So This Is How Republic of Korea Dies

With thunderous applause

안녕, it’s Ari, your talkative Korean friend and weekend reminder. 🎉 I finally brought back a full newsletter after a long while. I’m so proud of myself! 🥹 Thanks for your patience. Today’s newsletter is about a trending instant ramen recipe, why Star Wars (2005) is a great movie, and an advanced Korean expression. Let’s start!

Beat the Snowy Winter with This Trending Ramen

I heard that some parts of the world, such as the US and Europe, are experiencing extreme cold and snow these days. Take care 🙏 When it’s too cold, spending a long time in the kitchen can be a hassle. Tomato ramen is a perfect dish when you want a comforting and warm dish without much fuss. This trending food is super simple to make and will instantly warm you up. Just add some sliced tomatoes and whisked egg when preparing your favorite spicy instant ramen. That’s it! Watch the cooking video above and give it a try to beat the coldness. 🔥

So This Is How Republic of Korea Dies

The families of Itaewon tragedy victims are bowing in front of their lost children’s photos. (Mindle News)

On Monday, amidst the freezing weather of seven degrees Fahrenheit, a group of middle-aged people made bows in front of photos of young individuals at Seoul Square. The individuals bowing were the families of the Itaewon tragedy victims, and the young people in the photos were their lost children. In Korean funeral tradition, making a bow in front of a deceased person’s picture is customary. To commemorate the 159 lives lost, they initially planned to bow 15,900 times but ended up bowing 24,200 times over 20 hours in the freezing weather. This event took place a week after they shaved their heads in front of the president’s office.

It has been over a year since the tragedy, yet no one responsible for it has been held accountable. Koreans still do not know who ordered the usual police force not to be deployed on the day of the tragedy, leading to a deadly crush. Families of the victims, along with many Koreans, have lost faith in the police and prosecutors. They urged representatives to pass a bill enabling an independent investigation. Although the majority and opposition party recently passed the bill, the ruling party opposed it, and there are reports that the president will veto the bill, as he did with many other bills. In just 19 months in office, he has already become the president who has used the veto power the most since the country became a democratic nation in 1988. He recently vetoed a bill that allows the National Assembly to conduct a probe into the First Lady’s alleged involvement in stock market manipulation. The victims’ families are desperately asking the president not to veto the legislation.

A representative is being dragged out by the president’s security guards. (Credit in the pic)

On the same day when the families of the Itaewon tragedy victims shaved their heads, a representative was assaulted and dragged out by the president’s security guards 👆 right after he said, “please change the way you run the country” to the president at a hall in Jeonju. The president did not intervene when the guards forcefully lifted the representative in the air covering his mouth.

A user on X quoted a line from Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005) in reference to the incident: “So this is how liberty dies. With thunderous applause.” In the movie, Senator Padmé Amidala (played by Natalie Portman) says this line while watching her fellow senator members clap for Palpatine, a space dictator. Whether it’s a coincidence or not, on Earth, the same thing happened. After the representative was dragged out, the president was introduced to the audience, and the hall was filled with loud applause. I didn’t watch the movie, so I googled to learn Palpatine meets the ending he deserves after three more movies. I only hope things are much faster on Earth.

Mini Korean Lesson: ⚡️👏 👏

@Hosunggoon

Let’s learn an advanced expression with the quote from Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005). The quote translated in Korean is as follows:

“자유는 이렇게 죽는군요. 우레와 같은 갈채와 함께.” (So this is how liberty dies. With thunderous applause.)

우레와 같은

: Thunderous, very loud

‘우레’ means ‘thunder’ and ‘우레와 같은‘ literally means ‘like thunder.’ It’s often used when talking about very loud screams or applause. For example,

BTS 공연장은 우레와 같은 함성으로 가득 찼다. (The BTS concert stadium is filled with thunderous screams.)

Tip: Another word for thunder is '천둥,' which is much more commonly used in daily conversation than '우레.'

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