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<DIV><FONT size=4>Dear friends and colleagues:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>Having been preoccupied by the real-life crisis on the
peninsula,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>I was unaware (until kindly alerted by my godson, Lewis
Kilminster)</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>that those evil North Koreans have attacked the White
House!</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>- in a newly released movie, <EM>Olympus Has
Fallen.</EM></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><EM><FONT size=4></FONT></EM> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>Judging by reviews, this film is every bit as dire as one
would fear;</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>see eg <A
href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/apr/18/olympus-has-fallen-review"><FONT
size=3>http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/apr/18/olympus-has-fallen-review</FONT></A></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>But this is becoming rather a Hollywood bad habit; a cliche,
even.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>Other instances include the videogame <EM>Homefront</EM>, of
which I wrote</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>in 2011 at </FONT><A
href="http://38north.org/2011/03/homefront/">http://38north.org/2011/03/homefront/</A></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>(do read the lively discussion; comments are still coming
in)</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>- and the 2012 remake of <EM>Red Dawn. </EM>Are there yet
others? (I exempt</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>the 2002 James Bond fim <EM>Die Another Day</EM>, which to my
mind handled</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>the North Korean aspect with some nuance. Others disagree, I
know.)</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>Here in the UK, the Korean studies community has risen up
in rare unity</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>to condemn a recent BBC undercover documentary on North Korea:
see</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><A
href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/apr/18/academics-undercover-filming-north-korea"><FONT
size=3>http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/apr/18/academics-undercover-filming-north-korea</FONT></A><FONT
size=4> </FONT><FONT size=4>(and much debate on the Korean Studies
List)</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>Is it utopian to suggest that Koreanists in the US, plus
others concerned</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>- Korean-American groups, for interest - might consider some
form of</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>public protest, and/or dialogue with Hollywood (is that
possible?).</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>Far be it from me to defend the DPRK government. But it
doesn't help</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>when our mass media caricature the issues and create cartoon
villains.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>(Not to mention hypocrisy. Both <EM>Homefront</EM> and <EM>Red
Dawn II</EM> were to </FONT><FONT size=4>have </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>had China as bad guy, but chickened out so as not to lose
that market.)</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>Meanwhile the real Korea seems to be calming down. Let's hope
so.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4>Aidan FC</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=4></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Cambria; COLOR: black"><FONT size=3>Aidan
Foster-Carter<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><FONT size=3><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Cambria; COLOR: black">Honorary Senior Research Fellow in
Sociology & Modern <st1:country-region w:st="on">Korea</st1:country-region>,
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on">Leeds University</st1:City>,
<st1:country-region
w:st="on">UK</st1:country-region></st1:place></SPAN></I><SPAN lang=EN-US
style="FONT-FAMILY: Cambria; COLOR: black; mso-ansi-language: EN-US"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><I
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<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><FONT size=3><EM><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Cambria; COLOR: black">E</SPAN></EM><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Cambria; COLOR: black; mso-bidi-font-style: italic">: <A
title=mailto:afostercarter@aol.com href="mailto:afostercarter@aol.com"><FONT
color=#0000ff>afostercarter@aol.com</FONT></A><SPAN
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color=#0000ff>afostercarter@yahoo.com</FONT></A><SPAN
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style="FONT-FAMILY: Cambria">W</SPAN></EM>: <A title=http://www.aidanfc.net/
href="http://www.aidanfc.net/"><FONT
color=#0000ff>www.aidanfc.net</FONT></A><SPAN
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</SPAN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
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<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt"><FONT size=3><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Cambria; COLOR: black">Skype</SPAN></I><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Cambria; COLOR: black">:<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Aidan.Foster.Carter <SPAN
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</SPAN><EM><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Cambria">Twitter:</SPAN></EM><SPAN
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