The Korea Times

Who is victim when everyone is criminal?

Korea is a country of revenge. A country of scars. Resentment. Hatred. Love. Resilience. Triumph and tragedy in equal measure. Never more has this idea been more evident to me than today: March 1st. One hundred and six years ago, the people of this land voiced their desire to be free from the oppressive rule of a foreign colonial force. They raised their flags. Shouted in unison. And demanded what was rightfully theirs. It was the voice of the oppressed. That history is still alive today, breathing, in the politics, the media, the art, and the soju-soaked conversations of dive bars from Cheongnyangni to Changwon. It’s a voice that should resonate with many around the world, from Gaza to Donetsk .

Mar 1, 2025By David A. Tizzard

Who is victim when everyone is criminal?

Opinion

Why (some) Koreans hate China, Japan

Jessie looks like a K-Pop star. Tall, thin. All sharp angles, softened only by the impossible length of her eyelashes. She wears crop tops, mini skirts, and fills her social media with photos of her in bikinis, lounging on far flung beaches. Heads turn as she enters a room. “They come up to me,” she says, eyes lowered. “In bars, in restaurants. Always in Korean.” A pause. “But when I answer in Chinese, when they realize where I’m from, they just walk away. No words. Just absence.” I feel sad for how this must make her feel. To be so openly ignored. Her solution? “Sometimes I tell people I’m from Singapore or Taiwan, just so they might be a bit nicer to me.”

Feb 22, 2025By David A. Tizzard

Opinion

Korea's strength is its people, not its politicians

Recent headlines have been dominated by the impeachment and arrest of South Korea’s sitting president, a spectacle that has thrown the nation’s political class into disarray. There is a leadership vacuum, instability, and the country’s reputation has been dragged through the mud. For many, it has been tempting to conclude that the country is falling apart. Friends and colleagues from abroad ask with a worried look on their face, “What is happening over there?”

Jan 25, 2025By David A. Tizzard

Korea's strength is its people, not its politicians

Opinion

The neoliberalization of Korea and invisible labor

Incheon International Airport has received a lot of praise since it was established as the country’s major transit hub. And despite the relative absence of bars and decent food places open at reasonable hours, many have long admired the efficiency of this airport. Old people take the subway there to sit inside somewhere warm or cold as the seasons dictate. Hallyu fans arrive in their droves, ready to spend a fortune at Olive Young and beyond. But recent changes have left me questioning how much of the comfort and service the airport once had is now being sacrificed in the name of efficiency and profit maximization.

Jan 18, 2025By David A. Tizzard

The neoliberalization of Korea and invisible labor

Opinion

The authentic life: Li Ronghao and Li Bai

In Li Ronghao’s song "Li Bai," we are presented with a satirical portrayal of an artist. The one who believes themselves a misunderstood genius, harboring disdain for the common unrefined ways of the masses. The type of person you meet easily online. So while the song critiques modern pretentiousness and self-delusion, beneath the satire lies a broader reflection on the struggles of contemporary life, where societal expectations and personal identity often clash. This is the struggle of young people today, in China, in Korea, and many other parts of the world. That it can be expressed so wonderfully in a pop-rock song is testament to the continued importance of art, irrespective of how many views or commercial success it achieves.

Jan 11, 2025By David A. Tizzard

The authentic life: Li Ronghao and Li Bai

Opinion

Tarantino, Thanos, and Aliens in Squid Game 2

"Squid Game 2" is good fun. Get past episode 2, which just sucks, ignore all the stuff on the boats and the policemen, and you’ll enjoy the rest. Don’t expect Season 1. Don’t expect it to be the “best thing you’ve ever seen,” but if you want a transgender woman mowing down baddies with an assault rifle, Lee Byung-hyun breaking necks and looking hot, and more of those ridiculous M.C. Escher stairs as a backdrop, it ain’t bad entertainment.

Jan 4, 2025By David A. Tizzard

Tarantino, Thanos, and Aliens in Squid Game 2

Opinion

Korea's 'Naembi Geunseong' Society

Korea is often celebrated for its resilience and dynamism. It’s constantly changing, adapting, and redefining itself. While this might produce an existential crisis in terms of identity, it has also resulted in the country punching far above its weight on the global stage. The economic rise, the democratization and the cultural export juggernaut stands testament to Korea’s collective drive and ingenuity. What one misses when focusing on the globally admired achievements however is an oft-discussed societal trait: “naembi geunseong.” This idiom talks of a boiling pot. But it is not just about being quick to anger or to action, it’s more specifically about the tendency to heat up passionately before then cooling just as rapidly. It is inspiring and problematic. The source of great achievement and frustrating missed opportunities.

Dec 28, 2024By David A. Tizzard

Opinion

Christmas in Korea: dating, money and work

One of the things people outside the country get wrong about Korea is that they expect everyone here to be gripped by a gender war: 4B feminist movements, misogynistic men, misandry online, asexual K-pop stars and a nation largely devoid of love despite the glossy veneer presented in dramas. And then they actually come here, and they realize it’s quite the opposite. All those voices online with their huge engagement talking about gender are generally the minority. Instead, Korean people are dating, coupling, wearing matching clothes, sat huddled around coffee tables and filling shops and department stores with their hands holding. Granted, they are probably more likely to have a small white dog in their stroller than a child these days. But never is this couple culture more obvious than at Christmas.

Dec 22, 2024By David A. Tizzard

Christmas in Korea: dating, money and work

Opinion

'In-yeon' and ambiguity in 'Past Lives,' 'Decision to Leave,' and 'Lust, Caution'

In Korean culture, "In-yeon" describes the invisible thread that connects individuals through destiny and shared experience. It’s not just about chance or fortune, however. In-yeon suggests something that transcends time, place and logic. It weaves together lives in ways that are subtle yet meaningful. It is brushing arms with a stranger in the street. It is sitting next to someone on the subway. It is when a bird lands on a branch. It is the coming together of two things. And when this happens 8,000 times across various lives, a complete In-yeon has been built and the two can finally be together.

Dec 15, 2024By David A. Tizzard

'In-yeon' and ambiguity in 'Past Lives,' 'Decision to Leave,' and 'Lust, Caution'

Opinion

Personal freedom and right to be Korean

In contemporary society, we are asked to acknowledge a wide range of people and relationships. If two women choose to live together, the subject of a popular book and podcast here in Korea, we are encouraged to respect their relationship despite how unconventional it might at first appear. If men find attraction in the same sex, we are reminded that love is love in whatever form it arrives. Even those who reject marriage or dating altogether, a growing trend among young people who are choosing to abandon more traditional life paths, deserve recognition for their choices. At its core, this ethos of respect stems from a clear principle: do not judge others.

Nov 30, 2024By David A. Tizzard

David A. Tizzard

Read more

Who is victim when everyone is criminal?

Why (some) Koreans hate China, Japan

Korea's strength is its people, not its politicians

The neoliberalization of Korea and invisible labor

The authentic life: Li Ronghao and Li Bai

Tarantino, Thanos, and Aliens in Squid Game 2

Korea's 'Naembi Geunseong' Society

Christmas in Korea: dating, money and work

'In-yeon' and ambiguity in 'Past Lives,' 'Decision to Leave,' and 'Lust, Caution'

Personal freedom and right to be Korean

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