Liberty

The Convention on Modern liberty is tomorrow and you can stream it live online. Watch it, I urge anyone who is free or happens to have a compuer at their desk.

http://www.modernliberty.net/

From 9.45am till 6pm.

Also the UCL published the Abolition of Freedom Act 2009. I guess it's the first codified list of freedoms taken over the last decade. Fairly simple and worth noting.

http://www.modernliberty.net/downloads/abolition_of_freedom.pdf

If you don't have time here are a very few snip-its that I found nteresting. It canbe seen how these laws came about, and I am sure they are not over exploited at the present moment (well not all the time); however they read like an Orwellian nightmare and could be used for the demolishment of all liberty. My fear is that if we dont roll them back now then the next geneation will see intrusive, invasive government as nothing out of the ordinary.

• Freedom to communicate in private has been effectively extinguished by RIPA laws. The state may demand that telephone, and internet providers hand over detailed communications records of individual users, including: name and addresses; phone calls made and received; source and destination of emails; internet browsing information and mobile phone positioning data that records the user's location may be demanded. This power may be exercised by many public bodies, ranging from the Revenue and Customs to the Royal Mail Group. Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 and Regulation of Investigatory Powers (Communications Data) (Additional Functions and Amendment) Order 2006/1878 23.
  

• The freedom to take photographs of police who are engaged in anti-terrorist operations was removed by laws that make it a criminal offence to elicit or attempt to elicit information about a member of the armed forces, the intelligence services or a constable which is likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism. Counter-Terrorism Act 2008
  

• Certain clothing and the display of articles such as banners were outlawed if they aroused reasonable suspicion that they indicated support for a prescribed organisation. A person commits an offence if he belongs, professes to belong to, or supports a proscribed organsation Terrorism Act 2000

• Individuals may be forced to register their details in order to receive certain public services and may be fined for not keeping their NIR information upto- date. A record of all the important transactions in a person’s life will be created by the electronic verification of their card Identity Cards Act 2006
  

Norae BAANNG!

OK, a lot of people have been asking what a Norae Bang is really like. There is really no way to explain it and this video doesn't give it justice. It's crude but I make an appearance at the end with a Glaswegian favourite!

More Grad Photos

I Need a Hero!

They love the shiny shiny. The parents that is. I feel like cringing for these poor kids but they seemed to enjoy themselves. I'm also worried about putting up the photos because kids in bikinis aren't the most common site in the UK.

Yes real belly-dancing costumes. How could you ever forgive your parents.

The Closing ceremony

UK-Korea relations

A link to the British embassy's description of UK-Korean relations over the last 150 years. For anyone who is interested.

http://ukinkorea.fco.gov.uk/en/working-with-korea/bilateral-relations/

I knew the UK sent troops to fight in the Korean war but I never realised how many, and how many never made it home. 87,000 British soldiers and over 1000 were killed. Compare that to Afghanistan were we have only 8,300 troops. It might not be an immediate threat as was Communism, but it's just as valuable a mission.

I Need a Hero!

Just starting to recover from the weekend!

I was planning to attend my old preschool graduation on Saturday when I received a phone call from my previous director. Something I wasn't expecting happened. Ding Ding Dang's new teacher had succumbed to food poisoning and couldn't make it to the school graduation ceremony. He was meant to be the co-presenter along with the KT Alice. Who was there for the rescue? Well you can't really say no to someone who needs a favour. Taking up my Bruce Willis reluctant hero attitude I took on that mantle and without so much of a rehearsal Alice and I ran the show.

I think it actually went quite well. I hadn't seen the kids' performances before and they were fun. However, if my mother had ever allowed me to wear a belly dancing costumes as a 6 year old boy. and prance around on stage in front of an audience I don't think I would have ever forgiven her.

After the show the kids were greeted with bouquets of flower or lollipops and flash photography only matched by a-list celebrities. I have never felt so popular as when all the mother were asking for photos and poses with there kids (or just myself).

I'll upload photos tonight.

Currency

Currency trading has never been my game and I'm sure many people have interesting stories to tell form bad investments. However my relationship with the Korean won has never been a happy one. Take a look at this graph.

http://newsvote.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/fds/hi/business/market_data/currency/11/40382/twelve_month.stm

I left Korea in October with my final salary and severance pay in hand. The won was at an all year high with the pound and dollar so i decided to wait a few weeks because it couldn't possibly get worse. As you can see it continue to tumble and I regrettably change my pay into pound for a loss of about 400 quid on the 12 week average. Just before I came back to Korea for the first time the won made a miraculous recovery and the pound hit rock bottom against the euro and the dollar. I was disappointed at getting a poor exchange rate for my spending money but at least my salary would be much greater than expected with this new rate. Wrong! One week before my first pay day and the won has slipped again, meaning through no fault of my own ( I did the sums) I am about to lose 138 pound. That's 3 weeks Job Seekers Allowance right there.

