The war on dog meat restaurants continues:
Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon on Saturday pledged to completely eliminate the business of dog meat in South Korea’s capital.
Korea Times
“Once dog-butchering businesses are completely removed soon, I plan to make a declaration,” he said in a meeting with an audience after watching animated film “The Underdog” at a local cinema.
You can read more at the link.
North Korea is trying to get their people to show more pride in their nation’s flag:
North Korea is stepping up a new loyalty campaign as leader Kim Jong Un prepares for his second summit with President Donald Trump.
Stars & Stripes
The campaign began last month with the introduction of a song in praise of the nation’s flag.
A video now being aired on state-run television to promote the song — called “Our National Flag” — shows repeated images of the flag being raised at international sports competitions and being formed by a sea of people holding up colored lengths of cloth at a parade and rally on Kim Il Sung Square. Other images show recent improvements in the economy and standard of living, a reflection of a current government policy shift that focuses on development and prosperity.
You can read more at the link.
On This Day in 1942, US Authorities Began Locking Up Americans In Concentration Camps https://t.co/040fOgXKFO
— tomcoyner (@tomcoyner) February 10, 2019
It looks like the next US-ROK military exercise will be delayed:
China’s state-run Xinhua news agency says the decision by South Korea and the U.S. to delay their announcement on joint military drill plans to after the North Korea-U.S. summit is in consideration of Pyongyang.
KBS World Radio
The report said Saturday the postponement appears to have considered North Korea’s possible reaction to the joint drills ahead of its summit with Washington.
It noted the regime has criticized South Korea-U.S. exercises as rehearsals for invading the North.
Xinhua said the decision to delay the announcement likely reflects the belief that ongoing working-level negotiations between the North and the U.S. may be affected.
The report added that at the time of the first North Korea-U.S. summit last year, Seoul and Washington also pushed back their joint drills to after the summit meeting.
Fortunately this was just another small quake because I would hate to see what would happen if a massive quake ever hit the Korean peninsula:
A four-point-one magnitude earthquake struck off the southeastern city of Pohang on Sunday.
KBS World Radio
The Korea Meteorological Administration said that the quake took place at 12:53 p.m. in waters 50 kilometers east-northeast of the port city at a depth of 21 kilometers.
The KMA had earlier announced the quake’s magnitude was four but later revised it.
A KMA official said that it is a quake-prone region, but the magnitude is larger than usual, adding there have been no reports of damage received so far as the location is about 50 kilometers off the coast.
You can read more at the link.
This shouldn’t come as surprising news to anyone living in Korea that the moped delivery drivers are causing an increasing number of accidents:
Nowadays, more restaurant owners use delivery apps like Baedal Minjok, Yogiyo and Baedaltong to sell their goods, and the market for deliveries has steadily increased. In 2018, sales for delivery services reached 5 trillion won ($4.4 billion). This is four times the amount of sales 10 years ago. Time is money for couriers who receive an average of 3,500 won per delivery. This is why they resort to violating traffic laws to quickly finish off as many deliveries as they can.
Joong Ang Ilbo
“My children and I were walking on the sidewalk once when we were almost hit by a passing delivery guy speeding on his motorbike,” said Kim Yong-chul, a resident of Seongnam, Gyeonggi.
“It’s always scary when a speeding motorbike cuts in front of me when I’m driving,” said Baek Gyeong-ae, who lives in Goyang, Gyeonggi. “I’m always worried that an accident will occur.”
According to data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the number of car accidents has decreased consistently for the last five years. However, during the same time period, the number of accidents caused by speeding motorbikes increased 32 percent.
You can read more at the link.
Of course, I detest the air pollution we have to deal with these days in Korea. But running close behind is how much I hate the pollution-measuring systems here. Their predictions are ridiculously inaccurate. Hard to make plans for the family when I can't trust the air quality.
— Mark Russell (@themarkrussell) February 6, 2019
This seems like more evidence that US negotiators are focusing more on the ICBM threat than trying to eliminate the North Korean nuclear program:
The United States has asked North Korea to hand over a list of nuclear experts who were directly involved in the development of its intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), according to sources, Friday.
Korea Times
They said U.S. officials engaged in working-level discussions in Pyongyang for the second summit between the U.S. and North Korea ― scheduled for later this month ― were focusing on the dismantlement of the North’s ICBMs, as well as the complete closure of its Yongbyon nuclear facility.
“Among Washington’s demands was for Pyongyang to list its ICBM developers,” one source said. Cheong Wa Dae officials declined to comment on the issue.
You can read more at the link.
