"eat that steak"

Korean millenials face many of the same challenges that American ones do -- a sluggish job market (for full time work, at least), increasing costs for education and housing, and more generally a sense that they'll never do as well as their parents did.  So are they overlooked and under appreciated, or just wasteful spenders?  Enter "fuck-it expenses":

"Loosely translated to 'fuck-it expense,' the term is a compound noun combining shibal (a swearword for frustration) and biyong (expense). It first appeared in late 2016, with the earliest tweet about it referring to 'an expense that I would not have spent if I weren’t under stress,' such as 'an impulsive food delivery or a cab ride.' The post caught on, and the term was named “neologism of the year” by several South Korean media outlets.

A shibal biyong is an expense that might seem unnecessary but that helps you get through a bad day. It’s the $20 you splurge for a cab home instead of taking the subway after you’ve been denied a promotion or the comforting but expensive sushi you buy after you’ve been berated by your boss. The term implies that you might as well make yourself happy right now because your prospects in the long term seem bleak. Buy that nice coat, because you’ll never get on the housing ladder. Eat that steak, because you’ll never save up enough to retire."

Meanwhile the Korean demographic crisis continues unabated.

"Oh, but things just ain't the same"

X, "Fourth of July"

I have some genuinely great memories of July 4th growing up in the DC area.  The downtown DC fireworks were hardly the only choice -- I remember the University of Maryland had some pretty great displays as well.  But I can remember two times -- maybe three -- when we made the trip to the "official" display.  And they were great.  Pretty sure Bush the Elder was president during one of the events, and not a whiff of partisanship was there -- just people out enjoying their three-day weekend.

And now of course, like everything he comes into contact with, Trump has ruined yet another perfectly fine American tradition -- poisoned it on the altar of his bottomless ego.

Anyhow there aren't that many great American Fourth of July rock tunes but this is definitely one of them.  I'm finalizing my plans for America between the end of July and mid-August, and I'll probably catch the new Spiderman this weekend.

I only had one student call and complain about his grade.  That's a minor win as well.

Why Shouldn't Us Libs Responsibly Own More Guns?

Corey Pein on the rise of left-wing gun ownership:

"Consider the tense political climate in the Pacific Northwest, where Washington state Representative Matt Shea, a dough-faced Christian dominionist from Spokane, made news last year when his instructions on how to build a'holy army'that would kill 'all males' who refused to submit to biblical law leaked to the press. 'ssassination to remove tyrants is just, not murder,'he wrote. The tyrant he referred to was not Trump, of course, but the communists he imagined running the government. 


Such paranoid fantasies may be familiar to heavy consumers of YouTube and Reddit, but watching them transposed on to the structures of governance is a novelty. As a result, many leftists and even some liberals are beginning to reconsider their feelings about firearms, joining a loose amalgamation of gun groups, from John Brown Gun Clubs (which take their name from the abolitionist) to the Pink Pistols (an LGBTQ group), Liberal Gun Club, and Socialist Rifle Association. Some of these organizations are moderate and traditionalist, others radical and revolutionary. But all share one implicit goal: to normalize firearms ownership and training among liberals. Some of their members hope such efforts will at least make Republicans think twice before attempting a massacre."

I'm absolutely fine with this.  Fascism isn't coming to America, it has already arrived as far as I'm concerned.  Unsurprisingly, many fascists have already infiltrated the government as well.  The murder of Heather Heyer by a literal Nazi was no accident.

Buying and learning to use a firearm seems like a perfectly measured response.  I'd think twice if I had kids, but it's still an option.  Lest we forget before it became a terrorist organization, the NRA really did stand for responsible gun education.  (When my dad decided to teach me how to shoot he ordered some safety manuals -- free! -- and made me read them and memorize them before he took me to the range for the first time.)

Let's be brutally honest here -- Trump is a delusional incompetent.  But the next Republican president might actually have his shit together, and the toxic fantasies of White Supremacism will come even closer to fulfillment.

