Photo credit: Hyungwon Kang
It would have made a wonderful story. South Korean Jindo dog enthusiasts donated two puppies to the K-9 division of the Los Angeles Police Department. The LAPD would get some donated assistance, and Korea would promote the Jindo, Natural Monument No. 53, of the country’s 467-strong list of important rocks, plants and animals.
At the same time, should anyone be surprised that it didn’t work out? Jindos lived wild on their eponymous island until the 1960s, and, despite their impressive hunting skills and intelligence, have never been bred to be working dogs. Even the Korean police doesn’t use Jindos.
Standard working breeds like German Shepherds have been selectively bred for centuries, and even then, an average litter might only yield one or two pups that can work. The odds would seem to have been stacked again the Jindos from the start.
So whose idea was it? Continue Reading »
The Los Angeles Police Department pulled the plug on a months-long project to train two Jindo dogs from South Korea to add to their K-9 unit, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Police officials said the Jindos were loyal but were prone to get distracted, not exactly a desired trait for a police dog being counted on to control a crowd or sniff out drugs or weapons.
“We worked hard with the dogs to develop their skills of sniffing out the odor of guns for detective work,” said Sgt. Doug Roller, chief trainer for the K-9 platoon of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Metropolitan Division, according to the L.A. Times. “They pretty much mastered the task, but once they got out of the training environment, they got distracted in the real world…. A leaf would blow, and they’d go chase it.”
The Jindos — named Daehan and Mingook, which together translate as “Republic of Korea” — have been placed in private homes after trainers determined they lacked sufficient focus and consistency.
Those skeptical of Jindos as police dogs, including many owners, say such behavior is common in the breed, which they say is prone to roam and bolt. Many say the affectionate dogs, though they are good household pets, are often overly independent and therefore difficult to train. They also tend to be dominant with other dogs.
In other words, many say, they’re not exactly the team players needed for police work.
However, we at KoreAm did some digging and it appears that not all sides of the story are being reported. Keep an eye out for our story in the upcoming December issue.
Tending a Small Patch of Capitalism in North Korea
New York Times
Grappling with an economy that has stagnated from decades of communist central planning, North Korean leaders are slowly opening their isolated nation to foreign investment.
A thrust of their strategy is to develop previously created “free trade and economic zones” on the borders that have languished. Here, about 30 miles from China, the combined towns of Rajin and Sonbong, called Rason, are central to the new push.
Since designating Rason a special zone in 1991, North Korean officials have tried on occasion to attract investment here, with poor results. Some foreign analysts and businesspeople are skeptical, saying the country’s investment climate remains too unstable, but others argue that North Korea could be establishing here the kind of laboratory that the Chinese Communist Party set up in the fishing village of Shenzhen in 1980 to help move China forward.
Korean language ballots coming to Bergen County
Bergen County Record (N.J.)
Coming soon to Bergen County polling places: Korean language ballots.
The U.S. Census Bureau has determined the county’s Korean-American population – 2010 census figures put it at 56,773 – has grown enough to warrant language assistance during elections. The Korean-American population in the county was 36,075, according to the 2000 census.
Priscilla Ahn can play the part of a ’60s chanteuse
Straight.com
It would be difficult not to get quickly seduced by her playful blend of off-kilter lyrics, soulfully breathy vocals (especially on the showstopping “City Lights [Pretty Lights]”), and retro-pop effects recalling French lounge singers like Françoise Hardy, most obviously on the sultry “Oo La La”.
“That’s exactly what I was going for,” says the raven-haired guitar wielder, who could easily fit in with the glamour chanteuses of the swinging ’60s. “Fortunately, I had really wonderful support from my producer, Ethan Johns.” (He’s the son of legendary Brit hitmaker Glyn Johns, who made key albums with the Stones, Led Zeppelin, and Bob Dylan.)
U.S. soldier in S. Korea confesses to theft, not rape
Stars and Stripes
A Yongsan Garrison soldier denied raping a South Korean high school student when questioned by police Thursday, but admitted to stealing the girl’s laptop following a night of drinking in Seoul last month.
The 21-year-old private maintained that he had consensual sex with the 18-year-old girl in her dormitory-style apartment in Seoul’s Mapo neighborhood early on Sept. 17, according to police.
Hines Ward still thriving for Steelers at 35
AP via Google News
Hines Ward doesn’t know where it comes from, really.
The Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver doesn’t have many theories either. He can’t tell you why he leapt over Tennessee’s Michael Griffin at the goal line during the third quarter to score his second touchdown of the day in Pittsburgh’s easier than expected 38-17 rout.
Maybe it was instinct. Maybe it was the memory of pulling a similar move over Denver’s Champ Bailey a few years ago. Maybe it was the residual effects of all that nifty footwork he displayed while winning “Dancing With the Stars” during the spring.
Ward doesn’t know and to be honest, he doesn’t care.
