean president has distanced Israelis for the sake of securing oil supply. Park Chung-hee did this in the 70s for the sake of Korea's economic future.
So the bar for a world leader's conduct is now apparently at: 'publicly threaten genocide'
The sound of 성덕대왕신종 (The Sacred Bell of Great King Seongdeok) almost charted on the Billboard (but didn't because of the rules).
BTS made a sound created in the 8th century go global in 2026.
This is an absurd level of spreading authentic Korean culture.
They truly have nothing left to prove.
BTS: The Return confirmed that they completely understood the essence of Arirang.
아리랑은 우리가 하고 싶은게 아리랑이다
What we want to do is what Arirang is
우리의 아리랑이다
This is our Arirang
That is exactly the core spirit behind the cultural heritage that is Arirang.
Korean men have this thing where they're more forgiving to celebrities who went to the army, especially if they did without any problems. Has nothing to do with me technically, but I still find myself thinking this way somehow.
For fellow Montrealers, two Asian Canada Reads Longlisters, Rachel Phan and Clarissa Trinidad Gonzalez, are coming to Montreal for a special discussion about what it means to be a diaspora writer in Canlit today. Happening at the lovely Saint Henri Bookstore!
RSVP: www.eventbrite.ca/e/asian-dias...
My Korean instinct is that whenever I hear criticisms of BTS my first answer is:
Yeah, but they're 군필 (went to the military)
Emerged from deadline cave and learned that Kpop Demon Hunters won two Academy Awards so that was a good way to start my short break before I go back into my next deadline cave.
🚨 IT'S ELECTION DAY 🚨
This is it. Today decides everything.
Let's make it count: Knock doors, make calls, talk to your friends, and make sure everyone you know in IL-09 makes their voice heard!
Happy St. Patrick's Day, New York.
All market futures are pointing down, while bombmakers like Lockheed and Raytheon are up.
This is free capital at work, since capital flows to where returns are highest. At least that's the theory.
Which means as of the moment, the returns are highest in 'literally killing people.'
Korean citizens have been nominated for Nobel Peace Prize for defending democracy against martial law.
Since Trump foams at his mouth for the Nobel, it humors me to picture a fictional matchup between
'The people who eat authoritarian presidents for breakfast'
vs
'The menu item on that breakfast'
Yoon has been sentenced to life in prison. And of course, he'll likely receive a special pardon from the president. That's what happened to the others who went to prison.
But beyond that the Korean people finally have justice for what was done, please take note.
This is what should happen. Always.
Passage from Oxford Soju Club by Jinwoo Park —- Canadian author
Loving this passage from “Oxford Soju Club” by @jinwoo-park.com
'But the Dow is at 50K' summarizes exactly what's wrong with the US right now.
When the answer to grotesque and overwhelming injustice is 'The rich are getting richer, that's all that matters,' it's time to throw out the entire system for a reset.
Someone was abducted at 10 AM by ICE on Central Ave. Their coworker says they’ve lived here for over 20 years, are documented, and have 3 kids who were born here.
Don’t be fooled by headlines when they’ve been lying to us the whole time. We still need you out patrolling until every agent is gone.
Puerto Ricans fought in the Korean War, and Koreans should not forget that.
I've never heard anyone complain about the Italian in a Verdi or a Puccini, because we all had an understanding that there was artistry in language that went beyond the meaning.
There's so much beauty in how a word sounds. And if you really love music, you should be able to appreciate that.
Oh you got one of these ones! So in the beginning there was a lack of inventory, so a print on demand shop was tapped to print out more copies, but there was a mistake with the cover. And a total of 170 of them were printed like this before we noticed what was happening.
A nurse. A researcher. A helper.
A video of Alex Pretti reading out the final salute of an unnamed veteran he cared for until the end of his life in the ICU, posted to Facebook by his son.
