My day at the PIFF

By a little luck I was able to see 7 films on this day and as with 7 films, I saw some great ones, some so so and one so bad that I heard an audience member say after the film. "I want to smoke cigarettes and get to drinking beer now, so I can erase this film from my mind."

The first film I saw was from Poland by the name of Little Rose



The films opens up with a Pro-Soviet Union Polish report blaming the Israeli Air Force for defeating the Soviets Arab allies in war. With this the ugly anti-Jewish hatred in Poland restarts with the Polish Security Service trying to eliminate this "New Threat" to the Soviet rule of Poland.

What you then see is a Young Polish student by the name of Kamila Sakowicz in love with her fiance, who is a member of the PSS. His mission is to try and get close to Polish Historian Adam Warczewski, who the government thinks is a secret Jewish Agent out to destroy the Polish Government.

Well that is the opening plot of this film and I really with that they would had kept it simple. The film wants you to try and make the Polish Mata Hari into a sympathetic character and there is where the film lost me. In trying to make this lady into a saint a tragic victim of circumstance, it just was never believable to me. Each plot twist just kept getting stupider and worse.

By the end of the film the audience and myself were ready for it to be over and when it was over I took a quick poll of the audience and it was about what I thought of this film. Its a good one, not a great one. The film could have used a lot tighter edit and eliminated about 20-30 minutes of plot story. In the end we're left will a mess that at time could have been a great film. It is worth seeing at least one time if you like Soviet style spy stories.

Grade: D-

Now the real irony of all this was that the next film was a Russian film set in the year 1945 in Siberia. By the name of (Kray or The Edge)



Now with films from Russian they have either been hits(9th Company, Night Watch)or Misses(Day Watch, 12) with me. The only reason I saw this film was because of of my students thought I'd like it. She was so right on this film for me.

What we see is a girl running away from men shooting at her and then she falls into a huge river. Then we are told about World War 2 and how the USSR treated Russian prisoners of war and Russian citizens who worked for the Germans. You are then told that these people were sent to exile to live the remainders of their lives working in a very remote part of Siberia.

You are then show a Russian war hero by the name of Ignat, who hates all of these so-called German collaborators. He soon meets and has a relationship with one of the Russian ladies there who has a baby by a German military officer. But Ignat loves trains and you are slowly shown his past. The the film introduces you to a ghost. At last that is what this person is called. This person has lived in an old abandoned train since 1941 and has no knowledge of the USSR German war. To make maters worse she is German and the entire jail city hater her because of this except for Ignat.

Now with this film one was never sure what was coming next and the film told a great story that never seemed too long. I will not spoil the film for you but I will say this when the film was over the majority of the audience applauded and they had smiles as they left the cinema. It was a week later when this film was chosen by Russia to be its' official film for the foreign-language honor at 83rd Academy Awards. The film deserves to be seen at least twice to make sure that you truly see what this film has to offer.

Grade: A+

Now the next film was from Columbia and at this screen I was sitting next to graduate Students who had to see a film a comment on it for their homework. part of their homework was to ask a non Korean questions about the film that they saw. So needless to say I answered a lot of questions about this film for these students. The films title was Portraits in A Sea of Lies



What we are shown is a girl by the name of Marina, who does not talk, and after all that has gone on in Columbia. I knew it was because of something that she had seen in her past immediately and when they slowly start to show her past, it really wasn't that much of a surprise to me. The audience and the nearby students seemed to be interested in this.

The plot of this film is that her family used to own some land that was taken away by the Colombian Government years ago. The girl and her photographer playboy Cousin Jairo attempt to go back there to find the deed so that they can reclaim the land.

I must admit the basic idea of this film intrigued me but the film kept going over already know ideas to me and really never said anything interesting. To me it was because they never seemed how to handle the part of Marina. To her being able to see dead people to the final part of the film. I just never really felt any sympathy for her. She was dead inside and it never made me care for her.

By the end of the film, I had seen nothing original and wondered why the film takes went down this path to this film. The nearby students really liked the film but they understood why I did not. In the end it was a film that just really left me flat. The audience left the theater with kind of a Memh..look. Please pass on this film.

Grade C-

Now the next film was from Georgia and France and was shown at Cannes so I had really no idea about the film called Chantrapas



The idea was simple enough, the audacity of a Georgian filmmaker making a co-production split between France and Georgia about a Georgian filmmaker and how compromising and disappointing it is to make a co-production shooting in both France and Georgia. (Mubi.com) Sad to say the film never really ventures past this idea. The majority of the attempt at humor just left the audience and me very flat. In the end both his Georgian film and his French films are both huge disasters with almost the entire audience walking out of his French Screening.

The film ended in a way that no one saw coming and no one could actually believe that we had just seen it. When the credits started to roll the audience turned on this film immediately. Boo's and loud WTF's were heard during the credits. It is during this time that I heard someone state that "I want to smoke cigarettes and get drinking beer now so I can erase this film from my mind." I also heard another audience member tell the subtitle volunteer that, "The person who picked this film for the PIFF should be fired on the spot!

This is the 3rd film this year (Korean.. A Little Pond.. USA.. Resident Evil #4) that I thought that an F- was too high of a grade. Please pass on this film at all cost!!

My next 3 films were at the Midnight Slasher night. The main event was the Korean premier of the Unrated version of I Saw the Devil



Now before we can go into the review we have to go back into actually why this film was banned in the first place.

Back in 2002 Korean set up a film ranking of Restricted rating (제한상영가). Films with this rating were restricted to adults over 19, could only be shown in specially licensed theaters, and could not be advertised or released on home video. The rating was ruled unconstitutional in 2009 after a challenge from the local distributor of Shortbus(Wikipedia)Korea has 1 of these theaters and its in Kwangju.

So when I had heard that the Korea Media Rating Board had given ISTD this rating, I could not believe it. This particular rating has been ruled unconstitutional so I have no idea why they gave it to this film. (All attempt to try and find out why have only led to more confusing comments)

When the Director of this film Kim Ji-woon came out to present the film to us at the midnight screening he stated, through his translator, that this version of the film had received a 14 rating in Canada and I yelled WTF. If you ever see any video of that, the loud fan is me.

The audience was in a great mood, everyone wanted to see the unrated version. Then the film started and the audience saw what happened the first few minutes, you knew hell was coming in the form of Lee Byung-hun and you believed it. The madman took away his pregnant fiancés. He was going to take away him.

This film was different because in most vengeance films, once you catch the person you slowly kill him or her and then the film is over. This one was different because once Choi Min-sik character was captured. Lee took him to the brink of death, then stopped and let him live. This goes on for awhile and after the 3rd time. LBH characters fiancés family ask him to stop the vengeance because its used in movies and this is enough.

What was also nice about this film was the secondary people in this film, both the good guys and the bad ones. They all really helped t take this film to the next level.

What I liked was that the devil CMS had taken 3 of his best hits and he was still alive and when he figured out how the spy was working and who the spy actually was it was time for the hunted to become the hunter once again and then you see what vengeance true cost was.

When the film was over, I knew that this was the version that I wanted in Blu-ray. The audience applauded loudly and no one still could explain to me about the crazy rating. See the unrated version anyway you can.

Grade A+

So we had a 15 minute break and the next film was from Hong Kong and it goes by the name of Dream Home



The film is story of Cheng Lai-sheung who saves up money to buy her dream home. After finding house prices rising, she goes into a murderous frenzy. The opening part of the film states that this film was based n a true story. I have no idea if this is true or not.

What we are shown is a girl who has finally snapped and you are also shown the background story of why she snapped. I really started to feel sorry for this girl. No matter how hard and how she kept trying to do things the right way the deck just seemed not to favor her.

I saw that her 2 stressers were her father dying and that the couple that she wanted to buy an apartment off of at the last second jacked up the price it was just too much and she went on a killing rampage. It was really just killing for the sake of killing. It was turning into a bad Cinemax late night film devoid of anything why she was killing. When the film is near the end you are shown why she killed all of these people. I was left just like I wasted about 2 hours on this film. I did not like it and the audience near me went to sleep instead of watching this film.

