President Lee is pushing for a self reliant defense of Korea, whatever that means:
President Lee Jae Myung on Monday underscored the importance of self-reliant defense capabilities, citing a “very complex and fluid” international situation, as the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran has disrupted global energy markets.
“I believe self-reliant defense capability is essential to our integrated security posture,” Lee said during a regular security meeting with senior officials, according to Cheong Wa Dae. “We must be able to defend ourselves without relying on outside assistance, and we do have such capabilities.”
You can read more at the link, but if South Korea has so called self reliant defense capabilities than why is President Lee using them to help open the Strait of Hormuz where much of Korea’s energy passes through? Iran is essentially committing an act of war against South Korea by blockading ships designated to go to South Korea from departing the Persian Gulf.
It is pretty amazing that with everything going on in Korea and the world that the top story currently over at Yonhap’s English page is of a bar fight in Hongdae involving an American Soldier:
An American soldier was booked Sunday for allegedly assaulting a South Korean man at a nightclub in Seoul’s Hongdae district, police said.
The 20-something member of the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) was apprehended at the scene after allegedly assaulting the man around 3 a.m. on Saturday, according to the Mapo Police Station.
The altercation reportedly began after the victim bumped shoulders with the soldier’s party and resulted in him sustaining a fractured nose.
The soldier was transferred to the USFK in accordance with the Status of Forces Agreement, which governs the legal status of the 28,500 troops stationed in South Korea.
Police said they will decide on the next steps after determining the details of the incident.
You can read more at the link, but I can remember the days when incidents like this would lead to massive protests due to lies about the SOFA agreement. Fortunately those days appear to be long gone.
President Lee has faced multiple trials for being a crook, but there is no way he is this big of a crook. This sounds like fake news to me:
President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday lambasted a conservative YouTube channel for airing slush fund accusations against him, calling it “pathetic” and “malicious.”
The reaction came after the YouTube channel run by Jeon Han-gil, a former Korean history instructor and now a vocal supporter of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, aired an interview with a man making the allegations.
He argued that Lee is preparing to flee to China and recently transferred 160 trillion won (US$106.5 billion) and military secrets to Chinese authorities in Singapore.
“Secret slush funds and leaking national military information? This is truly pathetic and malicious matador. It must be severely punished,” Lee wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
Lee made the remarks by citing a post by Rep. Han Jun-ho of the ruling Democratic Party, who criticized Jeon’s video and urged investigative authorities to step in immediately.
In the YouTube interview, the man claimed that U.S. intelligence operatives have figured everything out, but offered no concrete evidence to support the statement.
You can read more at the link.
This is quite a tragedy that unfolded over the weekend in Daejeon:
At least 14 people have been killed in a large-scale fire at an automobile parts plant in the central city of Daejeon, authorities said Saturday, after three previously missing individuals were found dead.
Rescue workers recovered the remains of three additional victims from the charred second floor of the plant between 4 and 5 p.m., using heavy equipment to remove debris.
With the latest discovery, all 14 missing individuals have been accounted for, fire authorities said.
You can read more at the link, but the cause of the fire unknown, but witnesses did report an explosion that happened.
I watched this concert with my family on Netflix and I have to say it was pretty well done. Seoul really showcased itself during the concert:
K-pop megastar BTS held its first full-group concert in Seoul on Saturday since all members completed their mandatory military service, drawing fans from around the world to the heart of the South Korean capital.
The seven members delivered the first live performance of key tracks of its fifth studio album, “Arirang,” released on Friday, at Gwanghwamun Square.
The record is the first group release from the band in three years and nine months, following “Proof” in June 2022. After the release, the members took a break from its group projects with a promise to reunite as a full group after all its member complete their mandatory military duty.
The one-hour show opened with approximately 50 traditional Korean dancers in black costumes lining the “woldae,” a ceremonial stage in front of Gyeongbok Palace’s main gate. As the performers split into two groups, the seven members revealed themselves on a stage at the northern end of the square, drawing enthusiastic cheers from thousands of fans who crowded the venue.
You can read more at the link, but one thing I noticed watching the concert was that the U.S. Embassy was totally dark. The other buildings around Gwanghwamun were lighted and decorated for the concert and the U.S. embassy stood out as the lone dark building I noticed. I wonder if anyone from Netflix even approached the U.S. embassy to see if they would be willing to at least turn their lights on for the concert?
This is just a truly weird case and I can only imagine the shock of his command team had when thy had to deal with this:
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces in Washington, D.C.
The military’s highest court has upheld the dismissal of a case involving an airman who said he performed sexual acts with a childlike silicone doll in the privacy of his dorm room. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces on Monday affirmed the judgment of the Air Force criminal appeals court, which ruled that Airman Zachary Rocha’s conduct was constitutionally protected.
In the court’s majority opinion, justices wrote they lacked the authority to make their own findings of fact and reviewed an appeals’ court decision for the application of “correct legal principles.” The high court wrote that it was not sure another review by the Air Force appeals court was justified, stating justices answered the most important question when they “stated Rocha had a constitutionally protected liberty interest to privately engage in sexual activities with his doll,” according to court papers.
But in a scathing dissent from the majority, the court’s top judge warned the decision lowers the legal threshold for deviant behavior among personnel and sends a message that the U.S. military’s justice system accepts “the unabashed sexualization of children.” “And so,” wrote Chief Judge Keith Ohlson, “hundreds of thousands of servicemembers who serve in the Air Force and Space Force are now authorized to penetrate … child sex dolls while on base and at their leisure. “ (……..)
Rocha admitted to purchasing a silicone sex doll, described in court filings as being about 4 feet tall with female prepubescent features. It was discovered in his room about three weeks after he bought the doll during an on-base dormitory inspection. Those who saw the clothed doll on Rocha’s bed said they were startled by its lifelike appearance, according to court documents.
An Air Force investigator testified in 2021 that he “saw a doll that scared (him) because it kind of looked like a child,” according to court filings. Rocha told investigators he benefited emotionally from the doll, whom he named Adele. He also said he engaged in sexual acts with the doll but denied having sexual interest in children, court papers state. Rocha said he stopped his sexual activity when realizing the doll looked childlike, according to court documents.
You can read more at the link, but I think the way the military can handle this is just issue a sweeping policy letter that forbids these child sex dolls in the barracks.
Please leave anything you want to discuss in the comments section.
