“Love Christmas,” by the K-Pop stars of the Chrome Entertainment empire, including Crayon Pop, K-much, Bob Girls, and Zan-Zan.
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“South and North Korea, China and the US have agreed ‘in principle’ to declare a formal end to the Korean war, almost 70 years after the conflict ended in a shaky truce, the South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, has said.
But Moon conceded that talks on the 1950-53 war were being held back by North Korean objections to present-day ‘US hostility’.
Speaking in Canberra on Monday during his four-day visit to Australia, Moon said he believed the four main parties agreed in principle to a peace declaration.
But he added that North Korea had made an end to US hostility a precondition for talks.”
— Justin McCurry, The Guardian
More:
“President Moon Jae-in: End to Korean War agreed to ‘in principle,'” Rebecca Falconer, Axios
“Is South Korea close to officially ending the Korean War?” Julian Ryall, DW News
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K-Pop, South Korea’s pop music, is big business. A PolyMatter video.
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South Korea slowed the spread of COVID-19 through testing and tracing. A Vox video by Christina Thornell, Danush Parvaneh, Ranjani Chakraborty and Mac Schneider.
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As Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un blunder and bluster their way towards nuclear conflict, one factor may hold Mr. Trump back from a rash military act. It’s something very important to him: His own self-interest. “The president owns a 59 percent interest in Trump Korea LLC,” points out Phillip Y. Lipscy, “a joint venture with Daewoo.”
“Trump World Seoul consists of six properties located in Seoul, Busan, and Daegu. In particular, Trump World I, II, and III are located in the heart of Seoul, which would be subject to heavy North Korean conventional artillery bombardment in the event of a major peninsular conflict.
North Korea may thus perceive threats by the president as noncredible given his personal exposure to financial loss. Despite Trump’s tough rhetoric and sending aircraft carriers to nearby waters, Kim Jong Un may reasonably calculate that the president will not risk annihilation of what the Trump Organization describes as an ‘unmatched project that is a true asset to the Trump portfolio.’
Trump World Seoul also puts the president at risk of personal coercion by the North Korean regime. Kim Jong Un could seek to deter U.S. intervention by threatening to specifically target and destroy Trump’s business assets in the event of U.S. escalation. Kim need not physically destroy a Trump Tower to harm the president’s bottom line: Prominently identifying Trump properties as targets will affect their economic viability.
The president stands to lose personal wealth if a military conflict imperils any Trump property. In the vast majority of cases, insurance coverage for commercial property excludes damages sustained in interstate wars. The president therefore faces a direct, personal incentive to avoid escalating conflicts that could potentially result in the destruction of Trump Organization assets.”
— “The Trump Tower Peace Theory,” Phillip Y. Lipscy, Foreign Policy
On the other hand, playing chicken is second nature to Mr. Trump, and this kind of dispute brings out the playground bully in him. It’s why he’s involved in 3,500 lawsuits, but he can’t lawyer his way out of this.
Maybe President Trump should consult with his Ambassador to South Korea. Oh wait, he hasn’t appointed one.
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Top image by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com
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“Lonely Christmas,” performed by K-Pop girl group Crayon Pop. It’s like Samsung cloned Shirley Temple.
Christmas is different in Korea ….
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“Good Luck” by South Korean duo J Rabbit, pianist and songwriter Jung Da-Woon (정다운) and vocalist Jung Hye-Sun (정혜선). Nice.
Read Janel Ku’s interview here.
J. Rabbit on iTunes
h/t: Leslie Nguyen-Okwu
More:
“Korea’s Indie Coffee Shop Singers,” OZY
“K-pop Indie Gem: J Rabbit,” Nabeela, SeoulBeats
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