Please pass on this one

Grade: D

The last film of the evening was an American film called Husk I later found out that it was originally a 27 minute short film that was shown at Sundance a few years ago to some good reviews. I sat down and started to watch the film and I kept waiting for a good decent horror film to appear on the screen and by the end of the movie I was still waiting for a good horror film to come on the screen.



The plot was a joke. It never was believable. The idea of this film might have best worked as a short film but when it made into a cheep horror film, it lost a lot in its growth. I wasn't scared, I never believed in it and when it was over, I wanted to find the director and demand my $ back for wasting my time with this film. A huge misfire for After Dark Films

Grade: D

If you get the chance please go to the Pusan International Film Festival next year and hope that have better films that some of these that were shown this year.

Finally
by Craig Miller

Two significant things happened to me in 1976. Each cemented me as a life-long Rangers fan. Both happened on the same summer trip, from OKC to Dallas, where I spent a couple of weeks with my cousins.

First, we all joined the Dr. Pepper Junior Rangers--we got an official club identification card, a cheap batting glove, and some general admission tickets with severe restrictions (I think we could only go see day games against the Twins or Indians). I felt like part of the team--I was a Junior Ranger. It sounded like I was in the farm system. Certainly all of us Junior Rangers would grow up and one day become Senior Rangers! Isn't that the path that Fergie Jenkins followed?

The second occurrence made an even greater impact: I went to my first Rangers (and first MLB) game. June 25th. My Uncles Don and Ronnie took a bunch of us cousins to old Arlington Stadium. We sat down the third base line. It was a doubleheader against the White Sox. Gaylord Perry pitched and won game one. Toby Harrah hit a grand slam. I'll always remember how the giant Texas scoreboard in left flashed "GRAND SLAM" and how the place went crazy. I got a game program, and for the next year or two, I memorized every inch of every page. I fell in love with the old logo--a baseball wearing a cowboy hat. I fell in love with the Rangers.

Never did I, or any of the 29.049 there that night, think we would have to wait through the 70's, 80's, 90's and 00's before we would see our Rangers win a postseason series. No modern day fan of any pro franchise has been forced to wait like that. But this October, our suffering was rewarded. God Bless Clifton Phifer Lee.

I was born in Amarillo and grew up in OKC, so I always tried to root for the teams that were geographically closest to me. That meant growing up a Sooners fan, a Cowboys fan, a Spurs fan (remember, it was the 70's--they were the closest NBA team since there were no Mavericks), and a Rangers fan. I've been blessed--I've seen the Sooners, Cowboys and Spurs win 13 championships in my lifetime. But being a Rangers fan balanced things out, and kept me in touch with fans whose teams don't win much--or ever.

The Rangers won a division series, not a World Series--but it sure felt like the latter. To watch Cliff Lee shut down the Rays while wearing "Texas" across his chest was almost too much--I almost sports cried. It made me think of all of those Rangers teams, players and skippers who paved the way for Lee's heroics. Here's to the heroes of my childhood--the 70's and 80's: Billy Martin and the great '74 squad with Hargrove and Harrah, Burroughs and Fergie. The late 70's teams that I was sure would win it all--Scoop Oliver, Richie Zisk and Bobby Bonds at the plate; Matlack, Blyleven, Perry, Alexander, Medich, Lyle and Kern on the hill. The great Buddy Bell (thanks to Sunny and Buddy for making the All-Star game most years, and giving the Rangers their only national publicity each season), Pete O'Brien, and Mickey Rivers (what--we got the Yankees center fielder?!). Charlie Hough, who threw knucklers each half inning, then smoked in the dugout the other half of the inning--and who kept us in every game he pitched. Oddibie and Inky, Boo and Hoss. They may not have delivered like the boys did in Tampa, but they were a part of the process, the journey.

We know the Cowboys mean a lot to folks around here. But, until this week, I never realized how much the Rangers mean as well. I've heard from so many people who were also Junior Rangers, who also used to sit in those vast outfield bleachers at the old park on hot summer nights cheering a Rangers team that was 20 games out. I've heard from so many Rangers fans who shed a tear when the Tampa series ended because their father or grandfather, who loved the Rangers and took them to games in their childhood, didn't live to see this day. It wasn't a title--it was a moment. A moment that really touched a lot of people.



Fernando said to me the other day "I pity the people who don't like sports." Amen. They are missing so much. Moments like game 5. Moments that make the journey seem worth while. Moments that you never think will come, but they do. Finally. Now, if only I could get that call-up to the bigs from the Junior Rangers, my baseball life would be complete.


(I WAS thinking of my dad and how in 2004, the RANGERS TOOK AWAY, FOR A FEW MOMENTS, HIS PAIN OF CANCER. I was wishing that we could have shared this moment together.

And we would have loved it, him Rangers and me YANKEES. It would have been great. It's comforting to know that there were many like me wishing that there father and grandfather could have been here to see this game. I was crying because they weren't here to share this with me...)

Islamophobes!: ‘WaPo’ Pulls Muhammad Cartoon That Doesn’t Show Muhammad

by Greg Gutfeld

So, in a blinding feat of profound wussiness, the Washington Post removed the October 3rd “Non Sequitur” cartoon from its rag. The reason? It mentioned Muhammad. Let me repeat: it was yanked because it “mentioned” – not showed – Muhammad.

There wasn’t a picture of him in the strip.

But the Post, and some other papers, still pulled it.

Admirably, Post ombudsman Andrew Alexander asked his Style editor why- and he said, “it seemed a deliberate provocation without a clear message.” He added that “the point of the joke was not immediately clear.”

Yeah. That’s why you did it: ambiguity. Weasel.

Anyway, here’s the cartoon.

Eh.

And here we see another float in the parade of pussies – a callow editor making a cowardly decision based on a fear of upsetting religious fanatics (a fear he cannot even admit to coworkers).

Which leads me to my only point. Why is it that the media keeps reminding us that we shouldn’t exaggerate the threat of a small group of radicals – but completely changes tact, when it comes to their own personal safety?

Think about it: if the average Joe expresses fear or anxiety over Islamic fundamentalism, they are called Islamophobes. But if an editor with balls the size of electrons removes a comic in which Muhammad isn’t even present – that’s not honest-to-Allah Islamophobia?

No, that’s just being sensitive.

Look, the media can’t have it both ways. They cannot criticize the public for concerns over Islam, and then eradicate anything in their midst that they perceive might elevate their risk for getting stabbed buying a chai latte at Starbucks. If their governing principle in the newsroom is fear, then they should admit it – and get the hell off our backs for feeling the same way.

And if you disagree with me, you’re a racist, homophobic Islamophobic bathophobe.

By GI Korea

Charles Hanley & Nuclear Options On the Korean Peninsula

It seems like Charles Hanley of the infamous No Gun Ri fame just cannot seem to help himself in regards to sensationalizing articles about Korea. His latest article attempts to make everyone believe that the fact that the US had plans to use nuclear weapons on North Korea is some new shocking revelation:

From the 1950s Pentagon to today’s Obama administration, the United States has repeatedly pondered, planned and threatened use of nuclear weapons against North Korea, according to declassified and other U.S. government documents released in this 60th-anniversary year of the Korean War.

Air Force bombers flew nuclear rehearsal runs over North Korea’s capital during the war. The U.S. military services later vied for the lead role in any “atomic delivery” over North Korea. In the late 1960s, nuclear-armed U.S. warplanes stood by in South Korea on 15-minute alert to strike the north.

Just this past April, issuing a U.S. Nuclear Posture Review, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said “all options are on the table” for dealing with Pyongyang – meaning U.S. nuclear strikes were not ruled out.

The stream of new revelations about U.S. nuclear planning further fills in a picture of what North Korea calls “the increasing nuclear threat of the U.S.,” which it cites as the reason it developed its own atom-bomb program – as a deterrent. [Associated Press]

In true Charles Hanley fashion he of course brings up his declassified documents they found that uncovered this news:

The new information is contained in Korean War documents released by the CIA to mark this June’s anniversary of the start of the conflict; another declassified package obtained by Washington’s private National Security Archive research group under the Freedom of Information Act; and additional documents, also once top-secret and found at the U.S. National Archives, provided to The Associated Press by intelligence historian and author Matthew Aid.