“I can’t put a finger on what made me do that,” Ward said, “but just to do that and to be able to help this team get going, that’s all that matters.”
That’s all that’s ever mattered to the 35-year-old Ward, even as his career numbers have reached staggering heights.
The 14-year veteran needs 13 yards against Jacksonville on Sunday to surpass Hall-of-Famer Michael Irvin for 19th on the all-time list. He’s 108 yards away from becoming just the 18th receiver to reach the 12,000-yard plateau and is 26 catches away from 1,000.
Cloned Super Sniffing Dogs Detect Drugs in South Korea
8Asians
While South Koreans scientists have been known for cloning beloved pets that have died, they have also found much more practical applications of this technology. Cloned super sniffing dogs nicknamed “Toppies” (for “Tomorrow Puppies”) now patrol Korean airports, checking for drugs. These Labrador Retrievers have proven extremely successful in their job. You might ask, why is this a big deal? It turns out that the economics of training sniffing dogs make cloning, despite its expense, worthwhile.
Mansfield Police arrest two fugitives from Hudson County Sheriff’s Office
The Warren Reporter (N.J.)
A vehicle stop led to the arrest of two fugitives, a report from the Mansfield Police Department states.
Dae Cho, 69, of Hackettstown, and passenger Hae Choi, 63, of Jersey City, were arrested after Patrolman David Chudy stopped the 1991 Nissan Pathfinder that Cho was driving around 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 11, the report states.
During the investigation, Cho was found to be a fugitive from the Hudson County Sheriff’s Office for Contempt on criminal charges, police said. The passenger, Choi, was also found to be a fugitive from the Hudson County Sheriff’s Office for Contempt on criminal charges and in addition had a traffic warrant out of Newark, according to police. Both were placed under arrest and turned over to the Hudson County Sheriff’s Office.
Aziatix Reveals US Tour for November
soompi.com
Just six months following a successful debut, Aziatix is ready to embark on their first tour in the United States. So far the trio has arranged for stops in 14 different cities across the US in November. They will be targeting major cities along the East and West coast.
Check out the group’s tour page here.
20 delicious Korean drinks
CNNGo
Traditional Korean beverages roughly fall into two categories: alcoholic and non-alcoholic. While this may be indicative of Korea’s long-standing love affair with alcohol, there are close to 200 types of traditional teas, juices, and grain drinks associated with the latter group, known as eumcheongnyu (음청류).
Winnowing that list down to 20 drinks required many tasting panels and difficult decisions, but nevertheless, here is our list of the top 20 most interesting and delicious Korean drinks.
A girl holds a placard reading “Don’t eat my friends, please,” as part of a protest against eating dog meat. Photo credit: Korea Times
A group of “dog farmers” decided to cancel a dog meat festival after animal rights groups strongly protested, according to the Korea Times.
The Korea Dog Farmers’ Association had announced earlier it planned to hold the “2011 Dog Meat Festival” at Moran Traditional Market in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, on July 1.
They said the festival was intended to promote the idea of dogs being raised like livestock at sanitary facilities for human consumption. They also said Continue Reading »
Posted: March 14th, 2011
Filed Under: Back Issues , BLOG , FEATURED ARTICLE , March 2011
Although in cities like Los Angeles we tend to see Korean Americans with their pint-sized, sweater-wearing dogs stuffed into designer bags, the truth is that the only three known dogs native to Korea would hardly fit into a purse (at least, not the grown-up size), nor could any of them stand for it.
The Sapsaree, the Jindo and the Poongsan, instead, are formidable dogs, known for their strength, smarts and intense loyalty to their masters. Indeed, each canine has some legend-worthy tale of heroism attached to it. In the pages that follow, award-winning photojournalist HYUNGWON KANG, currently a senior editor and photographer for Reuters, introduces us to these three gaes (dogs) in words and images.
Since reporting on the Jindo in the 1990s for his then-employer, the Los Angeles Times, Kang has emerged as quite the Korean dog authority, with multiple pages of his website dedicated to the Jindo in particular. Here, he shares some precious dog tales that illustrate the special role these canines play in Korean culture.
The Comeback Gae
The fluffy and faithful Sapsaree dogs may have become a remnant of the past, if not for the heroic efforts of a father and son who rescued the breed from extinction.
Two-month-old Sapsaree puppies are pictured at Gyeongsan Sapsaree Research Kennel in Gyeongsan, South Korea, on October 29, 2010.
A 300-year-old stone memorial located in Gumi, Gyeongsangbuk-do, tells the story of an aristocrat who, after too many drinks at a party, took a nap on a riverbank on his way home. When embers from his pipe started a brush fire as he lay sleeping, his faithful Sapsaree quickly jumped into the river and used its wet fur to douse the fire, saving its master at the cost of its own life.
Tributes like this one illustrate how beloved the Sapsaree once was to Koreans, though the breed is not as well-known today as the Jindo. That’s largely because the shaggy-haired medium-size dogs nearly went extinct.
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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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