Swine Flu & More Craziness in Korea

Well, the past week has been filled with activity here on the peninsula.

First off, the former president, Roh Moo-hyun, commits suicide while the government was investigating him for accepting bribes during his term. His death suddenly turned into a political ploy. Opponents of the current Korean administration (Lee Myung-bak) are using his death to blame Lee for employing harsh tactics and for basically ruining the nation. The day that he died an alter was immediately setup in front of my neighborhood metro station to allow people to bow and pay respects while someone on a loud speaker attracted an audience by denouncing President Lee. From what I hear, these alters are all around Seoul.



North Korea decided today to continue their craziness. They thought it would a fine idea to conduct an underground nuclear test while test firing some missiles at the same time. I think someone is just cranky they aren't getting their way. More here and here. Let's hope the place doesn't get nuked while I'm here. The Koreans don't seem to get too worked up about these things, though. The US Embassy did send me a notice about the test and reminded to always be prepared in case of a sudden evacuation.


Also, swine flu seems to be raging here on the ROK. More Koreans are being confirmed to have the virus. This past weekend, an American that recently came here to teach was confirmed to have the virus. Another American was discovered to have the virus today. That person also recently came to Korea to teach English. The school is a big chain here, and they send all of there new teachers to a big orientation/training session in Seoul. So, that person was in close contact with all kinds of other new teachers. That person has since been put in quarantine. Also, every Western that came in contact with that American has been rounded up in ambulances by the government and taken to a hospital so they can be isolated. People stuck in the hospital are blogging here, here, and here. An expat blogger in Korea gives a nice round-up of news regarding the situation here. News articles can be read here and here.

There are rumors in my town (Bucheon) that a foreigner at a big English school next to mine was involved with that week-long training session. The English school is big chain here in Korea and has decided to shut down for the next week to avoid more infections.

I'm a little worried about what the means for us foreigners. I fear that Koreans are going to get really worried by the "American sickness" and shun us in public. Maybe even the government will round us up and quarantine us or deport us; who knows. I heard that new teachers that has arrived after May 11 will have to undergo a home quarantine. If parents get really concerned, they will start pulling their students from our school to avoid the virus coming from foreigners.



Today, I told one of my classes that I was a little sick. They instantly asked if it was the "pig virus." I, of course, told them it probably was. One of the kids told me that I needed to eat lots of kimchi in order to get rid of the "pig virus." Another kid said it was the "America virus," and he then asked me if I was an "American people." Once I said yes, they all gasped in unison and pushed their chairs back away from me. That's just an example of what I think this might develop into. Koreans are already suspicious about letting foreigners into the country; this will only heighten their unfounded fears.

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Critical Corker

I heart Bob Corker:

The primary sticking point for the White House and Republicans is that there is no clear-cut language in the bill requiring the automakers to restructure their enormous debt before they take on new debt to taxpayers. "Once bond holders see that the government is in this, they will have no incentive to write down the value of the debt they hold," said Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), a member of the Senate Banking Committee who has been influential during the negotiations despite his freshman status. "These companies cannot be restructured for success without a complete restructuring of their debt and labor and retiree obligations, and the debt is the biggest issue," said Corker, who added, "I wanted to see more teeth in the bill."

More here

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Double Standards?

Another look at the election (via Six Meat Buffet):

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At Least Europeans Can Love Us Again

This is from Six Meat Buffet:

Voting corpses notwithstanding, you won by a big enough margin to have been elected fairly. The office of the Presidency is to be respected regardless of who holds it.

We are deeply disappointed and somewhat apprehensive about the kind of administration you will bring and laws your legislature will pass. It is my hope that your campaign promises made from the center will guide you rather than your mentors and past record representing the South side of Chicago.

On the bright side, at last France, Spain and Belgium will admire us once again. As they gaze at us through the smoke of their burning cars set alight by masses of unemployed youths, they will see that we are embracing a better path - theirs. Regardless of their approval, we do know that Americans are a decent people and have elected a man of African descent less than 150 years after slavery was abolished.

I will work diligently to see conservatives regain power, but for the next four years, it’s your show, President Obama.

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One Bright Spot for the GOP: Tennessee

Not only did McCain handily win in Tennessee, but the TNGOP also made some gains at the state house. According to Bill Hobbs, the GOP has taken control of both the TN House and Senate; this is the first time since the Civil War.

The Republicans now have a majority in the State Senate with 19 seats versus the 14 seats now held by the Democrats.

One race that was in particular interest to me was the race between Mike Faulk and incumbent, independent Mike Williams of District 4 (my home district). Williams was formally a part of the Republican party but recently switched to independent status after many in-party disputes, including his vote for a Democrat as Speaker of the Senate and Lt. Governorship. I hadn't really kept track of this race closely. I did hear about allegations of Faulk having an affair with a married woman. Also, Williams racked in $110,000 of campaign contributions from TN Dems. Even though those were obstacles for Faulk, I expected him to win in a landslide. I thought people in the District would see the "Republican" title and push the button without looking at the name. However, Faulk has won with only a 346-vote margin. This was certainly a lot more competitive than I originally thought. (more here)

Another surprise to me was the narrow loss of Democrat incumbent Nathan Vaughn of the TN House 2nd District. He was defeated by Republican challenger Tony Shipley; the vote difference, however, was only 1%. Apparently, Shipley ran a tough campaign by "attacking Vaughn’s voting record on everything from illegal immigration to raising taxes on cigarettes to fund education reform." It looks like this will now allow the GOP to also take control of the State House; they are supposed to now have 50 seats out of 33. (more here)

Mike Harrison, of Hawkins County, defended his TN House 9th District seat by obtaining 71% of the vote. This will now be his fourth term in the House. For more on Harrison and some more Hawkins County races, there is more here.