Judging by this paragraph t actually seems that Hanley would prefer the entire Korean peninsula to be over run by the Chinese and the North Koreans than to have the US even contemplate the use of nuclear weapons:

Based on previously declassified documents, however, historians believe the U.S. came closest to unleashing its atomic arsenal against North Korea in April 1951, on the eve of an expected Chinese offensive.

With Truman’s signoff, the Joint Chiefs of Staff ordered A-bomb retaliation if large numbers of fresh Chinese troops entered the fight. In the end, the U.S. military repelled the Chinese push and the weapons were never used. But Pentagon planners retained the option.

Most of the time I say read the rest, but it isn’t worth your time because there is absolutely nothing new in this article and he even uses Selig Harrison in the article.

First of all it would be irresponsible of the Pentagon to not plan for all contingencies with the various units and weapons available. This is like someone 50 years from now finding documents that showed that the US had plans to use nuclear weapons to defend Europe against attack from an all out Soviet invasion during the Cold War. Much like the Cold War nuclear weapons after the Korean War were used to help maintain the peace on the Korean peninsula to hedge against any renewed North Korean hostilities, especially when the US military was heavily committed to the Vietnam War. It was sound strategic strategy that prevented a renewal of hostilities on the Korean peninsula.

Instead Hanley wants people to believe the reason the North Koreans are pursuing nuclear weapons now is because the US has plans to attack them with nukes. It has been clear for years that the North Koreans are pursuing nuclear weapons for a variety of reasons with self defense being at the bottom of the list since they know the US is not about to attack them. The nuclear weapons are pursued for regime prestige, nuclear blackmail against the West and South Korea, as well as an export technology. Self defense would be fourth on the list.

If the North Koreans did not have a nuclear capability the world would not take them as seriously as they are taken now and they know it and Charles Hanley has to know it to and yet mentions nothing in his article and just reiterates Selig Harrison’s pro-North Korean talking points. The North Koreans were already caught in 2007 proliferating nuclear technology to Syria and continue to be rumored to be linked to the Iranian nuclear program. Some how this doesn’t get mentioned by Hanley either; judging by his track record is anyone surprised?

Black English teacher has sex with Korean girl, posts video online, gets Netizens pissed

by Robert Koehler

in Stupid Foreigner Tricks

The Adventures of 흑퀸시

The netizens are astir after a 26-year-old African-American English teacher at an “English village” in Daejeon uploaded onto an Internet site a video of him having sex with a Korean woman.

According to the English village, the teacher — who reportedly operated online under the nickname Quincy Black (흑퀸시) — was fired Thursday after it was discovered he uploaded the video onto an overseas website in late August. The video has since been deleted, but it and screen captures are reportedly spreading around cyberspace.

The teacher taught elementary school kids English for 20 hours a week starting in May of last year.

An official from the village said the teacher had the E-2 visa needed to teach, and they had no problems with him. They also noted that criminal charges were up to those involved, such as the woman in the video.

According to the Hanguk Ilbo, the teacher will be leave the country tomorrow.

Needless to say, the boys at DCInside are having a bit of fun.

According to the Kukmin Ilbo, 흑퀸시 is suspected of selling the video to overseas porn sites, as the video appears to have been edited

ESPN 30 for 30 review: Into the Wind (The Terry Fox Story)

For the last 5+ years of my life I have lived in Korea and during this time, I have been fascinated by this group of people that call themselves Canadians. From what I have heard from the majority of these Canadian people, they love hockey, wear or have something with a maple leaf on it, speak with a funny accent, they seem to love something called "Tim Hortons coffee and they always seem to talk about this famous person by the name of Terry Fox

All I really recalled about the person was that back in 1980 he tried to run across Canada to try and raise money for the Canadian Cancer Society and that he didn't make it. I recall that he died a while before his 23rd birthday. If you want his complete story please click on here for a CBC story about his life.

I then saw that ESPN in their 30 for 30 series was going to do a documentary about this man and that it was going to be directed by NBA 2 time MVP Steve Nash. I knew that I wanted to see this and also to see if I could understand why my friends from the north (The Canadians) recently named him the 2nd greatest Canada's hero of all-time

The film starts out with a crazy idea; what if this 21 year old kid, with 1 leg could actually try and run across Canada in something he was calling "The Marathon of Hope" with the idea of trying to raise money for the fight against cancer. You see that on April 12, 1980 he starts his adventure. Then you start to see this kid turn into a man by his will just to keep on going. Soon, with the help of the CCS, his entrance into Ottawa on Canada Day really is when his story starts to spread.

A member of the CCS, Bill Vigars, who joined Terry's team as a pr man, stated for the Documentary, "That he hoped that people knew who he is, Terry, before he kicked the opening ball in a Canadian Football League game. All the announcer said was Ladies and gentlemen, and the crowd stood and cheered when they saw Terry walk onto the field. The crowd went crazy; he also stated that this was the first time that he and Terry realized that this story was going to take off. After this the Nation of Canada received daily front page newspaper updates of this man’s travels and his goal of fund raising and how many more miles he has to go until the end of his journey to the west coast of Vancouver Island.

The documentary also shows the growing pains of Terry and his friend Doug Alward and how they brought in Terry's brother Darrell to help liven the mood. The film also tells about a 12 year old boy name, Greg Scott, who just had his leg amputated also because of cancer, join Terry for a day and how it inspired Terry more to run (The film stated that soon after meeting Terry Greg Scott lost his life to cancer)

I also liked a funny part of the documentary when Planters Peanuts would give the CCS a nice donation if, for the final mile of the run, if Mr. Peanut could run along Terry. Terry sated, “Sure, if I get to wear the costume."

He was about half way to his goal when he started to become very tired and he had trouble starting to sleep. On September 1st he was suffering an intense coughing fit and experienced pains in his chest. He asked to go to the hospital. It was discovered that the cancer had returned and it had now spread into his lungs. Terry had to quit his run across Canada for the time being. He hoped to one day resume the run and complete his, "Marathon of Hope".

Fox had raised $1.7 million by the time he had to stop. A week after his run ended, the CTV Television Network organized a nationwide telethon in support of Fox and the Canadian Cancer Society. The documentary shows that while the telethon was going on he was undergoing chemotherapy. He hoped that the people could see his real struggle with cancer. The telethon was supported by Canadian and international celebrities, the five-hour event raised $10.5 million. Donations continued throughout the winter, and by the following April, over $23 million had been raised, almost 1 dollar for each Canadian Citizen in 1981.

You start to see that a nation is cheering on and praying for their hero to beat cancer and you start to see the Canadian Government realize just what he has actually accomplished. In September 1980 he was invested in a special ceremony as a Companion of the Order of Canada; he was the youngest person to be so honored. Fox was named the winner of the Lou Marsh Award for 1980 as the nation's top athlete. He was named Canada's 1980 Newsmaker of the Year. The Ottawa Citizen described the national response to his marathon as "one of the most powerful outpourings of emotion and generosity in Canada's history".

But if you know the story, you know this one does not have a happy ending. Fox was re-admitted to the New Westminster hospital on June 19, 1981, with chest congestion and developed pneumonia. He fell into a coma and died at 4:35 a.m. PDT on June 28, 1981, with his family by his side. The Government of Canada ordered flags across the country lowered to half mast, an unprecedented honor that was usually reserved for statesmen. His parents had to bury their 22 year old son who had become Canada's son who, to this day, is still Canada's son.

Every year since his death there have been Terry Fox Run to raise money for cancer research. I recall in past runs, Canadians running, walking or bike riding, just to honor the memory of this man.

I thought this summed up best who Terry Fox was, It was stated by Leslie Scrivener, Toronto Star, a reporter who covered his run of hope in back in 1980 and it was included at the end of this film.

"Canadians are always concerned about their sense of self identity. Who are we? We don't have Martin Luther King. We don't have Nelson Mandela. I guess that there's a sense of just grittiness. You just put your head down and work. We really work hard. He really worked hard.

The film ends with credits stating that the Terry Fox Foundation has helped raise over 500 million for cancer research and that he ran 3,339 miles in 143 days.

