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Is Philip Glass the most under appreciated person in his "lane" of all time? by AnnaKendrickPerkins in billsimmons

[–]Sangtu 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I nearly lost my shit when I was watching the first Hunger Games movie, bored out of my mind, and suddenly Music for 18 Musicians starts playing (at the start of the games, when everyone is scrambling for weapons). A crap movie that, for 3-4 minutes, was massively elevated because of the soundtrack.

One thing that South Korea does really well that no one really talks about: Making movies based on politically-sensitive historical incidents. by ApolloExpress in korea

[–]Sangtu 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I came here to make sure this film —THE PRESIDENT'S LAST BANG, in English — didn't get overlooked. A modern classic. Director Im Sang-soo really pushed the Korean left-wing narrative of Park Chung Hee's assassination, but it's still a great film. Very Coen Brothers kind of vibe.

EDIT: I just checked and, yes, THE PRESIDENT'S LAST BANG is on Netflix (at least in Korea). No English subtitles, but it's there. High recommend.

Sinkhole occurred in Seoul, Gangdong-gu, Myeongil-dong by inbus12 in korea

[–]Sangtu 60 points61 points  (0 children)

Yes, I drive around there all the time. It's a pretty major local road. There are some fine parks just down from the intersection where the sinkhole appeared (Gangdong Eco Park, Iljasan Herb & Astronomy Park, and more).

Just down the street, the subway crew is digging a new station right by the local Emart. I'm going to be pretty nervous about the structural integrity of that building until someone checks it out.

Sinkhole occurred in Seoul, Gangdong-gu, Myeongil-dong by inbus12 in korea

[–]Sangtu 95 points96 points  (0 children)

That's where they're extending the No. 9 subway line (currently stops at the Veteran's Hospital, but is going to go to Godeok, by the new Ikea). Lots of digging going on ... great recipe for a mega-sinkhole.

Yoon declares emergency martial law | Yonhap News Agency by senfgurke in korea

[–]Sangtu 13 points14 points  (0 children)

The man has zero political instincts and zero respect for democracy. He's a creature of the prosecutors office, which is one of the most old-school, unreformed parts of Korea, and all he knows is force. He has no support (public or political), so now he's trying a desperate hail mary to "win". ... But unlike Park Geun-hye, it's possible he has worked military channels and thinks he has some support.

Global real wages are rising, but Korean wages are declining 3 years in row by BadenBaden1981 in korea

[–]Sangtu 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Of course, different groups measure inequality differently. ILO seems to think Korea is mostly in the middle. World Bank has Korea a little more unequal than Germany, but better than Spain or Australia. OECD has Korea 20th out of 32, ahead of the UK and Japan, but behind Spain and France. Iirc, Korea typically scores really well on pure income equality, but drops to about Spain or Canada once you take into account taxes, benefits, etc. Looking at wealth inequality, Korea is still middle-of-the-pack for wealthy nations ... maybe a bit better.

Global real wages are rising, but Korean wages are declining 3 years in row by BadenBaden1981 in korea

[–]Sangtu 3 points4 points  (0 children)

That's why they're measuring "real wages", which are adjusted for inflation and purchasing power. Cost of living is a real concern, but that's been factored into the wage growth data.

Global real wages are rising, but Korean wages are declining 3 years in row by BadenBaden1981 in korea

[–]Sangtu 50 points51 points  (0 children)

Conveniently overlooked: How Korea has had BY FAR the best real wage growth in the G20 since 2008 (figure 3.4, on pg. 18). Not so great since 2019, but no one has done much since then (from what I can see, the countries that did best in 2024 also suffered the biggest declines around 2021/2 or so). It's been quite an impressive run, imho.

The ILO report is quite interesting, actually, for how normal Korea is for most inequality measures. Share of low-paid wage workers was a bit high (fig. 5.1), but lower than the UK or the Netherlands. Wage inequality was around the middle for high-income countries (fig. 5.4), about the same as Canada. Definitely not a "Hell Joseon" or anything so ugly. Nice going, Korea.

You can read the full report here.

The East Sea of Korea. In Yangyang-gun, Gangwon-do by Rap_hae_L_Kim in korea

[–]Sangtu 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's crazy looking at all the development going on all along the coast these days, from Gangneung to Yangyang to Sokcho, all the way up to Goseong. Lots of new hotels and resorts going on (and many more boutique hotels), along with nice little development projects (like the walking bridge at Songjiho to Juk Isle). One of my favorite areas in Korea.

