Saturday 27 January 2007

Disowned Openly Gay Prince And Syngman Rhee

No, Syngman Rhee is not Gay, nor is he a prince. Those are two different tags.

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Prince is out but not down

In India, where being gay is a crime, a royal son was shunned when he told his secret. Now he fights to change the law and public mind-set.

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His straight friends were shocked to find out he was gay. His gay friends were shocked to find out he'd been married.

For his parents, it was the last straw. He is no longer on speaking terms with his mother. His father, despite disinheriting him, has softened slightly, declaring in a newspaper interview that he had felt pressured by friends and relatives into taking such a drastic step and describing Gohil as "a gifted individual" and "a good son." The two men still speak occasionally, but their conversations are awkward.

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"They cannot get a prince on hire. I am the prince, and whether I am gay or not gay is hardly the issue," Gohil [the prince] said. "I'm the only son — there are no cousins or brothers they can go to. They have to come back to me."

Read the rest of the story here.

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I hate Syngman Rhee right now. 이승만! 승만야! 왜 그런냐?? (Yi Sŭng-Man! Hey, Sŭng-Man! How could you??)

After Korea's liberation in 1945, President Syngman Rhee suppressed the imperial family to prevent the restoration of the monarchy. Syngman Rhee seized and nationalized most of the family's properties. The imperial family also had to shoulder the psychological and historical burden of their ancestors' responsibility for the "collapse of the nation". Stripped of most of wealth and authority, many members of the family secluded themselves from the merciless world, even from other family members. Some flew to the USA or Latin America in desperate effort to disown their ancestors.

4 millennia, Syngman. 4 bleedin' thousand years and you sold out on them.

Cloth042_2Cloth109

Friday 26 January 2007

The World


I believe in the Old World. I believe in myth, magic, and mystery. In the awe for majesty and respect for simplicity.

I believe in learning. In the sciences. In philosophy, in history. I believe in the undying love for culture and heritage. And class. And grace.

I believe in Civilisation. In her great minds. And mighty wills. And compassionate hearts. In Ramesses II, Plato, Alexander the Great, Boadicea, Julius Caesar, Jesus, Buddha, Confucius, Shakespeare, Jung, Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Karol Wotyła.

I believe in memory. In the Heartland. I believe in one blood, one spirit. I believe in return.

I believe in the dreams of the New Generation. Straightforward, outspoken, and true. I believe in the fervour for liberty and equality. In the growing consciousness of our humanity. In treasuring the world and everything in it. In recognising our commonalities and relishing our diversity.

I believe in hope. In new dawns.