As I earlier stated in this review, I really didn't know a lot about this person until after I saw this film and maybe, just maybe, I finally get why he is a national hero. He was honored to be from Canada and on his marathon for hope shirts you always saw 2 things, the Canadian country and the maple leaf. He took what his country had taught him and showed the world what 1 man can do. I know that the majority of my Canadian friends know his story very well, this review is for the rest of us so we can get to know his legacy better.

Please watch this 30 for 30 when you get the chance.

Grade A+

Holy fucking shit, look at that shirt.

From Brian in Jeollanam-do

Holy fucking shit, look at that shirt.

Or, "Friends don't let friends go with 'nigger frog faggot wop limey dyke honkie mick kike chink spic beaner'." From Kelly in Korea comes the most awesomely bad t-shirt I've ever seen in Korea.



Originally found by Morgan Dale this past summer, though it turns up on a few earlier Korean blog entries, including this and this.



"Here is a perfect, real-life example," Kelly in Korea writes,

of why you shouldn’t wear clothing emblazoned with words you don’t understand. This is more common than you’d think and almost never done out of irony.

To that I'd also add---as I've said about Gibberlish and nonsense, vulgar English---that what amounts simply to symbols and decoration for Koreans often has actual meaning for a good many people and extends beyond a domestic context, a possibility that needs to be taken into account when using English publically or deciding a t-shirt with an extensive rundown of ethnic and gender slurs is a good idea for the train station.

See also: how Korean-English dictionaries aren't helping.

By MARIA SUDEKUM FISHER,

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The comic strip "Cathy," which has chronicled the life, frustrations and swimsuit season meltdowns of its namesake for more than 30 years, is coming to an end.

Cathy Guisewite, the strip's creator, said Wednesday that deciding to end the comic strip was "excruciating." The comic has won several awards, including a 1992 National Cartoonists Society's Reuben Award and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program in 1987, and at its height appeared in 1,400 papers.

"It's just been really unbelievably agonizing to make the decision," Guisewite said in a telephone interview from her home in the Los Angeles area. "The strip has not only been the most astonishing form of therapy for 34 years, but doing a daily comic strip for the newspaper set a certain rhythm for my life."

The final "Cathy" strip, will run in newspapers on Sunday, Oct. 3.

Guisewite, 59, said she chose to end the largely autobiographical comic strip because she wanted more time with her 18-year-old daughter and her parents and because "other personal deadlines started becoming more pressing for me than the newspaper ones."

She said her "creative biological clock" was also urging her to try something else, although she isn't sure what that will be.

The best part about writing the comic, "besides the personal therapy," she said, was how she was able to connect with women.

"It was just such a privilege to be able to be that voice for women," she said.

The comic strip also provided her with a great vehicle to vent, she said.

"You can go bathing suit shopping and come home and ... get back at the swimwear industry," Guisewite said.

Guisewite, who started writing comic strips at the urging of her mother, was first published in 1976 by Kansas City-based Universal Press Syndicate, now Universal Uclick.

Lee Salem, president and editor of Universal Uclick, said in a news release that the same day Universal received its first "Cathy" submission, the company sent a contract back to Guisewite.

"Seven months later, the strip began in newspapers," Salem said. While "Cathy" wasn't an immediate hit, it gained popularity. It's currently carried in about 700 newspapers, according to Universal Uclick.

But Guisewite said it did hurt each time a newspaper dropped "Cathy."

"But I know that my strip has had just an astonishing run," she said. "I have worked really hard to try to earn my space because I know that it's extremely special to be able to own that little chunk of the newspaper."

Taco Bell hopes to spice up South Korea

On the day of Taco Bell's grand opening in Itaewon, the line stretched 40 minutes outside. (Courtesy Of Taco Bell)

By Chico Harlan

Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, September 25, 2010; 8:48 PM

SEOUL - In South Korea, where talk of the border rarely involves dinner options, Taco Bell this summer opened a restaurant, its only one in Asia. But indeed, not its first.

Taco Bell had tried Asia before, and the pair didn't get along. The chain closed its two previous South Korean franchises in the early 1990s. It then pulled out of China in 2008, restoring Asia's reputation as a continent unconquered by the taco.

Taco Bell chose Seoul for its Asian re-launch, though, for a reason that has little to do with refried beans and sour cream. Seoul appealed to Taco Bell, executives say, because few cities on Earth can better turn a novelty into a mainstream obsession. In the time it takes for other countries to warm to a new product, South Koreans have already liked it, loved it, photographed it, blogged about it and waited in 30-minute lines for it for two weeks straight.

Far away from a customer base in the United States that knows the delights and agonies of late-night taco dining, paid for entirely with pocket change, Taco Bell seeks a higher level of trendiness in South Korea. The new store's menu appears on an LED board. Wall hangings display a succession of culinary mood words: sizzle, steam, smash.

Shin Sang Yong, chief executive officer of M2G Ltd., the company that brought the chain to South Korea, thinks Taco Bell can work here because "people are ready for something new. They've had 20 years of pizza and hamburgers." Shin envisions opening 30 South Korean franchises in the next three years. One hundred in the next six. Right now, Seoul has about 30 Mexican and Tex-Mex restaurants.

The city's three-story Taco Bell opened July 11, with 40-minute lines on the first day. Business in the first month exceeded projections by 20 percent, Shin said.

It remains to be seen whether Taco Bell will prosper here, or elsewhere in Asia, over the long term. Since Taco Bell last existed here 15 years ago, little has fundamentally changed in the way people eat. What's different is how they decide where to eat. In the world's most wired country, two of every five people, according to some estimates, maintain a blog. One of South Korea's preeminent search engines, Naver, has a special category for "powerbloggers," many of whom love writing about food. Taco Bell has held special events for these bloggers, hoping to win their approval.

"They can kill a company," said Paul Yang, general manager of M2G. "People here are very fast. One of the fastest places to pick up trends. They lead pop culture in Asia - ahead of Japan, ahead of Hong Kong."

Food trends in South Korea can start from almost anywhere. In the past few years, South Korea has had sudden love affairs with doughnuts, frozen yogurt and waffles.

The kebab craze started on a street corner in 2006, when Turkey native Omer Yilmaz sold his signature dish to a few fanatics, who spread the gospel. Soon Yilmaz had one store, then two more, and now there are many copycats.

This year, self-trained chef Suji Park - who had created a mini-empire of restaurants that taught South Koreans to love Western-style brunch - has her sights on starting a new trend, introducing South Koreans to piled-high pastrami sandwiches.

It is a cross-cultural truth that people like large quantities of sodium and fat, whether melted atop crust, sandwiched in a bun or stuffed in a tortilla. But Mexican food still faces some hurdles in Asia. Unlike other Yum! Brands franchises - KFC and Pizza Hut, in particular - Taco Bell has a limited international footprint, with just 250 stores outside the United States. Theories abound as to why Mexican food is a hard sell, but many food enthusiasts in Seoul say they think South Koreans are itching not just for Western food, but also for food that Westerners like.

"A crowd draws a crowd," said Daniel Gray, a Seoul resident and food blogger who offers Korean cooking classes and restaurant tours. "The fact that the foreigners start to go there, there's a huge line around the block - everybody sees that."

Taco Bell's menu, for now, is simple: burritos, tacos, nachos, quesadillas and other demonstrations of nacho cheese engineering, such as the Fries BellGrande, which consists of fries, sour cream, cheese and meat all layered together.

Yang says the restaurant might soon put up a sign showing newcomers how to properly eat a taco; so far, he has noticed South Koreans struggle to angle their heads, leading to a "taco at the wrong orientation," and spillage of ingredients.

Several young women sat on the second floor of Seoul's Taco Bell one recent evening, devoted equally to consuming and photographing their food. Jung Ji Yoon, a 20-year-old college student, said that she had eaten at Taco Bell several times this summer, finding the taste to be "good - especially compared to the price."

But Jung recently decided to go on a diet, meaning that on this particular night, she planned to use Taco Bell as a meeting spot only, ordering nothing. She brought a small packet of tofu instead.

Special correspondent Yoonjung Seo contributed to this report.

The end of the KBO Season for me.

