[310th] Council to vote again on free school meals/France to return Korea’s royal books on lease/Shim’s slapstick comedy aims to revive ‘Young-gu'

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- 1st section : Politics / Social Affairs / Education / People / National 

Council to vote again on free school meals

The opposition party-held Seoul Metropolitan Council was set to pass an ordinance allowing free school meals in elementary, middle and high schools once again Wednesday, amid fierce resistance from the administration.

The moves come as the two sides failed to reach an agreement Tuesday. Observers forecast that the administration will be reluctant to execute the budget regardless of the passage, falling short of the councilmen’s effort.

On Tuesday, representatives of the councilmen and Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon held a marathon negotiation only to confirm‎ once again that the councilmen support the free meal system, while Oh considers it a wasteful policy.

As Oh’s delegation walked out, the councilmen filed a complaint with the Seoul Central Prosecutors’ Office Wednesday morning for neglect of duty. Oh has refused to show up at the council meeting for a month urging a review of the ordinance, which initially passed the council on Dec. 1.

The council members also decided to scrap budgets for some of Oh’s pet projects such as “Seohae Waterway” and “Hangang Art Island” plans. Instead, money for free vaccinations, subsidies for the disabled and the creation of 5,000 new jobs will be allotted alongside the 70 billion won ($61 million) free school meal plan. If the bill passes, the city could start providing free meals to fourth, fifth and sixth graders in elementary schools from next year and gradually expand the beneficiaries.

Still, the realization of the free school meals might have a long way to go since the administration insiders said it is highly likely that Oh will refuse to enate the budget.

“Yes, we are aware that execution of the budget is in the hands of the mayor,” said Kim Myoung-sub, council member of the DP to a local daily. “But I am sure that no politicians will be able to refuse something that all people want,” he added.

The much-disputed free school meals are apparently welcomed by students and parents. According to a recent poll, 86 percent of surveyed parents in the Seongbuk district in northern Seoul supported the system.

Administrations of South and North Chungcheong provinces, North Jeolla Province, Jeju and Gwangju will be implementing the system from next year and Gyeonggi Province will be joining the scheme no later than the latter half of next year.

Summary

 The opposition party-held Seoul Metropolitan Council was set to pass an ordinance allowing free school meals in elementary, middle and high schools once again Wednesday, amid fierce resistance from the administration. Representatives of the councilmen and Oh Se-hoon held a negotiation only to confirm‎ once again that the councilmen support the free meal system, while Oh considers it a wasteful policy. If the bill passes, the city could start providing free meals to fourth, fifth and sixth graders in elementary schools from next year and gradually expand the beneficiaries. Still, the realization of the free school meals might have a long way to go since the administration insiders said it is highly likely that Oh will refuse to enate the budget

Questions

1. Do you agree that the government should provide free meals to all of the students?

2. If yes, which part of the financial plan could be reduced first? If no, where could we invest the money to develop our country’s well-fare?(e.g. National Insurance System, Military Service etc..)

3. In this article, (“No politicians will be able to refuse something that all people want”). Do you really think ‘the people’ could make the government listen to our voices more sincerely? Give us your opinion.

the people : 국민전체의 정치적 성향을 지칭하는 말. 정치적 집단성을 가진 국민

- 2nd section : Business / IT / Science / Industry / Economy

France to return Korea’s royal books on lease
By Kim So-hyun

 France agreed to return on lease Korea’s royal books it looted during the Joseon Dynasty and renew the lease contract every five years during summit talks between President Lee Myung-bak and French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday.
The two leaders also assessed the outcome of the Seoul G20 summit and coordinated follow-up measures in the bilateral meeting shortly after the closing of the global economic forum.
“The Oegyujanggak documents will be returned based on a lease contract, which will be renewed every five years,” Sarkozy was quoted as saying by Lee’s top aide for public relations Hong Sang-pyo. Lee said he accepted it as a “substantive return,” Hong said.
South Korea has been stepping up negotiations with France to retrieve the “Oegyujanggak” royal texts that French troops seized during an 1886 invasion. Oegyujanggak, part of the Royal Library, was built on Ganghwa Island off the western coast in 1782 by King Jeongjo of the Joseon Dynasty for the purpose of storing royal books.

South Korea will hand the baton of chairing the G20 to France next year. Any G20 agenda item that remains unresolved will be addressed at next year’s summit in France.　“Because South Korea and France are part of a revolving three-member management troika of past, present and future chairs, President Lee and President Sarkozy confirmed the agenda subject to bilateral collaboration,” Lee‘s spokesperson Kim Hee-jung told reporters.
The role of the troika is to ensure continuity in the G20’s work and management across host years. The incumbent chair establishes a temporary secretariat for the duration of its term, which coordinates the group’s work and organizes its meetings.
Lee proposed discussing ways to ease the price fluctuations of fossil fuels and agricultural products in the next G20 summit, in connection with what was discussed in Seoul, Kim said.
Lee and Sarkozy also vowed to make joint efforts to have the free trade pact between Korea and the European Union take effect in July next year as planned.
The two leaders shared views on ways to further expand bilateral industrial collaboration, eval‎uating the corporate exchanges so far in industrial clusters, technologies and in France’s areas of strength – the renewable energy, defense, pharmaceutical and textile industries.
Mentioning Korea’s associate membership of a European-led research and development program called EUREKA, Lee said he hoped that many French businesses would take part in the EUREKA Day Korea plans to host next March.
Lee is scheduled to hold summit talks with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday before departing for Yokohama, Japan, to attend the APEC summit. Seoul hopes to secure a deal to build a nuclear power plant in Turkey during the meeting.
In Japan, Lee will hold summit meetings with Chilean President Michelle Bachelet on Saturday and with Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan on Sunday, Lee’s office said.
The South Korean president is slated for summit talks with Peruvian President Alan Garcia back in Seoul on Monday.
Lee held bilateral summit talks on Thursday with British Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, U.S. President Barack Obama, Chinese President Hu Jintao and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva

Summary

 France agreed to return on lease Korea’s royal books it looted during the Joseon Dynasty and renew the lease contract every five years during summit talks. Oegyujanggak” royal texts that French troops seized during an 1886 invasion.

