The Casey Lartigue Show!

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. Is the sky blue? Is the ocean water? If you suspect those are trick questions, you are right. The sky isn’t always blue ― it is reddish at sunset, dark at midnight, gray on an overcast day. The ocean isn’t water ― there’s also fish, plant life, submarines, dissolved minerals, surfboards, sunken ships, even people swimming in it sometimes. As Hoover Institution scholar Thomas Sowell wrote in his 1996 book ``The Vision of the Anointed,” people who use “all-or-nothing” reasoning can deny a statement because it is not 100 percent true in every circumstance. Such word games might be fun for college students or debaters, but there are some distinguished people who are respected for making such childish arguments about serious issues. In his book ``23 Things They Don’t Tell you About Capitalism,” Cambridge University economist Chang Ha-Joon argues that 1) “[T]here is really no such thing as a free market” and 2) “The free market doesn’t exis

I'm scheduled to be a guest on TBS eFM 101.3 January 1 from 7:40 a.m. You can listen live on a regular radio or online . It is live radio so things can always change. I recommend using Microsoft Internet Explorer with the radio player . Also, if you want to listen, test it around 7:30 am so you have time to figure out it in case there is a problem, don't wait until 7:39 a.m. The main topic will be about North Korean refugees. Here's the school address :: (Korea) Standard Chartered Bank 364 20 030012 Recipient name: Mulmangcho  For international donations: Standard Chartered Bank K orea LTD. Swiftcode: SCBKRSE.  Branch  code: 233644  tel;+82-2-761-0070  In studio with North Korean refugee Lee Seongmin and "This Morning" host Alex Jensen.   At the TBS twitter feed.

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. “Have you ever been to North Korea?” This is the question I am almost always asked here in South Korea when people learn that I have become an activist for North Korean escapees. My response is curt: “No.” “Do you plan on going?” they ask next. My answer remains the same: “No.” When they start to ask a follow-up question, I cut them off: "No." People are often just trying to make conversation, I know, but I am blunt for a reason: I am not interested in going to North Korea as long as North Koreans are held captive. I could go one day, but for now, I can do without a government-guided tour by " men-stealers and women-whippers ," to borrow a phrase from American abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison. I don’t mean to criticize people who have gone to North Korea for political, educational, business, religious reasons or just plain curiosity. However, some people push me on the issue, ― and I push back. A good friend wh

Don't forget    to vote           tomorrow.     South Korea needs a president ready to work with the National Assembly for the next five years.

Yesterday I attended Daniel Tudor’s discussion about his book Korea: The Impossible Country. It was a pleasant event hosted by Barry Welsh of 10 Magazine. I haven’t read Mr. Tudor’s book so my points are based on what he said yesterday. I recognize that 1) many authors are more eloquent and thoughtful in text than in off-the-cuff discussions and 2) it is better to read the book, so I am being clear that my comments are in response to what he said yesterday. My main criticisms and comments: 1) Like Andrew Salmon and others, Mr. Tudor makes the comparison of chaebol with government. Mr. Salmon even compares the sons and daughters of the Korean chaebol with the children of the rulers of North Korea, I don't recall now if Mr. Tudor did the same. That example…I don’t know why people think there is anything witty, profound or logical with comparing the sons and daughters of business people in a democratic country with criminals in a totalitarian country using the force of blun

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. There is probably an unwritten rule that a celebrity offering to do volunteer work for a good cause should immediately be embraced. Well, that’s not what happened to Jeong So-dam, the glamorous Korean cable TV announcer when our paths crossed on Nov. 29. Ms. Jeong was the MC of an event about American political philosophy hosted by the Association for Economic Evolution. During my speech about American libertarianism since 1940, I discussed my volunteer work for North Korean refugees. After the speech, Jeong approached me, asking how she could help. I gave her the same tough love I give to potential volunteers by asking: “Who are you?” After all, if you are Bill Gates, then open your wallet. If you speak four languages, then help with translation work. So I first stress to potential volunteers: Use your brain. Tell us about your skills and interests so together we can figure out your initial role.  Jeong was good-natured about it, rather than calli

My next speech, 11/29 7pm near hongdae. I will be discussing libertarianism. RSVP at Facebook.  http://tinyurl.com/cmvq5n6  

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. Shin Chul-ho's " Racial discrimination in hiring teachers " reminded me of a pleasant Korean-American teacher I worked with in the 1990s who said she was delighted to meet me. The reason? She said she couldn't wait to meet "the black man who wasn't really black." Educated, good credentials and not a criminal is what she and the Korean employees in a special three-day program I had designed were told about me. "He's black, but not really black,” my recruiter friend told them and other clients. “When you meet him, you won't even remember that he's black." Because Koreans I talk with almost automatically tell me that things are similar in other places, I gleefully concede without argument that Koreans aren't alone in tripping over racial language or of being outright prejudiced. Back in America, I would occasionally have Caucasians tell me that I "just happen to be black." Just