Well I would liked to have said that the Hanwha Eagles had a great season. In the 20 games I went to see this season the home record was 6-14. When I saw the victory video after the last home game of the season, I could not remember the last victory that I had seen live.

This year did not start out good for the Eagles. Their 2 main stars Kim Tae-Kyun and Lee Bum-Ho both went to play for Japan baseball teams. Their closer, Foreign Baseball player, Brad Thomas, signed with the Detroit Tigers. This caused 3 big holes that the Eagles did not recover from.

This season they finished in last place. This was the 2nd year in a row that this had happened.

It will soon be March and maybe just maybe, we can have hope for a better season.

Investigation Affirms North Korea Attacked South Korean Ship

Author: Bruce Klingner

On September 13, 2010, South Korea released an extensive report detailing North Korea’s responsibility for an unprovoked attack on the South Korean naval vessel Cheonan. The 313-page report provides overwhelming, irrefutable evidence that Pyongyang deliberately sank the Cheonan with a torpedo launched from a submarine. Although North Korea’s motives for this act of war remain uncertain, the evidence is beyond doubt.

The report describes in minute detail the results of a five-nation, two-month long investigation. The report uses scientific methods to inextricably link Pyongyang to the egregious attack. The release of the lengthy document, more extensive than a preliminary version revealed on May 20, was necessitated by doubt sowed by swirling conspiracy theories, some of which blamed Seoul or Washington for sinking the South Korean ship.

The report delineates physical evidence showing that the damage to the Cheonan was the result of an underwater explosion and resulting ‘bubble jet’ caused by a torpedo underneath the ship. Interviews with crew members and coastal witnesses describe an explosion and resultant water plume consistent with torpedo explosions. Seismic and air acoustic wave analysis also point to a shockwave and bubble effect from an underwater explosion. Review of explosive residue, tidal currents in the vicinity of the sinking, and the recovery of parts of a North Korean torpedo preclude other possibilities, including an underwater mine.

Despite overwhelming evidence, there are those determined to remain unconvinced because it is inconvenient for them to admit North Korean culpability. South Korean progressives, who harbor a benevolent view of the North Korean regime, aggressively seek to undermine any threat to their advocacy for Seoul returning to a policy of providing generous unconditional benefits to Pyongyang. As such, they reflexively blame the United States or the conservative government of Lee Myung-bak as a means of diverting attention from North Korea’s bellicose threats, provocative behavior, and violation of international agreements and U.N. resolutions.

South Korean and U.S. progressives also advocate searching for “an exit strategy” from the Cheonan as if the attack that led to the death of 46 South Korean sailors was an inconvenience that should be swept under the rug. Fortunately, Seoul and Washington see little use in re-engaging Pyongyang until it addresses South Korean security concerns and makes tangible steps toward resuming implementation of its denuclearization commitments.

Current and former U.S. officials report that China did not want to confront the Cheonan evidence since it would put Beijing in an uncomfortable position it wished to avoid. Russia’s investigation, based on a cursory exposure to the Cheonan, was ideologically, rather than scientifically, driven.

Pyongyang’s attack on the Cheonan is consistent with previous North Korean acts of terror and war. North Korea has repeatedly attempted to assassinate the South Korean president, attacked U.S. ships and planes in international territory, and blew up a civilian airliner. In early 2009, the regime engaged in a series of provocative acts that made clear it had no intention of engaging with Washington despite euphoric expectations that the change in U.S. leadership would cause Pyongyang to moderate its behavior.

The Obama Administration responded to North Korea’s belligerency by pushing for punitive measures. Pyongyang’s attack on the Cheonan underscored North Korea’s unwillingness to abide by even the most basic concepts of international behavior.

Despite recent media speculation of a perceived softening of U.S. policy toward North Korea, the Obama Administration does not appear willing to reduce pressure tactics until Pyongyang alters its behavior. The U.S. recently announced new sanctions targeting North Korean entities responsible for the Cheonan attack and engaged in prohibited actions.

The sanctions were a welcome development since they are an effective means of upholding international law and U.N. resolutions by:

• Signaling that there is a cost to abhorrent behavior;
• Impeding North Korea’s development of nuclear weapon capabilities by constraining imports of components and material;
• Curtailing Pyongyang’s destabilizing proliferation activities; and
• Inducing North Korea to return to its denuclearization commitments.

However, the strategy was weakly implemented because the Obama Administration remains reluctant to target the other end of the proliferation pipeline. The U.S. should identify and target non-North Korean entities that are complicit in violating U.N. Resolution 1874 and aiding Pyongyang’s illicit activities.

Now that clear, comprehensive, and compelling evidence about the Cheonan attack has been disseminated, it is time to move beyond the inane conspiracy theories endlessly peddled by North Korean apologists. Instead, policymakers and the public should focus on North Korea’s continuing threat to peace and stability in northeast Asia and discuss the proper means to redress it.

Gabriel Taylor Goshorn (2009-2010)

| Visit Guest Book

SHERMAN - Gabriel Taylor Goshorn, 15 months old, passed away Sunday, September 12, 2010 at Children's Medical Center in Dallas. Visitation will be from 6-7 p.m. Wednesday, September 15, 2010 at Bratcher Funeral Home, 401 W. Woodard St., Denison. Funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, September 16, 2010 at Bratcher Funeral Home Chapel, with Rev. Cass French officiating. There will be a private family burial.

Gabriel was born May 28, 2009 in Savannah, Ga., the son of Samuel Goshorn and Meagan Wagoner.

He is survived by his parents Samuel Goshorn of Denison and Meagan Goshorn of Sherman; grandparents Harold and Kathleen Wagoner of Denison, Donald Goshorn of Denison, Carol Goshorn of Denison; great-grandparents Mildred Geostch of Denison, Harold and Sandra Wagoner of Sherman; brother Seth Goshorn of Durant, Okla.; sister Alyssa Goshorn of Durant, Okla.; uncle Taylor Wagoner of Denison.

Arrangements are entrusted to the care and direction of Bratcher Funeral Home, 401 W. Woodard Street, Denison. For further information, please call the funeral home at (903) 465-2323 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (903) 465-2323 end_of_the_skype_highlighting, or for an online obituary, directions or to leave a condolence, please go to www.bratcherfuneralhome.com.


I WENT TO HIGH SCHOOL WITH HIS GRANDMOTHER. I Still can not believe this story.

The Fall 2010 Film Preview

by Mike McStay

Here are my recommendations of films that you need to see this fall and the films that you need to pass on.

The films that you need to see this fall

The Town- When I saw the preview, it looked great and the idea of a bank robber being this crass just sounded like a film that I would want to see if it ever comes here to Korea.

Let Me In- Now I was a huge fan of the original “Låt den rätte komma in” from Sweden. I really could not believe that they were going to remake it. I have heard mixed reviews about this film but I just have a feeling that this could be a good film.

Life as we know it- I have usually hated any film that Katherine Heigl has starred in but this one just looked different and it has the possibility of being a great film, if given the chance.

Red- When I saw who was going to be in this film Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, John Malkovich and Helen Mirren, I knew that this was going to be a film that I really wanted to see and make them all ex-CIA and I really want to see this.

Hereafter- Real simple, Clint Eastwood Directed this film. I hope it’s another good film from him.

Monsters- What do you do when aliens invade the world and they soon establish a colony in Mexico. Then you have to go there and get someone out alive. It sounded interesting to me and I want to see it.

Due Date- it sure looked like an updated version of Planes, Trains and Automobiles. It made me realize how much I have missed John Candy’s acting. The parts I saw made me laugh, so I will give it a chance.

Unstoppable- When I saw that Denzel Washington and Chris Pine were in a film directed by Tony Scott and with a train that could collide into dangerous chemicals, it just sounded very interesting.

Skyline- When Aliens appear and a huge blue light is making people disappear, it reminded me of a classic Twilight Zone episode. It looks like a different idea for a film.

Harry Potter 7 Part1- Unless the film makers really make huge mistakes with this film, this should be a huge blockbuster and in 3D IMAX. They should make a lot of money worldwide on this one.

The Next 3 Days- I saw Russell Crowe and Liam Neeson on the screen together, I knew that this would be a film that I wanted to see.

