Re: [DL] Session Recap (Now 100% OT!)

["John Goff" <JohnGoff@deadlands.com>]

> OK, so I've read your man's session recap, and here's what I can carry
away
> form it on short reflection:
>
> 1. I don't think 'gook' was part of the American parlance before Vietnam,
> though I could be mistaken.  Minor nit-picking, of course, but then you
> asked for feedback.
>

Actually, I'm pretty sure it dates from the Korean Conflict thanks to a
linquistic misunderstanding. The Korean name for America is roughly
pronounced "me-guk" or "me-gook."

You can imagine what those Iowa farm boys thought getting off the plane to
Koreans greeting them with their name for America.

(This bit of trivia brought to you courtesy of United States tax dollars at
work. It's also one of the very few things I remember from a year of
intensive Korean language training.) :-)

John