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South Korea special forces on extreme weather training, in pictures http://t.co/jVxqMKVHyo @KungPaoKimchi @goldmansachs666 God bless them!
— NorthKoreaRealTime (@BuckTurgidson79) January 8, 2015
Special warfare forces are on a winter training mission on a mountain in Pyeongchang County, Gangwon Province, on Jan. 8, 2015. (Yonhap)
I never realized Japan even had such large brown bears much less one that killed 7 people until I read this article:
The scene of one of Japan’s worst bear attacks has been turned into a rather unique — and horrifying — roadside attraction.
In 1915 (Taisho 4) a Japanese brown bear (higuma, or Ursus arctos lasiotus) attacked a small hamlet of Rokusensawa in Sankebetsu, which is now incorporated into the municipality of Tomamae, about 100 kilometers northwest of Sapporo, the largest city on the island of Hokkaido.
The bear killed seven people in what came to be known as the Sankebetsu Brown Bear Incident. The township of Tomamae has attempted to capitalize on this gruesome part of its past by creating a “bear road” and a detailed reconstruction of the bear attack itself. [Global Voices]
You can read the rest at the link, but this has got to be one of the deadliest bear attacks ever.
It seems that US animal rights groups still have their eyes set on stopping dog eating in South Korea:
A dozen dogs originally destined for dinner tables in South Korea arrived in the Washington area to be adopted as pets.
They were the first of a total of 23 dogs being imported into the United States this week as part of a campaign to combat the eating of dog meat in East Asia.
Washington-based Humane Society International (HSI) located the dogs at a farm in Ilsan, northwest of Seoul, where they were being bred specifically for human consumption.
The farmer — who acknowledged a personal fondness for dogs — agreed to give up the animals and accept an offer of compensation and grow blueberries instead, HSI director of companion animals Kelly O’Meara told AFP, as the mongrels settled into kennels Monday at the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria, Virginia after a long flight from Seoul.
HSI has been working with local groups in China, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam to raise public awareness of the dog meat trade.
“But South Korea is unusual because it actually farms dogs to supply demand,” O’Meara said, while other countries target feral dogs as food.
Every year, between 1.2 million and two million dogs are consumed in South Korea, she said, supplied by farms that number “at least in the hundreds.” [AFP]
You can read more at the link, but my biggest problem with dog farming in South Korea is that some of these farmers do not do it very humanely with dogs raised in small cages and then beaten to death to better tenderize the meat.
As with anything that comes from defectors treat this with some skepticism:
North Korea has a new war plan to complete a Southern invasion within a week using asymmetric capabilities including nuclear weapons, a high-profile defector and South Korean government officials told the JoongAng Ilbo.
The war plan was created less than a year after Kim Jong-un assumed power, a South Korean official told the JoongAng Ilbo quoting a defector who used to serve in a senior position in the North Korean military.
According to the official, Kim Jong-un hosted a top military-party meeting in Wonsan on Aug. 25, 2012, and approved the new war plan. The young ruler became the supreme commander of the North’s Korean People’s Army on Dec. 30, 2011, shortly after the death of his father, Kim Jong-il. [Joong Ang Ilbo]
You can read more at the link, but any war that North Korea launches would need to be quick because their lack of logistics means they have to win any war against the ROK quickly.
North Korean firms seem to just change names after being hit with sanctions, as per Treasury document http://t.co/CJwWR1zMQS
— Adam Cathcart (@adamcathcart) January 3, 2015
South Korean actress Lee Yoo-ri poses during the “2014 MBC Drama Awards” at MBC Media Center in Seoul on Dec. 30, 2014. (Yonhap)
It appears that some in the Korean government want to pull a Sony and give in to North Korean threats at the expense of free speech for their citizens:
A South Korean parliamentary committee adopted a resolution Thursday calling on the government to take necessary steps to protect its citizens from any harm caused by civic activists’ flying of anti-Pyongyang leaflets across the inter-Korean border.
The resolution, adopted by the National Assembly’s foreign affairs and unification committee, also urges the two Koreas to abide by their earlier agreements to stop all slander against each other, noting it is key to building trust.