The Fighter- This film takes a look at the start of pro boxer “Irish” Mickey Ward career so they will not be showing his classic trilogy with Arturo Gatti.

Tron :Legacy- I was never that huge of a fan of the first film but I am willing to give this film a chance based on the good preview that the film has received so far.

Yogi Bear- Ok, I loved Yogi as a cartoon and I will go see it as a movie. I sure hope I don’t regret this selection as a film to see this fall.

Now for the films that you need to run away from and miss when they come to the movie theater.

Machete- Now I do really love a good Grindhouse type film. Sad to say this one was so way over the top and with the Anti-Arizona Immigration message, the film never worked for me and that is a shame.

Wall Street 2- So it’s 20+ years later and now Greed is evil or is it good or why should I care. The preview looked horrible and how long has it been since I have actually paid to see a film Directed by Oliver Stone.

The Social Network- The Buzz is bad on this film and the closer it get to its release date the worse the film sounds to me.

Stone- The preview looked like a very cheap late night film that you see on the USA Network and it just looks and feel more like a TV film that a real one.

I spit on your grave: unrated- I have no idea why they are remaking this film. The original one was badly acted and this one doesn’t look any better.

Paranormal Activity 2- I thought the first one was pathetic and with the 2 different ending, it just made a bad film into a joke for me but the film made a lot of $$ so here comes part 2.

Saw 7 3-D- Didn’t Jigsaw die a few films ago and no he is back and in 3-D? Why?

Megamind-This carton just looks bad and I didn’t laugh once during the preview. I can vaguely remember that Will Farrell films were supposed to be funny.

127 hours- So we see a man with his arm stuck under a rock for how many hours? This is a good film because why?

The Tourist- I have no idea why they made this film after so many cast and other changes to the original story. It just has a very bad feel to this film.

Little Fockers- Why are they making this film and now we see a preview that Ben Stiller is trying to be “The Godfather” it makes no sense and it wasn’t funny at all.

True Grit- You’re trying to remake a “John Wayne” film. Didn’t you learn your lesson with the failure of The Ladykillers” remake.

Gulliver’s Travelers- Now Jack Black is trying to be a giant in this film. I really cannot believe that they cast him in this role. Please go back to a panda role instead of this one.

First Person: The shared stories of 9/11

Fri Sep 10, 4:43 pm ET

"Wake up. The World Trade Center is gone."

That's how Sept. 11, 2001, started for Gwen Navarrete. And maybe for you, too.

The shared nature of the tragedy both broke and — paradoxically — strengthened the heart of a nation.

So we've asked people like you to share again, nine years later. In a collaboration between Yahoo! News and Associated Content, we've gathered reflections from people across the country about what they went through and what they learned (or didn't) from that terrible time. "Our day of infamy," contributor Melissa Danysh calls it. She's just one of the many we heard from.

And here's just a sampling of what they had to say.

An aid worker has to step back

Not all of the people affected by the Sept. 11 attacks were in New York and D.C. In Norfolk, Va., where I worked for the American Red Cross, the local schools shut down and children were sent home. Two hours after Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon, I answered a call from a 12-year-old girl during my shift.

Her voice shook with fear. Sniffles came through the line and my own eyes misted. Both of her parents worked at the Pentagon. She couldn't reach them.

When the call ended, I shared her information with the volunteers answering the phones. I waited at the office for her call until I was ordered home to rest. At 5 a.m. I returned to find myself being hugged by two volunteers, as they told me the girl's mother called. She and her husband had escaped the disaster without injury.

For those brief seconds, there was joy in hell.

The bond forged during a disaster between relief workers is different from any other type of friendship. Back then, I watched and prayed for safe journeys as my friends headed out to help. When most Americans struggled to find something useful to do, we knew what was needed and we did it.

It's easy to burn out when doing volunteer work, especially in disaster services. Often, people remember to complain but forget to express their gratitude. I never burned out, but I did grow to understand that my future meant deciding between my wants and my family's needs. … [J.S. Nichols' story continues here.]

[The account above and all the others that appear here are edited excerpts.]

---

A Muslim high-schooler's bewilderment

I was a senior in high school. I remember my teacher immediately turned on the television. The first thing I saw was the media showing a group of Muslims celebrating the attacks. I got a sick feeling in my stomach and I began to cry.

I am an American Muslim. The terrorists who called themselves "Muslims" took responsibility for the attacks and because of that, my life has changed ever since.

I was born and raised in the small town of Kingston, Pa. There, little or nothing was known about Islam. My high-school principal did not know much about Islam -- only that he had three Muslim senior girls in the school who wore head scarves. Before 9/11, we were accepted by all in our school. Students were interested in learning about Islam and accepted our traditions and religion. However, with 9/11, I saw an extreme change.

It started with the day of the attacks. My principal gathered me and the other two Muslim girls and told us to go into the library for our own safety. I was very scared. I didn't do anything wrong and did not understand why I would be targeted. I am American, I thought, and I am affected by the attacks as well.

I used to have a bumper sticker on the back of my little white Honda Civic with the sign of Islam (a crescent and star) stating that "I Love Islam." When I got home from school on Sept. 11, my mom was waiting outside and told me to get rid of the sticker.

Since the attacks, I have experienced much harassment. While I walk down the street, I've heard people scream out their windows for me to go back to where I came from. On Memorial Day this year, I was walking my son when a man screamed those exact words from his car. I fear that my child will have to grow up with this prejudice simply because of one tragic day in America. … [M. Mahmoud's story continues here.]

---

A warrior's internal struggle

From the start of Operation Enduring Freedom in October 2001 to the time I separated from the military in 2007, I would ultimately spend nearly three years in Iraq, Afghanistan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia to help to execute the war on terror.

Like everyone else, I struggled with hate and fear as we were plunged into war. While I think I was able to ultimately turn away from those more corrosive emotions, I struggled with them for years.

When al-Qaida terrorists first attacked the World Trade Center, I was a young lieutenant serving on a base in the Middle East, preparing to go on shift at the Watch (part of the effort monitoring Iraq's compliance with the United Nations' Southern No Fly Zone). While my teammates and I ate in the dining facility, the images of smoke coming out of the first tower started broadcasting across the large-screen TVs.

The next few hours are still vivid in my memory. At once, dozens of soldiers, sailors and airmen leaped up and charged out of the facility. We jumped into our vehicle and raced to the Watch. Upon arriving, we were greeted with a human tempest as men and women surged throughout the building, desperately trying to assess the attacks. While we stood there getting our bearings, a captain called out to us: "They hit the Pentagon!" and then he disappeared into the maelstrom. I bolted to my station to join the new war. … [W.E. Linde's story continues here.]

---

For a pilot's family, 'a strange sort of guilt'

As the reports unfolded, my husband, a pilot for American Airlines since 1991, and I tried to sift through the jumble of facts and theories pouring from various networks. There was a sense of disbelief in the house, and our dog paced between us in an effort to offer comfort. As information became clearer, we were sickened by the knowledge of the loss of an American Airline airplane in this tragedy, stunned to hear of another hitting the Pentagon. Added to our agony was the loss of United Airlines' two jets; the death of so many crew members and passengers in such a short period of time was beyond comprehension. What was happening to our world?

In the past few years, our has life returned to normal -- or, rather, the "new" normal. Gone are the days when aviation travel was considered an adventure, replaced by long lines at the more vigilant and intrusive security check-points and passengers looking at fellow travelers with distrust. Once my husband's passion, flying is now a grueling and difficult job filled with tension and added layers of security and responsibility.

Despite the financial and work difficulties, the hardest thing to face has been our feeling of guilt. Why wasn't Mark in the cockpit? Could he have changed anything? Probably not, but the question still lingers as my husband and I share a form of survivor's guilt with other airline employees and their families. It is a strange sort of guilt. … [Susan Ranstead's story continues here.]

---

30 miles from Afghanistan

My sister was not in Michigan with me. She was not in Chicago with her friends. She was not in Tennessee with our mom. She was 30 miles from the Afghanistan border. I was terrified. I didn't care if the world was coming to an end; I could handle that. I just wanted my sister home with me.

