From Miraculous Birth to ‘Axis of Evil’: Dictator Kim Jong Il’s Timeline
Bloomberg
North Korea ends 12 days of official mourning today for Kim Jong Il, the dictator eulogized by his nation’s state media as “Dear Leader.”
Kim died of a heart attack on Dec. 17, brought on by exhaustion as he traveled the country by train offering guidance to his people, according to the official account of his passing.
Below is a timeline of notable events during the life of Kim, showing the contrast between the persona crafted by his state media and the accounts of outsiders and the international press.
Where in the World Is Kim Jong Nam?
Time.com
Reports say Kim Jong Il’s eldest son is now under “Chinese protection” after leaving the island of Macau. But like most things in the Hermit Kingdom, it’s hard to know for sure.
Just how isolated is North Korea? 6 facts to consider
Christian Science Monitor
North Korea’s outlook has earned it the title of the ‘hermit kingdom.’ The country is both cut off from the wider world and intensely focused on its neighbors.
In South Korea, some praise North’s departed “Dear Leader”
Reuters
Despite growth that has propelled South Korea to become the world’s 13th largest economy, a powerhouse that makes computers, mobile telephones and cars, there are some in the capital of Seoul who believe life is better in the impoverished North.
As the world watched Wednesday’s funeral of dictator Kim Jong-il, who presided over famine, a nuclear arms push and military skirmishes with the South, Choi Dong Jin, 48, told Reuters that Kim was “a great and outstanding person” for resisting U.S. imperialism.
Korean American pastor seeks reunification through humanitarian aid
CNN.com
When Chang Soon Lee reflects on his childhood years in North Korea, his joy quickly turns to deep sadness. Like millions of Koreans caught in the middle of the Korean War in the early 1950s, Chang at the age of 15 was forced to flee his native homeland.
His father, a prominent minister who survived World War II, disappeared just days after communist-led forces invaded Pyongyang. “After the (World War II) liberation of Korea, my father often visited churches and preached but one day we waited for him and he never returned home,” says Chang.
By the time an armistice halted the Korean War in 1953, nearly 37,000 U.S. troops had been killed and more than 400,000 North Koreans soldiers were dead, according to the U.S Department of Defense.
Chang eventually emigrated to the United States on a student visa and became a minister, co-founding a ministry for Korean immigrants at Wiltshire United Method Church in Los Angeles, home to the nation’s largest Korean-American population.
But Chang has never forgotten his homeland and he’s returned half a dozen times on humanitarian missions, taking tons of food to orphanages as part of a charity group he established in the United States. “Its a kind of symbolic showing for them that we love you, you are our brothers and sisters, we are tragically separated but we are one and we are concerned about you we are praying,” says Chang.
N.Korean Spy Kills Himself
Chosun Ilbo
A man who claimed to be a North Korean defector has committed suicide after confessing that he was sent to spy on the South.
During questioning the man, who was in his 30s, said he had received orders from Pyongyang to report on a South Korean organization that helps defectors from the North.
The National Intelligence Service said the man had hanged himself in a shower room. The source said North Korean spies held the man’s family hostage and that he felt pressured after his confession.
Adoption of Korean boys leads to full house
Journal Review (Crawfordsville, Ind.)
Paul and Stacey Leonard of Ladoga adopted sons Charlie, 1, and Reuben, 5, from South Korea. The Leonards also have a biological son, Peter, 8.
Injury costs Huskers one-time starting lineman for bowl
NBC Sports
Due to an injury to the regular starter, Nebraska Cornhuskers offensive lineman Seung Hoon Choi will be in the starting lineup when Nebraska takes on South Carolina in the Capital One Bowl on Jan. 2.
S. Korean short-track legend gains Russian citizenship to fulfill Sochi dream
Russia Today
Russia’s medal hopes at their first-ever Winter Games in Sochi have been given yet another boost as South Korean short-track legend Ahn Hyun-soo has finally been granted Russian citizenship.
The 26-year-old captured three golds and one bronze at the Turin Olympics back in 2006, becoming the most successful athlete there. He is also a five-time Overall World Champion.
HyunA & 2NE1 make it to Spin.com’s ‘Favorite Pop Tracks of 2011′ list
allkpop
On December 27, the website for music magazine Spin revealed their favorite pop singles of 2011.
Among the various songs by A-list pop icons, two K-pop songs made it to the list. At #3, HyunA‘s “Bubble Pop” beat #4 pop princess Britney Spears‘ “Till the World Ends“, and 2NE1‘s “I Am the Best” took the #8 spot.
North, South Korea exchange recalls previous historic meeting
Los Angeles Times
REPORTING FROM SEOUL -– Though brief, Tuesday’s meeting between North Korean and South Korean leadership families smacked of another historic get-together more than a decade ago that led to one head of state winning the Nobel Peace Prize.