Directions to New Millennium Hall for fundraiser at Yonsei University 6:30 pm 11/20 for the Mulmangcho school for refugee children located in Yeoju. 10,000 won donations, find out more info here https://www.facebook.com/#!/events/403227543084175/ . Starting from the Sinchon subway near Yonsei University. I would suggest taking Exit 3. Walk straight towards Yonsei University.     You'll pass a lot of stores and people along the way, then arrive at the front gate.     Walk in, on your right you'll see a map of the campus.     Look closely at the map, you'll see the route that you can take to arrive easily. The route I took kept me walking on the right side until I arrived at the building. That meant passing buildings 83, 82,78,77,40,41,58,59, to arrive at 61.

Harvard admissions process  ( Korea Times , November 9, 2012 ) By Casey Lartigue, Jr. Outstanding Korean students who are now agonizing over the college admissions process at top North American universities should take a moment to curse Abbott Lawrence Lowell, president of Harvard University from 1909 to 1933. Concerned that there were too many Jewish students at Harvard, Lowell first tried to implement a quota . Later, he and the Harvard Board of Overseers agreed on a more subjective standard that included recommendations, interviews, and “ geographic diversity ” (thus, reducing the number of Jewish students from New York). The admissions process that is so common today has a sordid history ― and it bedevils Korean students applying to Harvard and other top universities. A few years ago when I looked into the statistics, about 5 percent of Korean students who apply to Harvard College were getting accepted (compared to about 7-8 percent overall for others). Alth

By Casey Lartigue, Jr.       A recent Korea Times editorial  advised American-retail store Costco to recall the old saying, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do." Sage advice, sure, but its expiration date has come and gone. That old saying needs to be updated as, “Rome has come to you.”   "When in Rome, do as the Romans do" allegedly goes back to ancient Rome when St. Augustine, on a visit, was advised by the bishop of Milan: "When I am at Rome, I fast on a Saturday; when I am at Milan, I do not. Follow the custom of the Church where you are." It has been shortened to: "When in Rome, do as the Romans do."   That is practical wisdom for those who enjoy staying out of jail or avoiding an embarrassing faux pas. But should one "do as the Romans do" or turn a blind eye when the locals engage in barbarism, oppression, or just plain old stupidity? Literally doing as the Romans did could have also meant engaging

The rich talk back: Lee Gil-ya Sometimes the messenger, not the message, is the problem. Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart recently caused a bit of a controversy when she wrote: "There is no monopoly on becoming a millionaire. If you're jealous of those with more money, don't just sit there and complain. Do something to make more money yourself - spend less time drinking, or smoking and socializing and more time working." On the other hand, Lee Gil-ya, president of a foundation in South Korea , is so "no excuses" that I feel like I've been slacking off even though I have been working all day today. " Lee is constantly questioned how she did it. She answers she has always had dreams and strived to reach them. Specifically, she advises people to sleep no more than four hours; stay focused; set clear goals; and have a dream. " That's right. Sleep no more than four hours. I have done that a few times in my life, but I wo

At my Facebook page, a friend thanked me for directing him to CafeHayek. Well, speak of the devil, CafeHayek and its cohost Don Boudreaux are even featured in a syndicated column in Saturday's Korea Times . Here's an interview I did with Don Boudreaux in May 2007 on the topic of immigration. A few behind the scenes things about the interview: 1) I kept talking to Nate--he was the technical producer of the show who made many mistakes. Nate became a four-letter word to keep myself from cursing on the air. So when you hear me saying his name, just imagine that I was cursing--because I was. 2) I had a different technical producer show me how to run the board so I could do so in case Nate had a heart attack--or I strangled him during one of the commercial breaks. 3) Eliot and Prof. Boudreaux were both good-natured about the many mistakes. 4) I was both the host and producer of the show. Meaning, I booked my own guests, prepared the audio clips, selected the topics and even

The rich are talked about very often in negative terms, but how often do the rich respond in kind? Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart, who inherited most of her money but apparently has also done very well with it, recently railed against class warfare and had some advice for the non-rich : "There is no monopoly on becoming a millionaire," she writes. "If you're jealous of those with more money, don't just sit there and complain. Do something to make more money yourself - spend less time drinking, or smoking and socializing and more time working."   She complained about politicians raising taxes, regulations that slow investment, and other anti-business policies that harm the poor. "If you want to help the poor and our next generation, make investment, reinvenstment and businesses welcome."