Thanks a Lot, Park Chung-hee!

Thanks a Lot, Park Chung-hee!

Love him or loathe him, he is the most controversial person in modern Korean history. He did a lot of good stuff, such as instigating construction of the Gyeongbu Expressway linking Seoul and Busan; the POSCO steel giant was his doing; he ordered...

Clifford Antone’s Joint

Clifford Antone’s Joint

I wish I could remember what prompted me, in the summer of 1976, to drive my Ford station wagon to downtown Austin and find the intersection of Sixth and Brazos, the site of an old furniture store. It had, for the past year, been the home of a...

RAP the Bruiser

RAP the Bruiser

I am a calm and harmonious person; like the Buddha, I exude serenity. But occasionally situations arise that demand a forceful response. I have compiled some examples going back a few years, and you can take them for what they are worth. One...

I Salute Griffin Bruns

I Salute Griffin Bruns

Baseball, especially of the major league variety, can be boring (pitchers who take almost half a minute between throws to the plate), infuriating (batters intent on blasting home runs, strikeouts be damned) and alienating (Alex Rodriguez, for...

Bill Clinton, You Lying Horndog

Bill Clinton, You Lying Horndog

Historians and scholars generally agree that of America’s 45 presidents, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin Roosevelt were the best. And the worst? The consensus seems to be, starting from the...

Weekend Drama at the Livingtel

Weekend Drama at the Livingtel

Since late November of last year, room 23 of the Yeoksam Livingtel has been my home. This red-brick edifice, located at 47 Bongeunsa-ro 30-gil, Gangnam-gu, is about a mile northeast of the Yesung Life Officetel, where I resided for more than 14...