What If You Held A Demonstration And Nobody Showed Up?

Filed under: Uncategorized — Jeff in Korea at 11:27 am on Wednesday, December 7, 2005

I have used this joke before in my writings. I can’t remember where it was from. I think it was from a very old article by Michael Breen, but I could be wrong. It goes like this:

An Englishman comes home and finds his wife in bed with another man. He apologizes for interrupting and quietly closes the door on his way out.

An American comes home and finds his wife in bed with another man. He pulls out a gun and shoots both his wife and the other man.

A Korean comes home and finds his wife in bed with another man. He goes and protests in front of the US Embassy.

It seems that this has happened again. Here is a picture of a particularly unfunny “gag man” named Kim Yong. By and large, Korean “gag men” (sort of a sketch comic) make me want to do just that…gag!. This is particularly true of Kim Yong. Not only do I find him completely unfunny, but he has demonstrated is own laziness and idiocy on so many levels. The picture, then the story.

THE STORY:

On 6 December 2005 at 1:00 pm, Mr. Kim held a one-man demonstration. Where was it held? Of course! He held his demonstration in front of the US Embassy. Why there?

Mr. Kim is protesting the “fact” that the movie “The 40 Year Old Virgin” was stolen from a book that he wrote. In the picture, he can be seen holding placards and wearing sign boards saying:

“UNIVERSAL, REVEAL THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR!”
“United International Pictures, why don’t you explain this video?”
“I am a citizen of the Republic of Korea!”

I wish I could see the longer one on his back, but it is hidden from view.

I don’t even want to get into the issue of why he thinks the US Embassy is the place to stage this lonely demonstration or why he thinks anyone at the embassy would even care.

A very simple internet search would have revealed to Mr. Kim that the screenplay was written by Steve Carell and Judd Apatow, and that the movie was based on a skit about a closet virgin that Steve Carell wrote “wrote years ago at Second City”, a brilliant Chicago theater troupe. (See also here, here, and here)

Mr. Kim, while you may not be surprised that there are people in the world funnier than you, and smarter than you, and can come up with a witty idea without your help, you may be somewhat shocked and dismayed that there is no chance that Steve Carell even knows who you are or that he has ever read your book. Also, unless your book was written and distributed around the US in the late 1980’s, the skit came out first. Sorry to burst your little comedic bubble, but you just may be wrong here. Regardless of whether or not you are right or wrong, you look like a pathetic fool standing out there all alone hoping someone takes your picture so that you can get in the media and maybe sell one or two copies of your book to curiousity seekers. If you REALLY feel that your idea was stolen, then put your stupid signs down and go retain the services of a law firm that will sue the snot out of everyone involved in the film.

I don’t know whether to feel angry at his arrogance or to feel pity towards him because he may actually believe that.

9 Comments »

Comment by Silly Sally

7 December 2005 @ 6:38 pm

Jeffrey,

Political Correctness eschews the idea that a whole culture can be pathological. We are now-a-days required to view all cultures as inherently equal (Not good, not bad … just different.)

But, here is the reality: Korean culture is the world’s most prolific narcissism factory: it produces the narcissistic personality disorder on a mass scale. The very source of your endless amusement with Koreans.

What is exhibited by this typical Korean is called “ideas of reference”. The Korean is the centre of the world. Korea is the “Hub of Asia”… and each Korean is de facto “the centre of the universe”. The Korean is not merely the centre of HIS world - as far as he can tell, he is the centre of THE world. This Archimedean delusion is one of the Korean’s most predominant and all-pervasive cognitive distortions.

The narcissistic Korean feels certain that he is the source of all events around him, the origin of all the emotions of his nearest or dearest, the fount of all knowledge, both the first and the final cause, the beginning as well as the end.

This Korean Cindy Sheehan standing before the US Embassy is understandable when a person realizes this poor man was socialized in Korea from birth.

The Korean derives his sense of being, his experience of his own existence, and his self-worth from the outside. He mines others for his self-esteem - adulation, attention, reflection, fear. Their reactions stoke his furnace. Absent self-esteem - the narcissist disintegrates and self-annihilates. When unnoticed, he feels empty and worthless. The Korean narcissist MUST delude himself into believing that he is persistently the focus and object of the attentions, intentions, plans, feelings, and stratagems of other people. The narcissist faces a stark choice - either be (or become) the permanent centre of the world, or cease to be altogether.

This Korean man before the US embassy is seeking validation for his very existence before his truest God: the US Embassy.

The constant obsession with one’s locus, with one’s centrality, with one’s position as a “hub” - leads to referential ideation (”ideas of reference”). This is the conviction that one is at the receiving end of other people’s behaviours, speech, and even thoughts. The person suffering from delusional ideas of reference is at an imaginary centre of constant attention.

Yes, pity him … but also wonder why you maintain a blog site.

Comment by The Marmot

7 December 2005 @ 10:55 pm

I’m not sure which portal you got the news story from, but when I read it over at Naver yesterday, it seemed many of the comments were along the lines you pointed out, i.e., “Why the hell is he protesting in front of the U.S. embassy when the matter has nothing to do with the U.S. government?” and, “If you have a case, drop the protest schtick and get a freakin’ lawyer.”

Comment by The Marmot

7 December 2005 @ 10:56 pm

Oh, and I’m not sure if you saw it, but the sign on his back was pretty funny.

Comment by Ziggy Freud

8 December 2005 @ 12:14 pm

I don’t know whether to feel angry at his arrogance or to feel pity towards him because he may actually believe that.

Neither. Feel nothing at all, because not only does his protest lack merit, but the fact that his stupidity is being discussed by others will give him and his cause validation–at least in his own mind.

He is entirely irrelvant. But in his own mind, any publicity is probably good publicity. Thinking that he has already been deprived of millions in royalties for his original idea, he has nothing further to lose by embarrassing himself in public now. And if he can gain a bit of noteriety in the public’s eye–even for his baseless allegations–he has already won his battle.

Comment by Ziggy Freud

8 December 2005 @ 12:17 pm

The Korean is the centre of the world. Korea is the “Hub of Asia”… and each Korean is de facto “the centre of the universe”.

Makes sense to me. Don’t astronomical observations confirm that a massive black hole occupies the center of the galaxy?

Well, there ya go. Koreans were right all along.

Comment by shibshab

9 December 2005 @ 9:25 pm

http://marmot.blogs.com/korea/2003/10/kevin_vs_the_ch.html

Kevin at the old IA sums up this corean guys logic. You see, he problally saw the origional skit and then it became his idea.

Comment by Sean in Canada

10 December 2005 @ 10:28 pm

Regarding Silly Sally’s comment:
“But, here is the reality: Korean culture is the world’s most prolific narcissism factory: it produces the narcissistic personality disorder on a mass scale.”

Can I get a copy of the stastical study that determined this?
I assume that all cultures in the world were studied for this
particular condition to determine that Korean culture is most prolific. It must have taken years of scientific research.

Comment by Ziggy Freud

12 December 2005 @ 9:24 am

I assume that all cultures in the world were studied for this particular condition to determine that Korean culture is most prolific.

Actually, during my years here I’ve always been told that Koreans are the most humble people on the planet. If you don’t believe me, just ask a Korean. He’ll tell you.

Comment by Silly Sally

12 December 2005 @ 4:45 pm

Sean,

You are correct: anthropolgists, sociologists, and psychologists –after years of government funding have concluded this finding about narcissism in Korea.

As in the case of stem-cell Hwang of Korea, this information is privy only to us special scientists.

I suspect your impertinent questioning of Korea’s dynamic narcissism … is motivated by Canadian envy, eh!

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