It appears dog meat farms will be a thing of the past in South Korea by 2027:

Nearly 80 percent of dog meat farms in Korea have closed as of this month, revealing the fast pace of shutdowns ahead of the government’s plan to begin penalizing violators in February 2027.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, 125 dog meat farms shut down between Aug. 7 and Dec. 21 this year, while the number of dogs bred for consumption declined by 47,544 during the same period.

As a result, 1,204 of the 1,537 registered farms, or 78 percent, have now closed since the Special Act on the Termination of Breeding, Slaughter and Distribution of Dogs for Consumption was enacted in February last year, a month after the National Assembly passed the law.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Now it appears the Lee administration is trying to give up territory within the DMZ to appease North Korea:

The American-led United Nations Command (UNC) has said a Military Demarcation Line (MDL) marking the boundary between the two Koreas has been under its authority, in an apparent objection to an internal revision by South Korea’s military over land border rules to prevent accidental clashes with North Korea.

The UNC said in statement to Yonhap News Agency, “The United Nations Command reaffirms its commitment to maintaining the Armistice Agreement, including the MDL, and to supporting measures that prevent escalation and promote stability within the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).”

The statement came when asked how the UNC assessed the South Korean military’s envisioned revision of border rules, after the Korean military reportedly refined the MDL markers in order to reduce discrepancies between the two sides.

“The Military Demarcation Line was established and depicted in Map Volume I of the Korean Armistice Agreement on July 27, 1953, following a series of armistice negotiations,” the UNC said.

Last week, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said it had ordered troops to prioritize markers that indicate the MDL when making decisions, while also “comprehensively” applying the South Korean military map and a line connecting MDL markers set out by the UNC when they are difficult to discern.

Critics say the move favors North Korean troops by allowing the military to use a line drawn farther south when determining whether a border crossing has occurred.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Please leave anything you want to discuss this Christmas in the comments section. If you have nothing to discuss you could always just revisit this holiday classic.

Instead of fines and sternly worded letters why doesn’t the Lee administration seize these ships and sell them? That would be a real deterrent to the illegal Chinese fishing fleet that has literally for decades plundered Korean waters:

President Lee Jae Myung on Tuesday instructed maritime police to take stern measures against illegal fishing by Chinese vessels in South Korean waters.

During a policy briefing by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Lee asked whether the Korea Coast Guard was shifting its approach from simply repelling or blocking Chinese fishing boats to actively detaining them when they operate illegally in South Korea’s exclusive economic zone in the Yellow Sea.

Lee criticized what he described as violent resistance by some Chinese vessels against Korean law enforcement, including acts of intimidation and the installation of iron window bars, calling such behaviors “too mean.”

“If they act violently while engaging in illegal fishing to avoid enforcement, shouldn’t they face much stronger sanctions?” Lee said during the briefing held at the ministry’s new headquarters in the southeastern city of Busan.

Lee said fines should be raised to levels that would increase the financial burden and risk of illegal fishing in Korean waters.

He added that tougher enforcement would have a stronger deterrent effect, noting that selective crackdowns have been less effective because Chinese fishermen often pool money to pay fines imposed by Korean authorities.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here is one of the best good news stories from the Korean War when Chaplain Russell Blaisdell and Staff Sergeant Mike Strang helped to organized a large airlift of orphans to Jeju:

Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Russell Blaisdell, left, and Staff Sgt. Merle “Mike” Strang in an undated photo. (U.S. Air Force)

U.S. Air Force chaplains at two sites in South Korea recently marked the 75th anniversary of a humanitarian airlift that saved hundreds of children at a critical moment in the Korean War. Operation Kiddy Car began Dec. 20, 1950, as Chinese and North Korean forces advanced toward Seoul, forcing United Nations troops to withdraw, leaving hundreds of orphaned children without a safe way out of the city.

Nearly 1,000 children were flown to safety at Jeju Island aboard 16 Air Force transport planes thanks to the operation organized and led by Chaplain (Lt. Col.) Russell Blaisdell, according to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force website. Ceremonies at Osan Air Base on Dec. 17 and at South Korea’s Gwangju ChoonHyun Babies Home Memorial on Thursday recognized the operation’s historical significance and the Air Force’s humanitarian role. In a short speech at Gwangju, Kyung-Ae Lim provided a personal perspective, shifting focus from official history to a child affected by the war.

“My name is Kyung-Ae Lim, and I stand before you as one who was once a Korean War orphan,” Lim said in the frigid air at the Gwangju memorial. Lim was 10 years old when Blaisdell helped her evacuate, an experience she said changed her life. Lim spoke for about five minutes next to a statue of Blaisdell. “We were transferred by U.S. C-54 cargo planes to Jeju Island,” Lim said. “Even now, 75 years later, the memories of those days remain vivid in my heart.” The Skymaster aircraft eventually carried about 955 children and several dozen caregivers to Jeju Island, in what historians consider a rare example of a chaplain-led humanitarian evacuation during active combat.

Blaisdell “saved many orphans from near certain death by collecting them from the streets” with the help of Staff Sgt. Merle “Mike” Strang and Korean social workers, according to the museum. Blaisdell found shelter and medical care for the children, while he and Lt. Col. Dean Hess arranged contributions of food, money and clothing.

Lim said that after arriving on Jeju, the children were sheltered by U.S. and Korean caretakers, and that Blaisdell remained a constant presence during a time marked by fear, displacement and uncertainty. “We may be from different countries, but I sincerely thank Chaplain Blaisdell for taking care of us with God’s love,” Lim said. “I sincerely thank Chaplain Blaisdell for giving me a second chance at life.” 

Stars and Stripes

You can read more at the link or check out my prior posting about Chaplain Blaisdell that is part of my Heroes of the Korean War series below:

It looks like the DPK now has their kangaroo court to jail all their political enemies with:

The ruling Democratic Party on Tuesday pushed through a bill to establish special tribunals for insurrection and treason charges linked to the Dec. 3, 2024, martial law declaration, ending a daylong filibuster by the main opposition People Power Party.

Lawmakers first adopted a motion to cut off the filibuster, which passed 185-1. The Assembly then approved the bill 175-2, including two abstentions, with 179 of 298 lawmakers voting. Lawmakers from the People Power Party boycotted the vote.

The revised bill requires the Seoul Central District Court and the Seoul High Court to set up at least two dedicated panels each to handle insurrection, treason and rebellion cases tied to the martial law declaration by ousted former President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

The facial recognition requirement is supposed to help stop crime:

Face recognition will be mandatory when setting up a new smartphone starting Tuesday, local media reported.

Under the new rule, new users must verify their identity through facial recognition when they buy a new smartphone, whether online or in person, according to relevant authorities.

The requirement applies to the country’s three major mobile carriers, SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus, as well as low-cost mobile carriers.

Previously, users were required only to present an identification card to activate a smartphone. Under the revised system, an additional step has been added that requires users to take a photo of their face through the PASS authentication app.

The government said the measure is aimed at preventing crimes such as voice phishing and smishing that are often carried out using smartphones activated with stolen or forged identification.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.