Lee Hee-ho, center, and Hyun Jeong-eun, right, in Paju, South Korea, on their way to North Korea on Monday to pay respects to Kim Jong-il and meet the North's new leader, Kim Jong-un.
New North Korean Leader Meets South Koreans and Assumes Leadership of Party
New York Times
South Korea had said it would send no official mourners to Kim Jong-il’s funeral, which angered North Korea as a sign of disrespect. But Kim Jong-un’s meeting with the private delegation of mourners, which included the former first lady of South Korea and a top businesswoman, appeared to be cordial.
The South Korean visitors, Lee Hee-ho, the widow of former President Kim Dae-jung, and the chairwoman of Hyundai Asan, Hyun Jeong-eun, which had business ties with North Korea, were the only South Koreans allowed by the government in Seoul to lead private delegations to Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, to express sympathy over the death of Kim Jong-il on Dec. 17.
From Dear Leader to Marilyn Monroe, defector mocks Kim
Reuters
North Korean artist Song Byeok once proudly drew the “Dear Leader” in propaganda paintings. But he was sent to labor in one of the reclusive state’s notorious prisons after hunger forced him to try to flee.
Now a defector living in the South Korean capital, Seoul, Song has turned to mocking a ruler who led his country into famine, isolation and economic ruin.
“The day I finished this, he passed away,” Song said of his painting and the death of Kim on December 17.
Did Kim Jong-il death ruin breakthrough deal on North Korea nukes?
The Christian Science Monitor
The death of Kim Jong-il has disrupted an American plan to encourage North Korea to curb its nuclear arsenal, and the uncertainties surrounding the “dear leader’s” replacement mean US officials have little choice for now but to sit tight.
Before the announcement of Mr. Kim’s death Sunday, the US was on the verge of completing a deal to exchange humanitarian assistance for North Korean steps toward denuclearization.
But as Kim’s replacement and youngest son, Kim Jong-un, tries to establish himself in his father’s place, it will likely be months – and potentially tense and surprise-laden months – before the North Korean leadership will be ready to reengage diplomatically, many North Asian analysts say.
North Korea Presses South to Implement Economic Pact
New York Times
In its first interaction with visitors from South Korea since the death of its leader, Kim Jong-il, North Korea on Tuesday called for the implementation of the inter-Korean summit agreements, which would have brought massive South Korean investments had the South Korean leader, Lee Myung-bak, not scuttled them.
Recalling a Trip to North Korea Before the Death of Kim Jong-il
New York Times
Mun Ho-yong placed the bouquet of flowers at the foot of the towering outdoor portrait of Kim Il-sung, the founder of North Korea. Then he turned to the Chinese businesspeople and tourists, and to the foreign journalists. “Now please bow to our leader,” he said.
Most of us had set foot in North Korea for the first time just hours earlier. We had no idea what protocol to adopt when faced with the “Great Leader,” as North Koreans call him. So we followed Mr. Mun’s lead. We bowed.
2NE1 and SNSD ranks in SPIN’s 20 Best Pop Albums of 2011
Soompi
Girl groups 2NE1 and SNSD are receiving worldwide attention.
The two groups, who are leaders in K-pop’s Korean Wave thanks to their unique performances and refined music this year, have been favorably noticed by famous foreign magazines. SPIN, a popular music magazine in the United States, announced their 20 Best Pop Album of 2011 on December 22 (local time) and the two groups were listed.
Five arrested including two members of Hawthorne Fire Department arrested after drug investigation
The Gazette (Hawthorne, N.J.)
A month and a half-long narcotics investigation resulted in the arrest of five Hawthorne residents, two of whom are members of the Hawthorne Fire Department, on Dec. 21.
At sentencing, Choi apologizes for slaying three in a Tenafly home
North Jersey
“We have three individuals who no longer walk the earth,” said Judge Donald Venezia. “You brought havoc to three individuals and to a community. Anything less than a life sentence and I’d be condoning what you did. There’s no way you’re getting a break. You did not give Mr. [Han Il] Kim a break.”
Before being sentenced, Choi apologized via his Korean translator.
“I’m very sorry to the victims and their families,” he said. “I’m sorry to my own family.”
James Kim: Recent College Grad Feels Pain Of Uncertain Job Market
Neon Tommy
Kim, 23, is one of the “Millennials”- a group defined by a 2010 Pew Research study as 18- to 29-year-olds who are mostly newcomers to the American labor force and who, more recently, have become the last hired and the first to lose their jobs.
According to the study that surveyed 50 million Millennials nationwide, only 4 out of every 10 participants said they had full-time work, and the unemployment rate among the group was 37 percent – the highest it had been in over 30 years.
Ji Hyun Kim: New Face
The Telegraph (U.K.)
Who’s that bright and breezy young tenor playing Gastone in the current revival of La Traviata at Covent Garden?
He’s 28-year-old Ji Hyun Kim, currently a hard-working member of the Royal Opera’s Jette Parker Young Artists Programme.
