Culture Clash
A post I had written a while ago has recently received an interesting amount of attention.
I understand a person having pride in their culture. I think a healthy amount of that is never a bad thing. The only time this sense of cultural pride takes on a negative undertone is when people don’t think other cultures are just as awesome as their own or when they feel the need to belittle, disrespect or make fun of other cultures. It crosses into unacceptable territory when insinuated physical threats are made by individuals who do so on behalf of 99.9% of their culture. I have to wonder if that same 99.9% know what’s being said and done in their name.
I find this very disturbing.
I’m of mixed heritage. If my ancestors felt the same way certain recent readers do, then my family would not be here. A recent reader told me “Keep in mind. Love does not conquer all. That’s typical Guam, Hawaii, California ( West Coast) fantasy Disney Land Hollywood Mentality.”
I’d have to politely disagree. The fact that Hawaii’s beautiful and diverse multicultural population exists is proof of that along with how hard African Americans and white people fought to legally marry each other. Love does not look at what country your ancestors hail from. DNA analysis is wonderful. It shows how linked we truly are to other races and cultures.
One particular reader’s beef with me is in my saying that there are similarities between their culture (Korean) and mine (Chinese / Japanese). He thinks I am misinformed and know nothing about Korean culture.
So, without further ado, here’s a small sample of what I do know.
-I know Koreans did not assimilate with other cultures (such as Chinese and Japanese). This means Korean culture is unique and remains entirely their own. I never said or claimed otherwise.
– I know that Korea, China and Japan shared ancient trade routes. Korea is physically very close to both China and Japan. There is no way anyone can dispute any of the above. If they do, I’m just going to simply point at a map and a bunch of archaeological studies. Therefore, this mean there’s going to be an inevitable cultural overlap. An example is tea (introduced into Korea when the Buddhism was brought into the country from China). Here’s an interesting article written by KoreaTimes.co.kr that supports what I already knew.
– Koreans read and wrote in hanja until their unique and highly effective writing system was developed later on. A very helpful blog, ASK A KOREAN, taught me that 60% of the Korean language today consists of Sino-Korean. According to ASK A KOREAN, Sino-Korean is ” just a fancy term that means ‘Korean words that originated from Chinese.’ ”
– There is also a small percentage of Sino-Japanese in the native Korean language. This is something I knew and Ask A Korean, along with other sources more knowledgable than I, agree.
– I never said the Korean language and the Chinese language are the same. I said there are SIMILARITIES. That does not mean “the same”. You can be completely unique but still share similarities. For example, Reader 1 has one head, two arms, two legs and a trunk. Reader 2 does too. However, just because they also have one head, two arms, two legs and a trunk each does not mean they are the same. They simply have similarities. I don’t know how else to explain this concept any clearer.
Again, all this means is there will be aspects of cultures that are shared. That was my whole point. I never said our cultures are identical, mirror images, carbon copies, etc.
[please refer to New World Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Asianinfo.org, KoreanCulture.org, dynamic-korea.com for additional information if you feel so inclined.]
True, I clearly do not know as much as that reader as I am not Korean nor am I a scholar of Korean studies. Even though my knowledge base is not extensive, this does not mean I am not willing to learn. After all, I am marrying one of his brethren. So, yes, I don’t know a whole lot but again, I am happy to learn.
Calling me a “Stupid Okinawan” (I’m not Okinawan), telling another Korean reader who commented “Koreans as a whole don’t like ‘ half ass’ Korean wanna bee’s like you. Surely, you be punched in the face in Korea. If you have insecure attitude about yourself. Time to drink coffee and wake up” and telling me that 99.9% of Koreans would kick my ass, in my opinion, does not do the Land Of The Morning CALM justice.
If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it. Please feel free to stop reading my blog at any time. No one is making you read what I write. That means you are welcome to UNSUBSCRIBE to my blog and, more specifically, the post in which my fiance met my family.
Oh, yes. One last thing. This blog is MINE, not yours, so don’t tell me what to do with it. Thanks.
After this post, I will be through discussing this topic any further. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I will agree to disagree if the discussion is one based upon opinion (such as the whole “Stupid Okinawan” comment. For the record, I disagree with that one) but I will not deny that facts are facts.
End of story.
Peace, Love, Understanding and Respect.
Yes, I know this is the raver mantra.
I don’t care. It’s one I try to live by.
Screenshots Of Miss Bonnified's Mind 