Korea: Protests in Anguk

Speaking on a global scale, political scandals seem to be a pretty regular occurrence throughout different societies regardless of culture or country, whether it's the recent allegations against the fiercely anti-drug Philippines' President's son being linked to a massive (as in over $150 million worth) drug bust,  the President of United States and his alleged affair (and hush money bribe) with porn star Stormy Daniels (not to mention all that stuff about Russia), the corruption scandal currently brewing in Argentina... I'm apt to think that this says something profound about human nature, something about power and corruption and all that jazz. We've all heard the cliches, right?  

As an American, scandal in the U.S. seems old hat and almost depressingly routine. Growing up I heard endless rhetoric on the radio about that one president who got his jollies with an intern who performed "oral sex", whatever that meant (because as a kid I was blissfully clueless). I've seen politicians quite literally dance and sing about bombing far-off countries with glee and watched the mandatory mournful spiel given after the planes hit the towers one brisk September morning 17-odd years ago. As serious and meaningful as these moments have been for America, and the world, as the ripples of their fallout continue to settle, there is a degree of ineffectuality that lingers around them. A sense of hopelessness, of powerlessness. I know those who would argue adamantly that what makes America such a great place is our ability to get out there and enact change if we sign up and make ourselves heard, but the great wave of free love seems to have crested in the 70s, and the movement could be said to be failed. The wars have broiled on in their various guises, under various excuses and justifications, ever since. 

"So now....you can go up on a steep hill in Las Vegas and look West, and with the right kind of eyes you can almost see the high-water mark—that place where the wave finally broke and rolled back.”

― Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

But scandal, in another country, where the insane allegations and dramatic upheaval will largely be of no impact to my personal existence and I have no power, period? This puts a whole new level of surreal spin on the proceedings... in the end, I can say that I was there, I witnessed it, during the whole shebang. And that's something, I suppose. 

Korea: Ssamziegil and President Park Geun-hye protests

During the time of my stay in South Korea, a bit of political scandal broke out involving the President of the country at the time, Park Geun-hye. There were all sorts of rumors and stories going around, and it was making headlines around the world with the outlandish theories and revelations gaining light of day.  At Fun Caricature, customers would sometimes speak about their feelings on the matter and chastise or judge each other for their past voting decisions... I remember one man, in particular, being especially offended that his date had been a supporter of the President years prior. Ironically, the climate back in the US wasn't too different in that sense- since it was nearing election time the Clinton versus Trump debate was raging loud and heavy on social media and especially vocal citizens were voicing or wearing hats emblazoned with their stances at gatherings. Reddit was awash in trolls who's simpering obsession with one of the potentials led them to try to sabotage and domineer various other subreddits, leading to a clap-back that rippled through nearly the entire site...it was a wild time. It's not a coincidence that I happened to be outside the country for this last election cycle, or the one prior... I certainly could have gotten more involved, of course, and still participated from a distance with the right forms and efforts, but I was too busy living in the moment and too under-informed to really want to make that decision. I've historically had little faith in my singular ability to contribute or effect much change when it comes to these things, so aside from having my own opinions on Facebook, I try to disengage. I've met plenty of ex-pats who doggedly follow the debates, news, and trends, though... and when the actual election time came, I can't deny that I, too, was glued to my screen waiting to see the final verdict. There was a certain irony in watching the whirlwind of publicity and soap-box orators surrounding the US elections as the scandal broke in Korea. The scandal had nearly everything; President Park was charged with misappropriation of funds, allegiance with a cult leader going decades and multiple generations back, there were multiple assassinations in her history: tragically, her parents, who were the leaders of the country at one point, too. So she's like a political Batman? She seemed born and bred to be a leader, and her father was a much-liked figure who's prestige likely helped in her election.  This made the fall from grace and the resultant fallout all the more intense. There were protests throughout Seoul with hundreds of thousands of citizens coming out to show their outrage. The most outstanding thing, to me, however, was how despite their upset the overall tone of the protests was positive and communal- there were trucks driving down the crowded streets blasting music that the masses would sing to. There were men with babies strapped on their backs holding candles, and mothers holding the hands of their young children in one hand and a candle in the other as they walked down the streets expressing their discontent. Though the citizens were upset, the protests were extremely peaceful and I felt very safe as I navigated my way through the densely packed crowds trying to make my way home for the evening. There were, indubitably, a lot of police there to oversee the proceedings- but it felt remarkable, to me, as an American, where news of the election results lead people to destroy private property and try to block traffic on busy highways. There were food trucks proliferating the streets, busy roads closed by the police to vehicular traffic outside of the protest vans pumping tunes to motivate the chants of the citizens... it seemed like a good balance of freedom of speech: expressing your disdain and upset with the current situation while maintaining a jovial, block-party-like atmosphere where people literally felt safe taking their children. It had snowed earlier in the day, which made it all the more magical.