Perilla, ggaennip, shiso: By any name, a fine addition to garden
L.A. Times
It’s telling that with such limited ground — not even 20 square feet — the gardeners at the Korean Resource Center have dedicated a majority of their space to the perilla plant, a member of the mint family known as ggaennip in Korea and shiso in Japan.
‘Brazen’ contracting scam: Records provide a window into audacious swindle
Washington Post
The plan was straightforward but effective: A tight team of savvy contractors and government employees allegedly inflated invoices by $20 million, approved them and split the proceeds.
And they lived large — on the taxpayers’ dollar. Porsches, real estate, flat-screen televisions and Cartier watches: The men bought it all with impunity, prosecutors say.
The Strangest Man in Ikea
Gizmodo
Taeyoon Choi isn’t at this Ikea, the second largest store location in the world, to buy a coffee table. He’s not there for delicious meatballs and lingonberry sauce, either. He’s in Ikea to create crazy-weird experimental noise machines.
7 best ski and snowboard resorts in Korea
CNN
Given that almost three-quarters of Korea is covered by mountains, it’s no wonder thousands of tourists fly in every winter to hit the slopes.
Now that it’s finally snowing, even in Seoul, here’s where to find the best snowy runs in Korea.
UNM students deface El Morro rock
Santa Fe New Mexican
Dana Choi, a Korean student at The University of New Mexico, admitted to etching the words Super Duper Dana’ into rock at El Morro National Monument in October. His graffiti covers a portion of an inscription that reads Pedro Romero 1758.’ Although officials at monument won’t talk about how they plan to erase the markings, the restoration costs have been estimated at nearly $30,000.
North Korea will be allowing delegations from South Korea who wish to express their condolences upon the death of Kim Jong-il into the North, CNN reported today.
A statement posted on a North Korean government-run website said that officials would “guarantee all convenience and safety of the South Koreans during their visit.” Continue Reading »
Name: Stephanie Pak
Age: 21
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Occupation: Student
Describe your background (where did you grow up, etc.)?
I grew up in Taegu, South Korea and eventually moved to Arizona during middle school. It was always my mom, me and two other siblings. I learned the most from my mom, since we’re closer than my siblings are to her, over the years she’s taught me Korean as well as how to make numerous Korean dishes.
If you could have an endless supply of any food, what would you get?
Probably Korean food. It’s so good! A food in particular would probably be odeng (오뎅), I loved going to the stands in Korea and buying some on cold nights! It’s so tasty!
Tell us about a unique or quirky habit of yours. Continue Reading »
Santa Claus Comes to Top Chef
by Monica Y. Hong
Turns out Santa arrived early this year and he overloaded us with presents! This week’s Top Chef Texas is all about paying tribute to whoever inspired you to cook. This week I take inspiration from Santa and offer you these scrumptious gifts! I can hardly contain my excitement so instead of giving it all away, I’ll just say Santa really paid attention this year to who was naughty and who was nice. Ho ho hooray!
Let’s start with a stocking stuffer aka the quickfire challenge. This week the twitter fans dictated what the chefs would be cooking. The cheftestants start off with forty five minutes to create a dish using bacon. Super easy. Our bacon obsessed society is already oversaturated with this salty wonder so using bacon shouldn’t be a problem for any of the chefs. The first curve ball is thrown when Padma and Tom choose a tweet that has them make a hash as a hashtag challenge. Then with 15 minutes remaining, @koreanblue tweets that the chefs must choose a pantry ingredient and hand it off to another chef to use in their dish. Bev hands Grayson a tomatillo and Ty-lör passes Ed some sriracha. Ed is none too happy about that!
Chef Beverly Kim presents a perfectly crisp cube of pork belly with a corn, bell pepper, habañero and potato hash. The judges enjoy her subtle yet flavorful dish. On the other hand, they are not a fan of Chef Edward Lee’s potato cocoa nib hash with a braised bacon and mustard spread and soft shells crabs deglazed in sriracha. Judge Tom Colicchio calls his hash burnt and bitter.
For the elimination challenge, the guest judge is none other than Miss Patti Labelle. The cheftestants must make a dish to honor the person who inspired them to become the chefs they are today.
“My mom is the reason why I love cooking,” says Bev. “Seeing her in the kitchen inspired me. I wanted to be like her. I wanted to be a housewife.” She lets out a slightly maniacal laugh. Frightening in so many ways.
FOR ONLY $28!
Featured Event
One of the the biggest Asian cinema events to hit Southern California opens on May 10. The Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, presented by Visual Communications, features the latest works by established and emerging filmmakers, along with seminars, panel discussions and symposiums on topics relevant to Asian Pacific cinema.
Opening Night features “Shanghai Calling,” directed by Daniel Hsia and starring Korean American Daniel Henney, who plays a Chinese American expat lawyer navigating his way through the mean streets of Shanghai (the picture above also indicates he is a raisin smuggler). But does he take off his shirt? Go watch the movie to find out! read more
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