Author: GIKorea

It would be interesting to see how many Koreans rush to get the Russian made vaccine if they decide to go this route:

Domestic contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs) of the Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine have enjoyed a bullish run on the stock market this week, as the government began to consider use of the Russian vaccine to deal with a supply shortage of Pfizer and Moderna products.

President Moon Jae-in recently ordered his staff to review the feasibility of using Sputnik V, according to sources familiar with the issue. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety also asked the foreign ministry to collect data on the safety of the Russian vaccine.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but I would not be surprised if the Moon administration is trying to play the Russians off of the Americans to get COVID vaccines out of the Biden administration.

Here is the latest bad idea from the Moon administration:

North and South Korea should unify their economies while maintaining separate political systems, South Korean unification minister Lee In-young said on Thursday.

“Our approach now should aim more at the ‘one people, two countries, two systems, and one market’ model,” Lee told South Korea’s Seoul Shinmun newspaper, pointing to the European Union as an example of a similar system.

NK News

You can read more at the link, but any economic assistance given to the North Koreans history has shown they have used to expand their military, nuclear weapons, and missile programs at the expense of their people. This is irrefutable and what is different now to think this isn’t going to happen again?

Via a reader tip comes news that an Air Force two-star general is being court martialed for sexual assault:

A US Air Force two-star general is facing court-martial in a first for the Air Force, the service said Wednesday.

A sexual assault charge against Air Force Maj. Gen. William Cooley, former commander of the Air Force Research Laboratory, has been referred to court-martial, Air Force Materiel Command said in a statement.

“After a comprehensive review of all of the evidence from the investigation and the Article 32 preliminary hearing, I’ve informed Maj. Gen. Cooley of my decision to move his case to general court-martial,” Gen. Arnold Bunch, the AFMC commander, said.

Yahoo News

You can read more at the link.

In the apartment complex I used to live a, the vigilant ajushi would put one of those huge stickers that was hard to remove on people that did not park appropriately. I used to laugh seeing people the next morning trying to pull that thing off and get to work on time:

Public anger is rising over “thoughtless” car owners who park their vehicles taking up multiple parking spaces, limiting the slots available to other vehicles and inconveniencing others.

An internet user uploaded a posting on Bobaedream, an online community for motorists, criticizing a van owner who took up four parking spaces in an underground parking lot, Monday.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

This is a big win for Japan because they can point to this ruling in regards to the ongoing diplomatic battle about the Korean court ruling to reimburse forced laborers from World War II:

 South Korean victims of wartime sexual slavery lost their second lawsuit against the Japanese government Wednesday, suffering a setback in their efforts to hold Tokyo accountable for war crimes. 

The Seoul Central District Court dismissed the case brought by 20 plaintiffs, including surviving victims forced to work in front-line brothels for Japanese soldiers during World War II, citing sovereign immunity, a legal doctrine that allows a state to be immune from a civil suit in foreign courts.

“When we recognize exemptions of sovereign immunity, diplomatic clashes will inevitably ensue,” the court said. It also cited a few examples of court cases after World War II that were rejected for deliberations based on sovereign immunity.

It also took note of the 2015 bilateral agreement between Seoul and Tokyo to resolve the dispute. Despite some procedural problems, the agreement was reached after listening to opinions of the victims, euphemistically called “comfort women,” and some of them have received money from the foundation set up under the deal, the court said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but it seems pretty inconsistent that sovereign immunity applies in this case and not the forced laborer case. Maybe the 2015 comfort women agreement between Japan and South Korea is why sovereign immunity applies in this case and not the other.

The corporal that was stabbed said he was too drunk to remember much from the stabbing. Fortunately for him the police have video evidence that shows the getaway car with a good look at the license plate:

A soldier assigned to this Army installation south of Seoul was in stable condition Wednesday after being stabbed in the stomach while drinking at an off-base bar over the weekend, according to local police. (……)

Closed-circuit TV at the bar captured four suspects, two Koreans and two foreigners, fleeing the scene in two cars, nearly colliding with traffic as they made a quick getaway, according to the detective.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.