My sister works for international aid organizations and travels the world to help after natural disasters. On Sept. 11, she was working in Turkmenistan, just north of Afghanistan, helping to distribute food to TB patients. She had no idea what had happened. News is not exactly instantaneous there.

I don't think it was real for her because she was so far away. TVs are few and far between, so it wasn't until much later in the evening that she was able to go to another expat's home and see the horror for herself on CNN.

The aid organization she was working for at the time was concerned, but it did not feel the need to remove their workers. The area was very remote and the likelihood of that particular small group being attacked was slim. They were, however, to stay on alert and be ready to move if the situation worsened. It was sheer agony for me.

People who know my sister are always amazed she does this for a living. One friend says my sister is living the life she always wanted. I thought it was a kind of cool, too. Until Sept. 11. … [Lisa Pratto's story continues here.]

---

A hard-won unity that has faded again

On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, I sat stunned in my Baltimore hotel room as I watched the first World Trade Center tower collapse.

We reported to the airport for our flight back with no idea if we would be allowed to fly. The Baltimore airport had the longest lines of would-be travelers queued up that I have ever seen in any airport anywhere. Behind me was Rep. James Leach (R-Iowa).

I ran through several of the ways to help that I had considered during my sleepless night. I asked for Rep. Leach's reaction to my list. "You're way ahead of me," he laughed.

My partner, Chris, who had heard my idea of holding a "Celebrate Citizenship" sing-along fundraiser to collect money for the families of the victims of the WTC bombing, said, "You should ask Jim Leach if he would speak."

I literally ran the length of a long airport corridor and extracted his bemused promise that, yes, he would speak at such an event.

So we set about making the "Celebrate Citizenship" idea into a reality, mounting a fundraiser to collect scholarship money for the children orphaned by the WTC bombing. Our corporate parent company had promised to match any money raised.

We selected Veterans Day, Nov. 11, 2001, exactly two months from the date of the tragedy. Many from the Quad Cities of Iowa and Illinois pitched in to help. The best junior high band in the state of Illinois (Glenview Jr. High of East Moline) played. All three nearby TV networks sent speakers. The (Moline, Ill.) Daily Dispatch pitched in with free flyer distribution, and columnist John Marx spoke.

Rep. Leach drove 120 miles from Iowa City after giving four other speeches to serve as our keynote speaker. Happy Joe Whitty of the local Happy Joe's pizza franchise talked about tolerance; his son-in-law is a Muslim. We sold red, white and blue popcorn, Krispy Kreme donuts, ice cream, patriotic items and accepted donations.

"Celebrate Citizenship" on Nov. 11 was a time of unity and one of the last times that it appeared that we were all pulling together to bring our country together. … [Connie Wilson's story continues here.]

Remembering 9/11 and the Night at Shea Stadium That Brought Everyone Together

By Steve Phillips

The morning of September 11, 2001 started a bit overcast. I left home at my normal time but anticipated a very busy day at work because I had organizational telemeetings scheduled for the entire day. Every Mets minor league club had its own time window in which we were going to discuss each player in the organization and their progress over the minor league season. The big league club was on the road in Pittsburgh.

Normally I would listen to any number of radio stations on my drive into work. As I was approaching the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge, which links the Bronx with Queens, I heard on a news station that a plane had hit one of the towers of the World Trade Center. The speculation was that it was a small commuter plane. As I went over the bridge I could see the city skyline and smoke billowing off what I supposed was the first tower.

I called my wife to tell her what I heard and saw and asked her if she had seen anything on TV about it. She hadn't but was going to check after we got off the phone.

Then as I got close to Shea Stadium my wife called back and told me that a second plane had hit the other tower at the World Trade Center. She said that at that point the speculation was that it was a terrorist attack. A terrorist attack!

I remember getting goose bumps all over and feeling a deep pit in my stomach.

As I pulled into the stadium and got to the offices the word was just spreading as to what had happened. People were flipping on televisions and trying to find out what they could.

I called my wife back again and she said that she heard at some point they might shut down the bridges and suggested I get home before I got stranded. That fit with what I wanted so desperately to do. I just wanted to get home and get my kids out of school and home safely.

I canceled the telemeetings for the day and told everyone in the baseball department that they could leave to go home to their families. I hustled out of the stadium to my car and headed home, getting over the bridge before it was closed. I could see the smoke from the towers even more clearly now.

As I drove home for the next hour and a half, news followed that the Pentagon had been hit as well. Then the news that the towers collapsed. Oh my gosh ... the towers actually collapsed.

On my drive I had called our PR Director who was with the team in Pittsburgh. Obviously all of the players were concerned about their families. I understood that because all I wanted to do was to get home. We told everyone to sit tight and we would get word from MLB about what was going to happen. Obviously all air travel had stopped so we weren't going to be flying the team home from Pittsburgh.

The next couple of days were horrible, as many people we knew were touched in some way by the tragedy. Our town had lost five men. They had been fathers, sons, brothers and friends. They were Little League coaches and soccer coaches. They were real people that we all knew who were casualties of a war we didn't know was going on at the time. It was so, so sad. It still is.

It was also scary. We didn't know what else might happen. We figured that the people who had done this might strike again. We just wanted to hunker down and hide until someone said the coast was clear.

Games were initially canceled for one day, then three days and then later it was announced five days. The players ended up busing back from Pittsburgh and those who hadn't already reconnected with their families were able to do so. We scheduled workouts at Shea Stadium while we awaited word as to when the Commissioner thought play should resume. There were some who thought that maybe the season should go unfinished. I would have completely supported that.

We were at war!

We didn't know what else might happen. We figured that the people who had done this might strike again. We just wanted to hunker down and hide until someone said the coast was clear.
Shea Stadium became more than a place for ballgames. It became a staging area where supplies were collected for those working at Ground Zero on what was originally a rescue mission and then a recovery mission and then a cleanup mission. Firefighters and policemen from around the country traveled to New York to help. There were rows of cots set up in the tunnels of the stadium for crews to come back and rest between shifts.

Upon their return from Pittsburgh we gathered the players at Shea Stadium for a meeting to give them some sense of the plan. Our owners were there as well as my entire front office and all of the players. The owners talked about how we needed to all stick together in this scary time. The owners also committed to making a hefty donation on behalf of the organization to the families that lost policemen and firemen in the tragedy. Our players did the same, committing a day's pay each, totaling about $450,000.

I will never forget at that meeting a young rookie catcher, Vance Wilson, stood up in the meeting and said that he didn't want to hear any more whining about how this impacted the team or their travel. He said he heard some grumbling on the way back from Pittsburgh. He reminded everyone that people lost family members; none of us had anything to complain about. Pretty impressive for a rookie.

When we worked out at the stadium we invited the firemen to come out on the field to meet the players and take some swings. The players spent hours helping load vans and trucks with supplies to be delivered to the city. Some players went to Ground Zero to offer moral support to the workers there. It was somber. It was serious. It was sad.

It certainly put baseball in perspective. It put a lot of things in perspective. It pulled a team together, a city together and a country together.

Bud Selig decided the games would go on and play resumed on September 16. We went back to play a series in Pittsburgh. The Pirates' fans cheered for us. It was stunning, shocking, moving. It made me proud to be an American. Everywhere we went people cheered us because we were truly representing the name on the front of the uniform.

NEW YORK.

When they cheered for us they were cheering for our firemen and policemen who ran toward the World Trade Center while others ran for their lives. Our players wore the hats of the NYPD and the FDNY with pride and respect.

On Friday, September 21, we came home and were scheduled to play the first game back in New York since the attack on the World Trade Center. The entire time the team had been away the preparations were being made for its return to Shea. I went to meetings with the NYPD, FBI and FDNY and our stadium operations staff. I would listen to all of the precautions that were being put in place: metal detectors, police presence, snipers, radiation detectors, bomb-sniffing dogs. You name it and it was discussed and likely implemented.

Honestly, it scared the crap out of me.

Was playing a baseball game under these conditions really worth it?

I mean, we had to instruct the players and their families what to do if there was an attack. We had an evacuation plan for family members that would bring them through the bowels of the stadium and connect them with their husbands and fathers in the player parking lot for a quick getaway if necessary.