Surveillance

I used to think the phrase 'They're watching us, they control everything!' was reserved for a select group of people. Namely 9/11 conspiracy theorists, Holocaust deniers, UFO enthusiasts, Elvis spotters and the like. But in all serious how much can,or will, Britons take?

Off the top of my head I could name several government policies or actions since 2001 that have not only infringe on our freedoms but seek to severely undermine and curtail them. Just think now, just for a second, and I bet you can too. ID cards, DNA capture, bio-metric passports, detention for 28 days without charge (wait 90 days is what they want right?), refusal for freedom of information on MP's expenses (our employees mind), are just a few policies being continually pursued by the good new Labour Party. They see nothing wrong in denying European Union citizens entry into the UK, even if they are elected representatives, or allowing local councils (not the police) to monitor someones movement 24 hours a day. They are suspected of banning evidence in court cases because it may simply be embarrassing for them. They ask university lecturers and professors to report students who they suspect of academic misadventure. But when two subs collided in the English Chanel last week the extent of the damage was classified. Yet it is not like it was damaged in battle, and even if it was there isn't a precedent for not disclosing this information. We learned more about the crash from the French media than our own government. I'm sure the list could go on and on but the problem is compounded by the governments inability to keep the information they suck from us secret. The loss of 25 million individuals' data last year comes to mind.

Well, have you heard the latest operation Glasgow to take place on the Merseyside? Surveillance cameras with automatic face recognition. I'm sure the only thing holding back a national out rolling is the unreliability of previous face recognition software. The worst thing about it is that anyone detained by the police, regardless of whether they are charged or not, will be photographed and linked to the Surveillance network.

Why are we quiet about this?

The Convention on Modern Liberty is on in London this week. If I was home I'd be there.

Photoshoot

Ah, I only stayed out till 3.30am last night but getting professional profile photos done for the school advert was not on my want-to-do list this morning. I managed to resist Phil's offer of tequila but if he had tried one more time I would have said yes, and it would've been a norae bang or club until six. Luckily Quinn wanted to go home so I made my excuses and left.

The photos don't look great but the director took me for some spicy noodle soup afterwards and maybe his comment 'it's good for a hangover' wasn't a coincidence.

Knock Knock

I ordered a guitar for my wii a few days ago so I could rock to guitar hero for the first time. As the door went this morning I got dressed like a kid on Christmas morning and in case I wasn't quick enough I shouted 'One moment please' in my best Korean.

I opened the door to another set of jehovah witnesses. What a let down. Imagine the disappointment right there.

Turns out it is the daughter of the Mr. Park the last person to knock my door. She was obviously well trained in English, maybe even schooled abroad. Similar age as myself and didn't seem too nervous about holding a conversation with a foreign stranger. I told her I was an infidel and at least an agnostic in technical terms. She understood and produced two more magazines, this time in English. I sigh and explain I have to go to work in an hour and have no time for a 'chat'.

Her father may not of outright lied but surely having twice twisted English to suit his needs, it goes against the spirit of truth. First off he claims to be my 'neighbour'. Well only in the sense we live in the same city, or does he regard everyone as a neighbour? Then he has defined the word in his own terms. Secondly when he asked if I could give his daughter an English lesson it is all too evident that he was seeking a way to spread his views through his English speaking daughter. Her English was pretty much perfect and she made no pretence that she was at my door to proselytise her faith.

Excerpt from a letter

Anyways a few things that have been on the news that either got me thinking or reaching for my mental affiliation with labour and dousing it in petrol (the match will come soon enough I fear). Firstly, and I think most easily criticised would be the visit of that vile Dutchman Geert Wilders. I wasn't very interested in what a bigot had to say until it turned out he was banned from saying it. The story had been floating around for a few days and I had already formed my opinion. I was glad to see that a majority of comments on the guardian website regarding the incident were criticising the home office's stance on the matter. However after watching Question Time it was clear that 4 out of the 5 panelists thought the immigration ban an excellent thing. The only one who disagreed was a Gardener (no disrespect but he doesn't hold sway over public opinion unlike the editor of The Sun). Geert Wilders' movie which was about to be shown to an invitational audience has probably increase it's viewing figures by hundreds of thousands. I was actually about to youtube it myself but decided that nothing can be gained by watching the documentary/film equivalent of gutter press and BNP propaganda. I just did a quick search in youtube and a recent speech of his has almost 700, 000 views whereas one copy of his movie on youtube alone has 100,000. The government has promoted his career beyond his dreams, and knowing he would be turned away from Heathrow he capitalised on the publicity. Furthermore the government has once again shown it's disregard for free speech and individual liberty. I do not agree with Wilders for one second, and you know my feelings on Islam and religion, but he has the same right to free speech as any man is endowed with by nature. If we simply ban opinion we do nothing to counter it and instead of being blasted away by superior argument it seeps into the public imagination, creates xenophobic outcries by minorities which then play on the minds of more sensible folk when times become hard.