To no surprise, Republican Phil Roe of the TN US House 1st District will now be heading off to Congress with 72% of the vote. Really no surprise here considering we have sent a Democrat off to Congress in 100+ years. After he defeated incumbent David Davis, there was much second-thought about his next job. (more here)

For more on the GOP gains in TN government, read here. For local election results in the Tri-Cities area, check this out.

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Be Careful Barack

"Obama ran on platform of change — now he must spell out exactly how"

Ever since Obama began his campaign, he has never been very specific about what he is going to do and how he is going to do it. Well, now he's finally got to let people know. He's going to have a very difficult time balancing between liberal, progressive policies and those more middle-in-the-road governance that he promised during the campaign (he already broke the promise of accepting public campaign financing; will he again?).

He needs to remember that once Clinton started getting liberal along with the Democratic-controlled Congress the Dems lost big time in the mid-term elections and the GOP took over. He needs to fulfill his promises of being a moderate and all-inclusive President. If not, he will encounter problems two, four years down the road.

I don't really see this election as an embrace of liberalism and socialism; Obama doesn't have the mandate to follow such policies. This was more of a backlash against the Bush era.

Democratic pollster Geoff Garin said Obama's mandate, as put to the voters, was a mandate to be a different president than George W. Bush. "That covers a lot of ground," he said. "There's certainly a mandate in terms of leadership style to have a politics that is more inclusive."

Garin argued that Obama enjoys a mandate for a more activist government that can regulate the excesses of the private sector. "But having said that," Garin said, "the public still has a lot of skepticism about the efficiency and effectiveness of government."

He is certainly going to have to resist pressure from the energized Dems controlling the House and Senate.

"My own hunch is that Obama is smart enough not to want to govern as a liberal," said Peter Wehner, a former Bush administration official. "But he is going to have hydraulic pressure from the House and Senate to do that."

John Feehery, who was a top aide to former House speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.), said House Democrats represent a political threat to an Obama presidency. "His real challenge is to understand that the House leadership does not necessarily lead you into a reelection," he said.

Read this great article from the Washington Post about these difficulties that Obama faces.

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08 Election Live

11:05pm - it's all over. obama wins. sigh.

10:31pm - roe called for tn 1st district with 72% of vote...100+ year dominance by gop continues

10:30pm - i'm at work now...watching live abc news feeds...doesn't look like there's much of a contest anymore...looks like va and fla might go to obama

9:24pm - ohio has been called for obama...looks like it's in the bag
obama 195, mccain 76

9:11pm - mcconnell will keep his seat in kentucky...gop holds on to their leader in the senate; one sigh of relief for republicans

9:10pm - roe is taking 72% of the vote in tn district 1 with 13% reporting

9:06pm - 4 senate seats switched from dems to gop...can they make it to 60? i'm not entirely sold yet

9:00pm - polls close; most too early to call; georgia now called for mccain
obama 174, mccain 76

8:55pm - nbc just said speaker pelosi is going to have complete control...such a scary comment (house controls the purse strings)...that could kill the dems like bush killed the gop

8:55pm - big chunk of country closes polls at 9

8:53pm - little change in turnout; african americans, whites, youth about the same as 2004

8:30pm - abc says dems will have biggest hold of senate since 70s; we all know how well they took care of the economy back then

8:20pm - young voters down in fla; old voters up big time in fla; great news for mccain

8:15pm - lamar called for senate in tn!!

8:00pm - pa called for obama (21) with 0% reporting...a little early don't you think?
15 state polls close: obama (102); mccain (34)

7:56pm - 90% voters nationwide confident votes will be counted; 15 state polls closing in 4 minutes

7:46pm - nbc calls south carolina for mccain (8)

7:42pm - mccain still holding indiana at 20%

7:40pm - abc news calls it the end of public financing

7:29pm - watching abc news on afn here in korea; more polls closing soon

7pm - Kentucky called for mccain (8), vermont for obama (3); here we go

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Freedom

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Go Vote!

I voted all the way from South Korea; the least you can do is drive across town to vote.

(if you're not sure who to vote for, I would recommend McCain)

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It Comes Down to This

I'm watching MSNBC news coverage live from the web. I'm tired; I'm going to bed. I'll wake up early to see what happens. I'll blog what I see and think here.

If you follow me on Twitter or look on the right-hand side, I will update various stories I see around the web on election night (well, election day...my time).

