Normal people...

I can’t stop reading the SMPA webpage. Another great post yesterday.

In Japan foreigners must always carry local-government-issued ID with them at all times. Failure to do so results in them being locked up.

Has Korea ever thought about doing something like this? It would be nice if foreigners were more regularly locked in jail.

Any guesses on the cops response?

This next one isn’t that great but I enjoy the response from the police so here it is (and, well, I’m bored at work so this gives me something to do, and look busy while I’m typing in MS Word…).

Recently I was walking around Seoul when I noticed a number of Christmas decorations up. There was a department store that had Christmas wreaths, and I even saw a Baskin Robbins playing Christmas carols.

As you know, Christmas is very offensive to non-Christians. It makes them very violent and dangerous. In western countries, we no longer celebrate Christmas. Instead we say Happy Holidays and decorate festivity trees.

We are at war. Displaying Christmas decorations could force the Islamic and atheistic forces to attack. For the safety of the country, I think you should cancel Christmas and make Christmas decorations illegal.

And the boys in blue’s response.

Thanks for visit to SMPA homepage

We understand what you want to say

However, normal people here could know what is good or bad,
so they are not affected by the celebration.

“Normal people.” I really enjoy how they imply that this guy isn’t actually “normal,” but all of the actual “normal” people “know what is good or bad.”

Really??? Like leaving the bar (with your wife) but insisting that you drive because you are the man, BUT you are totally shit-faced. Normal? It’s pretty normal in Korea.

Or pushing and shoving your way onto the subway, bus, elevator, set of stairs, or just about anywhere else. Normal? Yup, see it everyday.

How about this one? Making your ten year old kid go to school all day, then go to the private institute for another one to five hours to study English, Math, Science, etc. Then this child continues the routine through junior high and high school, has no social life (or social skills), writes the big exam they write in high school that practically determines your fate, does pretty average on this exam, can’t get into the program his parents wanted him to get into (I mean, um, the program he wanted to get into), sees no hope in his future because he will never get a job with a “company,” so he jumps off a building. Normal? I’m not gonna go as far as saying that this is “normal” over here, but it happens because there is so much competition for every job and placement.

And one more. Your dad works hard and goes to work every morning at 7:00 AM. He comes home every night at around midnight, give or take, completely smashed. Your mom puts up with this for some reason, and you don’t even know there is something wrong because this is just how it is. Your dad has to live like this because it’s how business is done in your country. Normal? Sure. Typical? Pretty much.

Don’t take this the wrong way. Thing is, I’m not even tryna bitch about Korea. I’m just explaining what “normal” people do here.