 South Korea will hand the baton of chairing the G20 to France next year. Any G20 agenda item that remains unresolved will be addressed at next year’s summit in France. The two leaders (MB and Sarkozy ) shared views on ways to further expand bilateral industrial collaboration. President Lee and President Sarkozy confirmed the agenda subject to bilateral collaboration,

Question.

1. Do you think It’s possible to renew this five-year term contract continuously?

2. In this article, Return of the korea’s royal-books seems unnatural. This Return seems to be based on the ecomonic situation between the two countries. Do you think this kind of negotiation can be worth it?

3. Except ‘Oegyujanggak’, Are there any other historical artifacts which we have been extorted by other countries?

4. To bring back our historical artifacts, what can/Should we do? Discuss about the roles of the government and individuals. 

- 3rd section : Culture / Entertainment / Food / Travel / Sports / Life

Shim’s slapstick comedy aims to revive ‘Young-gu’ character

With a huge mole on his face and a broken front tooth, former star comedian Shim Hyung-rae’s slapstick character “Young-gu” was everyone’s favorite in the 1990s.

Wearing tattered pieces of hanbok and a pair of black rubber shoes, the kind-hearted chucklehead character was adored by kids and parents alike.

Young-gu has now returned wearing a bow tie and suit as a long-lost son of a mafia boss in 1950s New York City in Shim’s newly directed film, “The Last Godfather.”

Written by, directed by and starring Shim, “The Last Godfather” reflects his ceaseless efforts to transition from iconic comedian to notable filmmaker, despite the mostly negative reviews of his fantasy action film “D-War” in 2007. 

Former comedian and film director Shim Hyung-rae (right) stars as his signature character “Young-gu,” in his new slapstick film “The Last Godfather.” (CJ Entertainment)

Despite its box office success and impressive CGI effects, the fantasy film was regarded as immature and poorly made due to lack of cinematic craft. This time, Shim steps away from fantasy and gets back to his forte: slapstick comedy.

Setting 1950’s New York City as its background, “The Last Godfather” opens as mafia boss Don Carini (played by Harvey Keitel) welcomes his long-lost son Young-gu home. He had escaped to Korea during a battle between mafia groups in New York and had an affair with a local woman there. He had returned to New York, leaving the woman and their newborn alone and had lost touch with them.

Carini plans to train his mentally-impaired son as his successor, but soon realizes Young-gu simply is not capable. Generous and kind by nature, “Young-gu” tries to please and impress his father, while unintentionally helping his local neighbors and their businesses. “Young-gu” also becomes romantically involved with Nancy Bonfante (Jocelin Donahue), the daughter of his father’s mafia enemy. Shim’s performance in broken English is natural enough to entertain the international public in universal slapstick genre.

Shim’s ability as a director, however, is still in question. The actors ― many of whom have already proven their skills in previous productions ― often seem like they need more direction in their performances.

This is especially evident when Keitel’s character becomes enraged as Young-gu openly expresses his love for Bonfante. It’s hard to find much depth or complexity in Keitel’s performance in this scene, which required a mixture of emotions from the character as he both loves and feels guilty for his newly-found, mentally challenged son.

In terms of the movie’s romance, it is hard to find any chemistry between Donahue and Shim. Perhaps it was intentionally done to fit the film’s PG rating, but the two actors, especially Donahue, do not make it very natural for the audience to watch when they make joint appearances throughout the film.

The biggest achievement of the film though, would be the successful return of Young-gu. Despite the film’s setting in New York, Young-gu is still the same personality who genuinely cares and makes people laugh. The Korean public will be delighted to see him again, while foreign viewers should still be able to connect with him and his kind nature.

The movie artfully recreates the fun of 1950s New York with its high quality CG technology. Korea’s popular girl group Wonder Girls also make a brief appearance in the film.

The movie opens Wednesday.

Summary

 Young-gu has now returned wearing a bow tie and suit as a long-lost son of a mafia boss in 1950s New York City in Shim’s newly directed film, “The Last Godfather. “The Last Godfather” reflects his ceaseless efforts to transition from iconic comedian to notable filmmaker, despite the mostly negative reviews of his fantasy action film “D-War” in 2007. On this film, Shim’s performance in broken English is natural enough to entertain the international public in universal slapstick genre. The biggest achievement of the film though, would be the successful return of Young-gu. Despite the film’s setting in New York, Young-gu is still the same personality who genuinely cares and makes people laugh. The Korean public will be delighted to see him again, while foreign viewers should still be able to connect with him and his kind nature.

Question

1. Do you think his movie is worth buying the ticket and watching in a movie Theatre?

2. Although Shim have made a lot of films, many people assess him not a director but a comedian. Do you think Shim is really a movie director or not ? Tell us your opinion and the reason why?

3. Have you ever had a chance to meet Young-gu on TV or other films? If yes tell about his major works.

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