Just as there were preparations being made for the safety and security of the fans, so, too, were preparations being made for the "event" that the game would be. It needed to be respectful, spiritual, patriotic and New Yorkish.

I spent most of the day of September 21 in my office confirming the final safety and security plans as well as trying to focus on some baseball stuff. It was hard to focus. I was scared. There was a story that had circulated that a man had been found sitting in his car with maps of the area around Shea Stadium and LaGuardia Airport. He supposedly had certain things highlighted that worried the authorities. I didn't know what to make of that.

In the late afternoon I had to get out of my office so I went up to my box from which I would watch the game. I was sad and wanted to be alone. I looked down on the field and there was a gospel group getting set up to rehearse with Diana Ross. They were to sing "God Bless America" during the seventh-inning stretch. I sat there as they prepared wondering what the night would bring. I didn't know whether the stadium would be a target for the terrorists so soon after the 9/11 attacks. I wondered how many people would show up for the game. I wondered if life would feel this scary forever.

Then they started to sing. Diana Ross and these kids started to sing "God Bless America." I watched as Ms. Ross sang with passion and truth. She went from person to person and touched each singer's face with a gentle touch, letting them know they were safe. She looked in each of their eyes and made it clear that they were all going to be OK.

I sat there in my box where I had screamed at my players and manager on many occasions. This was the place where I had pounded the tabletop at ridiculous calls by umpires. This is the box in which I had slapped high fives just a year prior on our way to a World Series. And now I was sitting and crying. I was crying for all those who had died and for how much life had changed in just a few days. It was one of the most spiritual moments I have ever experienced.

When they were done singing I felt better. I just felt like everything was going to get better. Somehow, someway, someday.



The game started with a bagpipe performance that truly touched my soul. It spoke to the anguish and grief of the recent events and brought tears to most eyes. Rudy Giuliani, mayor of New York and a huge Yankee fan, was in attendance and was cheered wildly by everyone to honor his leadership during the adversity that hit New York.

Our arch-nemesis, the Atlanta Braves, were the opponent. Before the first pitch both teams shook hands and hugged, acknowledging the obvious: that the rivalry really didn't mean nearly as much on September 21, 2001 as it had just 11 days earlier.

Marc Anthony sang the National Anthem. He sang it with passion and sincerity. The fans sang along like I had never heard before. Chants of "USA! USA! USA!" followed. I got goose bumps.

The game itself was a good one. The Braves started Jason Marquis, a New Yorker. He threw six innings and only gave up a run. Bruce Chen started for us. He matched Marquis, allowing only one run over six innings. An emotional John Franco, a New Yorker as well, gave up a run in the seventh that gave the Braves a 2-1 lead after seven innings.

The seventh-inning stretch included the performance of "God Bless America" that I saw before the game. The fans appreciated it as much as I did. Then Liza Minnelli came out and sang "New York, New York." She was arm and arm with policemen and firemen while doing a cabaret kick during the song. It was a powerful and dramatic performance.

After we made our third out in the seventh inning, still trailing 2-1, I remember saying a prayer asking God for help. I was never one to pray for victories because I always felt like God had more important prayers to answer.

But this just felt different.

There were 41,000 people that had the courage to show up and support the Mets, New York and America. It just seemed that the scriptwriters should have us win the game. I really didn't think the Braves would mind if we won. I even mentioned that to God.

Well in the bottom of the eighth inning, after an Edgardo Alfonzo base on balls, Mike Piazza came to the plate. Piazza was beloved by Mets fans. He was a clutch player who loved the big moment.

I can still slow down the image in my mind. As Braves reliever Steve Karsay -- born in Flushing, Queens -- released the ball and it came to the plate Piazza started to uncoil his swing. My prayers and the prayers of 41,000 Mets fans and 8.4 million New Yorkers were answered as the ball sailed out of the park. I can still see Piazza rounding the bases. I can see him acknowledging the fans.

I cried yet again.

We won! Yes, we won the game, but it was more than that. We won because we overcame adversity. We stood up to our fears and anxieties. New Yorkers showed up and said, "Bring it on!" I was proud to be a Met that day. I was prouder to be a New Yorker and I was proudest to be an American.

We will never forget September 11, 2001.

I will never forget September 21, 2001, either, because that is the day I knew we were going to be all right.

20 More Things Your Child's Teacher Won't Tell You.

1. My rule for hormonal middle-schoolers: Keep your hands where I can see them.

2. My first year of teaching, a fifth-grader actually threw a chair at me. I saw him recently, and he told me he just graduated from college. That’s what makes it all worthwhile.

3. I have parents who are CEOs of their own companies come in and tell me how to run my classroom. I would never think to go to their office and tell them how to do their jobs.

©2009 Jupiterimages Corporation

"Teaching is a calling. There’s not a teacher alive who will say she went into this for the money."

4. We don’t arrive at school 10 minutes before your child does. And we don’t leave the minute they get back on the bus. Many of us put in extra hours before and after school.

5. We are not the enemy. Parents and teachers really are on the same side.

6. The truth is simple: Your kid will lie to get out of trouble.

7. Encourage your child to keep reading. That’s key to success in the classroom at any age.

8. We can tell the difference between a parent helping their child with homework and doing it for them (especially when they’re clueless in class the next day).

9. Teaching is a calling. There’s not a teacher alive who will say she went into this for the money.

10. Just because your child says he did his homework doesn’t mean it’s true. You must check. Every night.

11. Teaching is not as joyful as it once was for many of us; we get jaded too. Disrespectful students and belligerent parents take a toll on us.

12. Parents give their kids the pricey gadgets and labels, but what kids really crave is for you to talk to them. They want to know you are interested in their lives.

13. We spend money out of our own pockets to buy things our students need, such as school supplies and even shoes.

14. Supportive, involved parents are crucial. But some are “helicopter parents”--they hover too much.

15. Having the summer off is great, but many of us have to take on extra jobs--teaching summer school, tutoring--to make ends meet.

16. Success is not achieved by just making kids memorize flash cards and prepping them for an Ivy League school. Sensible parents know there is a college for every kid, and that responsibility and good citizenship are what really drive success.

17. Nobody says “the dog ate my homework” anymore, but we hear a lot of “I left it on the kitchen table.” And then Mom will send in a note to back up the story.

18. We wish parents would make their kids own up to their actions instead of pressuring us to bend the rules.

19. Please stop doing everything for your child and allow them to make mistakes. How else will they learn? Kids are not motivated to succeed because they feel their parents will bail them out every time.

20. There are days when I just want to quit, but then that one smile from that one kid, changes it all.

Sources: American Federation of Teachers; interviews with elementary and middle school teachers in California, Connecticut, Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota, New York, and Texas.


A look inside a teacher's mind could help you understand lesson plans and maybe even guide your child to perform better.

1. If we teach small children, don’t tell us that our jobs are “so cute” and that you wish you could glue and color all day long.

2. I’m not a marriage counselor. At parent-teacher conferences, let’s stick to Dakota’s progress, not how your husband won’t help you around the house.

3. We’re sick of standardized testing and having to “teach to the test.”

4. Kids used to go out and play after school and resolve problems on their own. Now, with computers and TV, they lack the skills to communicate. They don’t know how to get past hurt feelings without telling the teacher and having her fix it.

5. When I hear a loud belch, I remember that a student’s manners are a reflection of his parents’.

6. Your child may be the center of your universe, but I have to share mine with 25 others.

7. Please help us by turning off the texting feature on your child’s phone during school hours.

8. Guys who dribble a ball for a couple of hours a game can make up to $20 million a year. We educate future leaders and make about $51,000 a year.

9. We take on the role of mother, father, psychologist, friend, and adviser every day. Plus, we’re watching for learning disabilities, issues at home, peer pressure, drug abuse, and bullying.

10. Kids dish on your secrets all the time—money, religion, politics, even Dad’s vasectomy.

11. Please, no more mugs, frames, or stuffed animals. A gift card to Starbucks or Staples would be more than enough. A thank-you note: even better.

12. We love snow days and three-day weekends as much as your kid does.

13. The students we remember are happy, respectful, and good-hearted, not necessarily the ones with the highest grades.