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Brilliant Idea

Let's bankrupt the industry that keeps the lights on! Let's do that considering there is no other viable energy alternatives! (granted, there is solar and wind technology available, but those power sources do not currently have the ability to meet the high demand that's supplied by coal plants)

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Unanswered Questions

One of the reasons the Obama camp doesn't really strike my fancy is their inability to confront facts. There are just so many unanswered questions (mainly because the media doesn't want to ask). Fox News recently presented a radio interview that Obama did in 2001. Instead of answering the questions raised by the interview, the Obama camp just attacks Fox News for even raising these legitimate questions. Take a look at this (via Bob Krumm):



This is just one of the reasons that I did not vote for Obama; click here for a list of many other reasons.

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Commander-In-Peace

It sounds great when a potential leader says he will reduce the development of military weapons. Surely world peace would come soon after. Or would it? I know it scares me to hear a presidential candidate say words like that. Why would we reduce military R&D when countries like China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia are rapidly increasing the strength of their forces? I'm sure they will stop as long as we do (sarcasm intended).

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South Korean Fact Check

If you watched the final US Presidential Debate, you might have heard South Korea mentioned by Obama. He was talking about the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between the US and Korea. Obama was not very clear whether or not he supported the FTA; he made it sound as though this agreement would create a trade imbalance where Korea could dump all of their cars on the US while we could sell only a few thousand to Koreans. Actually, the FTA would stop this current imbalance and allow more balanced automotive trade. Maybe he just mixed up his words, but here is more on Korea in the debate.

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Pure Arrogance

Is this the kind of "change" we want in Washington?



(More here, here, here, and here)

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What Just Happened?

Granted this video is from the Republicans, but nothing in this video was made up:



(via Are We Lumberjacks?)

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Ignored Warning Signs

For years leading up to the current financial situation, the Congress and the President knew something bad was going to happen. They saw the warning signs, and the flags were waved.

The crisis has roots in economic (actually, social) policies of the the Carter and Clinton administrations:



This Congressional hearing was held in 2004:



Both Bush and McCain introduced legislation in 2003 and 2006 to help prevent the trouble that we are in now.

Bush tried to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac back in 2003:

The new agency would have the authority, which now rests with Congress, to set one of the two capital-reserve requirements for the companies. It would exercise authority over any new lines of business. And it would determine whether the two are adequately managing the risks of their ballooning portfolios.

The plan is an acknowledgment by the administration that oversight of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- which together have issued more than $1.5 trillion in outstanding debt -- is broken. A report by outside investigators in July concluded that Freddie Mac manipulated its accounting to mislead investors, and critics have said Fannie Mae does not adequately hedge against rising interest rates.

Who blocked the legislation? Can you guess?

"These two entities -- Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- are not facing any kind of financial crisis," said Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee. "The more people exaggerate these problems, the more pressure there is on these companies, the less we will see in terms of affordable housing."

McCain tried to do something himself in 2006:

I join as a cosponsor of the Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005, S. 190, to underscore my support for quick passage of GSE regulatory reform legislation. If Congress does not act, American taxpayers will continue to be exposed to the enormous risk that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose to the housing market, the overall financial system, and the economy as a whole.

Let's not start pointing fingers. Of course, this is an election year, and the biased media does have much desire to report on "history." Granted, I don't agree with a lot of Bush's policies; however, he at least had the foresight to see change was needed. The Democrats stopped the plan; now, when there is trouble, they start blaming others. I'm not sure if this is what you would call "change." Sounds pretty old-fashioned to me.

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"Big Issues"

The Obama campaign sent out this memo after losing some traction:

"But we will do it on the big issues that matter to the American people. We will not allow John McCain and his band of Karl Rove disciples to make this big election about small things."

Here is the "big issue" they are referring to:

The new Obama ad hit McCain hard, ridiculing him as a computer illiterate who doesn't know how to use e-mail and working to cast the 72-year-old Arizonan as out of touch with ordinary Americans.

I know that's my top concern as a voter: can my President use email?

Thanks, Obama, for bringing "change" to politics and dealing with the "big issues."

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Palin Power

According to a survey of voters, Palin is now viewed more favorably than McCain or Obama.

A week ago, most Americans had never heard of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. Now, following a Vice Presidential acceptance speech viewed live by more than 40 million people, Palin is viewed favorably by 58% of American voters.
...
Perhaps most stunning is the fact that Palin's favorable ratings are now a point higher than either man at the top of the Presidential tickets this year. As of Friday morning, Obama and McCain are each viewed favorably by 57% of voters. Biden is viewed favorably by 48%.

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Palin's Amazing Speech

Here's a couple of great speeches yesterday at the GOP Convention (in case you missed it...you need to see it):





Palin's speech was masterful! Apparently, she winged a lot of it. It will be interesting to see where she goes from here. I can't wait to see on her on the campaign trail and take down Biden at the VP debate!

This is what Dr. Helen has to say about the criticisms of Sarah Palin:

If Palin were a Democrat, we would not be having this national conversation about her children, her ability to mother and the other dirt that the MSM is flinging against her. Instead, the media would hail her as a hero, a role model for young girls and beyond reproach. The hypocrisy is staggering.

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