School night out

Last Saturday was the first official work night out.
I was told to meet at the Yoyo restaurant downtown at 10pm. Easy enough. I turned up and realised that it wasn't a staff night out but only the director MJ and my co-teacher Andy (also a Korean)were there. The female teachers weren't invited and it was in affect a lads night out. We had 3 courses of excellent Korean and Chinese food which we ate communally before my director surprised me by purchasing a bottle of whiskey and explained that his new English phrase was 'Let's get wrecked'.

As I was from Scotland I was to show them how to 'one-shot' whiskey. I don't even touch the stuff back home and my father always said stay off the whiskey as it messes with your mind, Clearly demonstrated to me by Gary when he cried at being called a monkey a few years back.

It wasn't even Scottish whiskey but some Canadian sour mash dressed up in a crystal bottle. Guessing it was expensive I didn't want to spoil the moment, so I dropped an ice cube in, swirled it and performed what the Koreans call 'oneshot'. By the time we had finished the bottle and the meal it was 2am and the choice was between a nightclub or a norae bang. A norae bang is a private room where you can sing karaoke and order drink or food.

Until 5 am I was locked in a room with two forty year old Koreans attempting to sing Korean classics an Englsh pop. I used to love norae bangs. Nights with your friends signing to classics, ordering drink and everybody joining in like an alcohol fueled concert crowd. Renditions of Wonderwall and Yellow were always particularly effective.

This time it was fun to begin with. Trying to teach them the ins and outs of With or without you' or 'My way'. However I look back in shame at my mic hogging, leg shacking dance moves and reckless attempts at singing in Korean. I remember at one point, as the disco ball lit up and I reached the climax or Led Zeppelin's 'Rock n Roll' I was on my knees playing the air guitar.

My boss decided to drive home that night, and it seemed to be completely normal thing to do. I opted for the back seat and buckled my seat belt. My eyes wouldn't stay open much longer so I concentrated on reading the road signs as we drove home at 5am after numerous beers and a bottle of whiskey.

Strangely I find 'Gay bar' by Electric Six an excellent Norae bang tune. Next time I was promised we would higher dancing girls to dance along to our singing.

A Walk

In Korea, as in the US, J-walking is illegal. In Britain you at least get a sense of empowerment when you press that grubby but ever smooth to the touch little button on the traffic lights. The little, seemingly shipped with bird keek, 'wait' sign lights up instantly and never for too long, before you saunter across the road demonstrating your right to stop traffic at a whim.

In Korea I find great irritation in crossing the road. There is no button. There is never a 'wait' light. There is only green and red. The indecency I feel when instead of the Charlie Chaplain esq green man, a count-down begins. You have a piddle amount of seconds to dash across the road before the vehicles (who are already growling at you like a rabid dog about to pounce by the way!) hurl themselves towards you in anger at disturbing their endless flow of traffic, or the warden lands you a $50 fine for crossing while the red light is on.

Worse still, because there is no little button to push you have to stand there idly while the lights flick through there predetermined sequence of start and stop. It causes a great build up of people at almost every crossing point. You literally could jump across the little ones. Yet people stand there, even with the rarity of there being no cars.

I like to brighten up this ordeal by trying to be the first one off the blocks. When that counter begins I want to be the first person to even flinch. I wanna have my first step down before the agimas have even processed that the lights have changed. I don't think I'm the only one either. I can sense it. I can feel the static at the anticipation of the green light. The crossing is our auditorium, the roar of the cars is my bloodthirsty mob, the other side my goal. I know I can't be the only one because some of the guys out there are just to quick at beginning to walk. The only problem is that as I leap forward in competitive rapture, I try to conceal my habit with a casual walk. Usually what was once an average one becomes a half canter with a straight back and hands in pockets weaving between incoming elderly and mums with buggies. No wonder most Koreans think foreigners a bit strange.

Door knocking and Street Stopping.

Interestingly Korea is one of only a hand full of countries where Christianity is increasing. Not due to a spat of revelations cascading Korean society as some might hope. It seems that as the tribal religions of shamanism and ancestor worship fetter away, in the countryside and urban areas Christians are actively out on patrol to snap all those who seem disaffected with modern liberty. The present democratic freedoms were only installed in 1988, and as far as I can tell the christian church prior to this was significant in it's support for greater individual freedom.

Last year I would return home from work to find posters stuck to my door of either Jesus's flailed carcass, blood streaked face or his playful adventures with rabbits, birds, and children. On entering the subway I would be handed coffee sweets along with the latest leaflet on reasons to join the church. I happen to dislike both coffee sweets and junk-mail. So I knew what to expect on my return.I have been in Korea less than one month and I have had Christians at my door numerous times, and on Monday it was the Jehovah's' turn. :S.