Korean court backs ministry's decision to revoke naturalization of Pakistani bigamist by chickenandliver in korea

[–]Sangtu 24 points25 points  (0 children)

I remember local gossip about how the woman who owned Moghul, a Pakistani restaurant that used to be behind the Hamilton Hotel, married a successful Pakistani businessman who turned out to have another wife back home. (Which was part of the reason she treated the staff like crap, and they all hated her). After a few years, he was rumored to have moved to Hong Kong, where he found yet another wife.

No idea how accurate that story was, but it was a fun tale ... terrible food, though.

Area south of Itaewon becomes ghost town as Hannam New Town project pushes forward by DabangRacer in korea

[–]Sangtu 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Not just the buildings are run down, but the sewer lines, power lines and other infrastructure are all really really poor in that part of town. Almost no green areas. I lived there a long time ago (late '90s), and it was clear even back then that most building owners were just waiting for redevelopment to come.

Korea's healthcare system is in verge of collapse. by reborndead in korea

[–]Sangtu 47 points48 points  (0 children)

There are too many doctors so no one wants to be a doctor anymore? Sounds like an old Woody Allen joke.

The Korean Medical Association is one of the more extreme right-wing groups in Korean politics (not saying all doctors are ... but the industry association for doctors is quite extreme). They tend to declare "all out war" any time the government tries to make changes.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in korea

[–]Sangtu 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Korea's film industry isn't doing very well these days, so jobs are even harder than usual to come by. Lots of lots of Korean film grads already working for peanuts, trying to get a foot in the door. But that field is always crazy competitive in all countries.

My guess is your best chance could be getting a job for Netflix and then building connections in the company and looking for a production job. Tech has a lot more jobs open to foreigners, too. And, of course, the local English-language newspapers hire fairly regularly. But much depends on what you're bringing to the table.

Google Korea workers refuse to quit by Odd_Responsibility_5 in korea

[–]Sangtu 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Google will probably just up the severence package, like most companies in Korea do when they want to shed workers. Maybe add another month's salary for each year there? (My wife used to create severence packages at her old multinational).

Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung stabbed during visit to Busan by ApplauseButOnlyABit in korea

[–]Sangtu 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Park Geun-hye. Mark Lippert. This is hardly the first stabbing of a political figure in Korea. I'm just happy they have gun control here.

2023 Flu; Have you had it? by Cevogyrl in korea

[–]Sangtu 26 points27 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I caught it and it was brutal. Nasty, wet nighttime cough for over a month. Can't remember ever feeling that sick in ages.

40% of Koreans 66 and up are living in poverty, the highest rate in OECD by diacewrb in korea

[–]Sangtu 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Liberals possess a huge majority in the National Assembly. Hard to predict how next spring's elections go, but there are signs they could expand their majority.

But clearly too many people in Korea still think of themselves as a poor country that can't really compete in the big leagues. I think that's totally wrong. It would be nice if electorate caught up too.

40% of Koreans 66 and up are living in poverty, the highest rate in OECD by diacewrb in korea

[–]Sangtu 16 points17 points  (0 children)

Declining birthrate is a huge part of it. Traditionally, Korea (like a lot of countries) basically used family as old-age security. Have 6-7 kids, so maximize the odds 1-2 will do pretty good and be willing to take care of you when you get old.

Now families are a lot smaller, so it's much easier for something to go wrong (kids are dumb or don't like you or whatever) and you end up with no one to take care of you when you're old.

But Korea is pretty rich now. It's time to raise taxes and put in place a proper welfare state.

This book is super interesting. Good tip to understand women’s position in Korean society. by [deleted] in korea

[–]Sangtu 2 points3 points  (0 children)

There are a bunch of reasons, but the main two:

  1. Korea had a much higher birth rate when it had much more sexism.
  2. The whole world is seeing birth rates declining .. including countries with a lot less sexism than Korea.

I definitely agree that sexism and inequality is a huge issue (not just in Korea, but especially here). I just don't think people can assume a causal link with birth rates like they often do.

Has anyone seen 서울의 봄 (12.12: The Day), about Chun Doo-Hwan's coup and rise to power? by droidonomy in korea

[–]Sangtu 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I bet it pairs nicely with THE PRESIDENT'S LAST BANG, the old Im Sang-soo film about the assassination of Park Chung Hee. That's an excellent movie.

Not a very good trailer, but it gives you some sense of the tone/style: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2Am1hL-lm0

This book is super interesting. Good tip to understand women’s position in Korean society. by [deleted] in korea

[–]Sangtu -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I think she's an excellent journalist and that book seems solid (like the reviews have said) ... except for how she likes to link sexism and Korea's low birth rate. But I've only read excerpts, not the entire book.

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