“(We) urge the government to take necessary steps so as to ensure the spread of anti-North Korea leaflets does not damage the improvement of South-North ties and jeopardize the safety of our citizens,” the resolution said.
The leaflet campaign, often led by North Korean defectors in the South, has long been a source of tension between the two Koreas as it aims to stir up dissent against the regime of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Seoul has long dismissed Pyongyang’s demands to ban the campaign, citing freedom of speech.
Speaking during the committee meeting, Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae stressed that the government’s position remains unchanged. The government also believes it should take steps if they are needed for the people’s safety, he said.
The minister, however, ruled out a direct link between the leaflet scattering and any improvement in bilateral ties.
The government’s stance has been closely watched after the district court in Uijeongbu, just north of Seoul, ruled Tuesday that it is legal for authorities to restrain the campaign if it puts the lives of South Koreans at risk. [Yonhap]
You can read more at the link.
Below is the latest USFK Court Martial and ROK Criminal Prosecution Results for December 2014:
Results of Court Martials for December 2014
On 4 December 2014, at a General Court-Martial, Specialist Yvonne S. Mayberry, 501st Special Troops Battalion, 501st Sustainment Brigade, was found guilty of two Specifications of failure to obey a lawful general order (Article 92, UCMJ); one Specification of false official statement (Article 107); two Specifications of larceny of non-military property (Article 121); and two Specifications of stealing mail in (Article 134). She was sentenced to be reduced to E-1, confined for 20 months, and to be discharged with a Bad-Conduct Discharge.
On 8 December 2014, at a General Court-Martial, SFC William J. Delgado, 65th Medical Brigade, was convicted of one specification of violating a lawful general order (Article 92, UCMJ) and one specification of sexual assault (Article 120). He was sentenced to be reduced to E-1, to be confined for 36 months, and to be discharged with a Bad-Conduct Discharge.
On 10 December 2014, at a General Court-Martial, PV2 Deandre Coleman, 2d Infantry Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2d Infantry Division, was found guilty of two specifications of failure to go to his appointed placed of duty, (Article 86, UCMJ), one specification of disrespect to a commissioned officer (Article 89), one specification of failure to obey a lawful general order (Article 92), and three specifications of larceny (Article 121). He was sentenced to be reduced to the grade of E-1, to be confined for eight months, and to be discharged with a Bad Conduct Discharge.
On 18 December 2014, at a General Court Martial, SPC Aaron Nies, 36th Signal Battalion, 1st Signal Brigade, was found guilty of two Specifications of sexual assault (UCMJ, Article 120), three Specifications of abusive sexual contact (Article 120), attempted sexual assault (Article 80), indecent exposure (Article 120c), and failing to obey the curfew policy (Article 92). He was sentenced to be reduced to E-1, to be confined for 26 months, and to be discharged with a Bad Conduct Discharge.
On 19 December 2014, at a Special Court-Martial, Private First Class Timetra K. Hooks, 194th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, 501st Sustainment Brigade, was found guilty of two Specifications of larceny of non-government property (Article 121, UCMJ); five Specifications of forgery (Article 123); and one specification of obstructing justice (Article 134). She was sentenced to be reduced to E-1; to be confined for six months; and to be discharged with a Bad-Conduct Discharge.
Results of ROK Criminal Prosecutions for December 2014
In Seoul Central District Court on 4 December 2014, CPT Sophie S. Hilaire, HHB, 8th Army, duty w/USFK, was convicted of traffic law violations. Her adjudged sentence was a 2,000,000 Won fine.
In Suwon District Court on 10 December 2014, PVT Dmitri N. Davis, HHC, 3-2 GSAB, USAG Humphreys, was found not guilty of the charges of Indecent Act by Compulsion.
In Daegu District Court on 18 December 2014, PVT Travis D. Mitchell, 551st ICTC, USAG Daegu (Carroll), was convicted of Indecent Act by Compulsion. His adjudged sentence was a 10,000,000 Won fine.
In Seoul Central District Court on 31 December 2014, Capt Jonathan P. Walsh, HQ, 7th Air Force (A7X), Osan Air Base, was convicted of Infliction of Bodily Injury, Destruction and Damage of Property and Violation of the Minor Offense Act. His adjudged sentence was a 1,000,000 Won fine.