The first time the Christians came I was happily lounging in my underwear and playing computer games on a slightly hazy Saturday afternoon. I'm pretty sure it was Mario Kart, although I can't be precise on that detail. I heard the 'ding-dong-rat-ta-tat-tat....ding dong' of my neighbour's door. I know there are only two sets of people who ring doors like that in Korea. Gas readers and bible-bashers. I contemplated muting the TV and moving into the bathroom to dispense of last nights festivities but I decided it could be the gas-man or I could just pretend I don't speak any Korean. I got dressed just in time to hear the ding-dong and the preceding knock that suggests 'I know you are in there so don't even try to pretend your out'

'Anyoung Ha-seyo' I attempt as I open the door. First mistake, my plan of no speeke hangook-eee has been undermined by my own friendliness. 'ooo-ooo' then a pause. The two cheerful old bats look at each other for a few seconds before the smaller one with a top knot uses the international form of making a question. Using one word, raising her eyebrows and nodding in encouragement. 'Krish-jan???' (Christian???)
I politely decline the offer of a theological debate in a language in which my small vocabulary consists of crude body parts, 'banana milk' and the verbs; go, come, and give me. 'No, but thank you!'. Before I can close the door she thrusts me a leaflet and smiles. 'Ok, thanks, maybe next time'
'Next time' she responds ',,,,ok'
Ah shit...the one word she understands in English she has interpreted as come back next time. Ah well I'll just have to be out when they call again.

Unluckily, on the way to work the next day I ran into them at the apartment entrance. However after the previous encounter I did some homework. Uncomfortably atheist and infidel mean the same thing in Korean. They giggle together like two schoolgirls, which was quite fun actually, before one of them stopped me and asked me to read from their book. It was happy Jesus with a baby girl this time. I'll be polite and entertain them for a few minutes before trying out my new phrase. The passage was about how traditionally women have been undermined in society but the Lord created both men and women equal and gave the Earth to both men an women to enjoy. With the love of Christ we can bring both sexes together in harmony.
Wow, what a potent message for Korea. In my personal opinion I think there continues to be some inequality between the sexes in Korea. I personally believe in the equality of right for all people. However I have never found this message in the Church. Just look at it's present echelons. It not only completely disregards the opinion of women but in many ways seems to have a deep seated mistrust of the female sex. Anyways, moving on. I try my new phrase. 'Cho noon moo shin ron ja imnida'. Well they took it well. A sad 'awww-ing' noise followed by more leaflets. I try to explain that I agree men and women are created equal but it doesn't seem to garner me any less pity.

The following Sunday it was the Jehovahs' turn. I open the door to two older men in black suits. At first I'm not sure who they are and it's made worse by the claim that they are my neighbours. As the younger one at the front, in his 40s, steps forward in attempt to enter my flat, before i have said much more than 'Hi' I decide to stand my ground.The buffeting of his entrance is made more awkward by the rebounding of the older man who was trying to follow him in. I ask them if they are a business to which they reply 'kind of' and hand me two magazines which I can already sense will offer me salvation, magazines!!!! In Korean!!! I ask them again, can I help you?'

The novice steps back and the older man takes the lead. 'Are you US army?'. I explain I am an English teacher and offer no more insights to end the impending silence. 'We are Jahobasss witnessuu'
'Ok that's it, I'm done. It's Sunday I'm relaxing, you have no right to come knocking on my door, least of all to try and walk inside without my permission.' I thought. I said nothing actually. In hope they were finished after gaging my reaction. 'I send my daughter for English lesson?'

Now your talking, business. I will happily teach anyone who needs it. 'Ok' I say,and he offers to send her round the next day.

Well she hasn't come yet, and if she does I hope she doesn't think I'm running a charity here. I wish I could but I got bills to pay.

NB* I suppose if someone really did believe everyone would burn in hellfire for all eternity unless they agreed with them, then they would do everything they could do to save them. Unfortunately, these claims to extraordinary revelations need extraordinary evidence. Until then it doesn't give them the right to disturb peoples private lives and use eternal damnation as a threat to gather funds and followers.

First Days at the New School

I'm sitting here at 3.20 pm, I've been here since half one. Yesterday I sat here from 12 till my first class at 7.30pm . It was an introductory conversation class with one 25 year old girl. Looks like it is going to continue like this for a few weeks. It's good because I'm getting paid for it but I'll need to do something productive with all this time.

The school itself is brand spanking new. Clean, tiday, glass framed desks, private classrooms, each with their own computers and hi-tech chairs. Not bad but they are all empty.

I'll probably moan when my workload increases so should enjoy this free time.

I don't think I actually have any classes today!