"so unfazed by the assholes of the world now"

Living as I do in South Korea I don't tend to do much for the Fourth of July, but this year I'm going to continue happily cheering on the US women's World Cup squad.  As The Orange Pussy-Grabber might literally destroy the Lincoln Memorial to satiate his bloated ego, have some fun with Megan Rapinoe's girlfriend, WNBA basketball star Sue Bird, throwing well-deserved shade:

"And I think Megan’s sensitivity is what drives her to fight for others. I think it’s what drove her to take a knee. The Megan you’re seeing now? It’s the stronger version of the one who knelt in the first place. All the threats, all the criticism, all the fallout — coming out on the other side of that is what makes her seem so unfazed by the assholes of the world now. 

I think in trying to help others, Megan has cemented who she is."

I'll stay up late Saturday night to watch the US taken on Sweden or Netherlands.  It should be a blast.

Teacher Of The Year

My final grades have been in the college computer system for over a week now, but this week students get to call me up and plead for mercy.  Granted, sometimes I do make stupid data entry mistakes and need to update their final score.  But usually it's just a handful of students who either a) know they fucked up royally by missing the maximum number of classes, and regale me with stories of emergency hospital visits or dead grandma funerals (why not tell me a month ago when it actually happened?) or b) grade-grubbers who want their A- kicked up to an A (hey, at least these students seem to care).

Anyhow, if you ever teach English at a Korean college or university this is our version of "desk-warming."  There are far worse fates but I'm also reduced to sitting in my office waiting for students to bring me phantom letters from phantom hospitals regarding phantom medical conditions.

Good times.

Entering The 21st Century

I've had my new (owned) smartphone for about four days now and still haven't dropped it in the toilet.#lifegoals#winning

— Winterfell Barista James (@wetcasements) July 2, 2019

Deadbeats

South Korea has notoriously week child support laws.  Some women are stepping up to change things:

"For instance, if the noncustodial parent transfers their legal possessions and assets to someone else’s name, then the court cannot order them to pay because they have no money to their name. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family can request the Commissioner of the National Tax Service or the head of the local government to 'garnish the estimated amount from [their] national and local tax refund' - yet, if the official amount of money they earn is zero or close to zero, then there’s nothing that can be done. Another step could be to file for the court to seize the tangible properties from inside their house, but again, the court cannot track anyone down if they flee their house or change their address.

In total, there are seven official legal steps that one could take to get the noncustodial parent to pay up, but there is a way out of each of them.

'Protesting outside your ex-husband’s house is difficult and even terrorizing,' said Kim. 'But we do it, because it’s the only thing we can do. If anyone says that they are going to hold a protest, we make time to help each other out.'”

As Grumpy Cat would have said, Good.

Weekend Political Post

A Warren / Harris or Harris / Warren ticket would make me a very happy boy.

Luddite

My first honest-to-jeebus smartphone arrived in the mail today (Sasmung 5S, used of course).  I have to walk over to my local SK (Korean telecom) shop and get them to put a data plan onto my current phone-and-text only plan.

In my defense, I do own an iPad so when I go out I generally use that if I need Google Maps or information or what have you.

I've just been quite content with my (ahem) 2G flip-phone for so long (also used) that I've resisted moving into the 21 century like the rest of you.

I guess the only thing left to do is send my first dick pick.

Settle down, settle down.  I'm only going to send it to Santa.

Sound Science

My college classes are over but this week I need to enter grades.  So I'm kicking off this muggy Monday morning with Nick Mason (of Pink Floyd) giving a BBC podcast on the history of music and technology.

Open Culture never disappoints.

Attacking Iran Is A Bad Idea Not Only Because Iran Will Win

Not only is a war with Iran a Very Fucking Stupid Idea, but here's a hot-take for ya -- given how spread-thin and exhausted US forces are globally, Iran will win rather easily.

— Winterfell Barista James (@wetcasements) June 21, 2019

To be more specific, after two or three US pilots are shot down, and die or are captured (Iran is a huge country with much better anti-air than Iraq ever had) The Orange Pussy-Grabber will inevitably fold like the cheap suits he loves so much.

There is no good that will come of this but then again, a healthy one-third of Americans think electing Trump made the country stronger and not, in fact, dangerously unstable and unhinged.

Orthogonally, I think Pelosi has made the right moves on (not) impeaching so far, but this would change all of that calculation overnight. If a half-dozen Republican senators start to sweat after gruesome US deaths (they won't give a single shit about Iranian casualties, of course) then game on.