Time for an update

We're still getting things set-up with the blog, and so updates and readership go up and down.

But this week saw two great TiK stories that speak to the essence of this country too well to pass up.

TiK 1: Did you know that Hyundai is the greatest car company in the world??? Did you???

For any foreigner who has visited Korea one of the first things you notice is that maybe 80 percent of the cars here are Hyundai or KIA, with 19% percent of the remaining 20 being Daewoo (numbers have been pulled out of the author's buttocks, and are not to be cited). Putting it in context, Korea is one of the only places on the planet where driving a Chrysler is a thing of distinction.... positive distinction.

So when this story popped up on the Chosun Ilbo I had to shake my head. At a time when there are 'candlelight vigils' (what a joke) over American beef, the South Korean people are once again being screwed by their own corporations. In this case it's Hyundai. Corporations here are subsidized and protected to a point that it's difficult to describe, and what often happens is that Koreans pay more for Korean made goods than anyone else in the world. Digital cameras were my first encounter with this phenomena, but the linked story shows yet another example.

I should say that if I were a Korean I would be outraged and protesting, not over beef, but over corporations screwing me. The story goes to great lengths to justify and rationalize the price difference, but anyone with a brain can see through it. I recently had a CEO of a Korean electronics company tell me about what a great car he just bought, the Hyundai Genesis, and how it was going to rock the US market because it was so good.

TiK story number 2: Once again thanks to the Chosun Ilbo, though many sources reported on this story. They should have been embarrassed to report it as is, but, again, TiK. The story is on the opening of a theme park to promote the 'Korean wave that is sweeping Asia.' Korean pop music, movies and TV shows are apparently sweeping Asia according to Koreans. When you tell other Asians about this they look at you like you're crazy.

And maybe the best example of that comes with this story. The wave is apparently so big and powerful that it merits a theme park. And what mega-wave Korean star did they choose for the opening of the park and to promote it? Jackie Chan.

If you weren't aware that Jackie Chan was part of the Korean wave, you're not alone. It says a lot when your big claims of dominating Asian pop culture can't even produce a star big enough to launch your own theme park.

Up next, the British are announcing a park to promote brit rock and pop. The spokesperson: Beyonce.