Georgia Asian Times by Georgia Asian Times

Covering The Multicultural Asian American Community in Georgia

www.gasiantimes.com March 1-15, 2012 Vol 9. No 4

SONG BYEOK GAT interview with the former North Korean propaganda artist ... Page 12

Georgia Asian Times March 1-15, 2012

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GAT Calendar of Events (For latest & updated events, visit www.gasiantimes.com)

Publisher: Li Wong Account Manager: Adrian West Contributors: Andrian Putra, May Lee, Mark Ho Photographer: Ben Hioe, Minh Doan, Rendy Tendean Tel: 770.335.4593 Advertising: gat@gasiantimes.com Editorial: info@gasiantimes.com URL: www.gasiantimes.com Mailing Address: P.O. Box 922348 Norcross, GA 30010-2348

All Rights Reserved: including those to reproduce this printing or parts thereof in any form without permission in writing from Georgia Asian Times. Established in 2004, the Georgia Asian Times is published by Asiamax Inc. All facts, opinions, and statements appearing within this publication are those of writers and editors themseleves, and are in no way to be construed as statements, positions, endorsements by Georgia Asian Times or its officers. Georgia Asian Times assumes no responsibility for damages from the use of information contained in this publication or the reply to any advertisement. The Publisher will not be liable for any error in advertising to greater extent than the cost of space occupied by the error and will only be made for a single publication date. The Publisher reserves the right to reject any ad or articles submitted for publication that may not be in good taste for a free publication.

GAT welcome submission of announcement pertaining to community related events. Please email event, date, venue, and time to gat@gasiantimes.com. GAT does not guarantee insertion of event announcement and has the right to deny any posting. India Summit Featuring Salman Rushdie and Indian Ambassador to US Nirupama Rao Date: March 2-3 Time: 10:00 am - 5:30 pm; 9:00 am-12:15 pm Venue: Emory’s Halle Institute for Global Learning For more info: www.halleinstitute.emory. edu Japan’s Tsunami Reconstruction Photograph Exhibit Dates: Monday, March 5 - Friday, March 9, 2012 Times: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm Venue: Consulate General of Japan in Atlanta, 3500 Lenox Rd NE One Alliance Center Ste 1600, Atlanta GA 30326 For more info: 404.240.4300 Japanese Film Screenings: Date: Monday March 5 - Friday March 9 Screenings: 10:00-11:40 am Fukushima Hula Girls (2011; Documentary) 12:10-1:00 pm Tohoku Summer Festivals: Repose of Souls and Connections (2011; Documentary) 2:00-4:10 pm Haru’s Journey (2010; Drama) Venue: Consulate General of Japan in Atlanta, 3500 Lenox Rd NE One Alliance Center Ste 1600, Atlanta GA 30326 For more info: 404.240.4300

University of West Georgia Multicultural Festival Date: Thursday, March 15 Time: 12:00 noon - 5:00 pm Venue: Campus Center Ballroom For more info: 678.839-5400 4th Annual Pink and Black Ball Date: Saturday, April 21 Time: 7:00 pm Venue: 1818 Club, 6500 Sugarloaf Parkway For more info: www.iambeautiful.org Savannah Asian Festival Date: Saturday, June 23, 2012 Time: 11:00 am - 5:00 pm Venue: Civic Center For more info: email Erin Seals at eseals@ savannahga.gov or call 912-651-6417 19th Asian Cultural Experience (ACE) Date: Sat-Sun; July 28-29 Time: 10:00 am-8:00 pm, 11:00 am-7:00 pm Venue: Gwinnett Center Admission: $10 (adult) $6 (students) Free (child under 5 years) For more info: www.asianculturalexpericneinga.com

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March 1-15, 2012 Georgia Asian Times

METRO ASIAN NEWS “E-Verify is not a good system today. It is excessive regulation for small business and we want to postpone its use until 2015,” said Rep. Abrams.

Key Issues Addressed at Asian American Legislative Breakfast AAtlanta, February 22 - The first Asian American Legislative Breakfast drew Asian community leaders, activist, and business leaders along with state elected officials to meet at Georgia Railroad Depot. This is the first breakfast organized by Asian American Legal Advocacy Center (AALAC). “This is a platform for state legislators to speak with Asian American

community and to understand their concerns,” said Helen Kim Ho, Executive Director of AALAC.

Rep. Abrams is also working on HB 989 where state agencies are required to pay invoice within 15 days if invoices are filed electronically or to pay within 30-days if filed with paper invoices. The goal is to help small business with their finances and cash flows. “This is not a white, black or yellow issue. This is a green issue. Georgia grows when we all grow together,” said Rep. Abrams. She is optimistic that the bill will receive bi-partisan support.

State Representative Wendell Willard (R-Sandy Springs, Dist. 49), Chairman of House Judiciary Committee spoke on the Child Protection and Safety Act legislation which will revise the Georgia’s Juvenile codes. The audience were also briefed by Carol Henderson, Director, Business Enterprise Division, Georgia Department of Economic Development, on the contributions Asians and Asian Americans made to Georgia’s economy. Over 150 participants attended the first annual breakfast with Georgia State legislators.

State Representative Stacey Abrams (D-Atlanta, Dist. 84), Minority Leader for the Georgia House of Representative, spoke on pending legislation to modify the mandatory E-Verify for small business owners.

High Level Chinese Business Delegation Visits Atlanta Atlanta, February 14, 2012 -- A high level business delegation of 100 entrepreneurs from China representing various industries led by Mr Jianhua Yu, Assistant Minister of Commerce of Peoples Republic of China participated in a US-China Investment and Trade Seminar in Buckhead. The delegation is part of the high level delegation accompanying incoming China’s leader Vice President Xi JinPing’s visit to U.S. Georgia’s Lt. Governor Casey Cagle welcomed the delegation at his opening remark at the half-day seminar on Tuesday. Georgia’s export to China grew by 632% from 2000 to 2010. In 2010,

China registered as the second largest export market for Georgia. Georgia exports to China grew by 40% during the first eleven months of 2011, a rate much higher than global average export growth of 22%. Georgia has opened an advisory office in Beijing four years ago and is scheduled to open a second office to be located in Qingdao, northeast of China. Madam Yingxin Zhang, Deputy Director General of CIPA gave an introductions of the leaders of the Chinese delegation which included Mr. Jianhua Yu, China’s Assistant Minister of Commerce and Madam Erwen Xu, Consul general of Peoples Republic of China, Houston.

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METRO ASIAN NEWS “China emphasize great importance to the development of trade and economic ties and look forward to the expansion of exchanges with Georgia. We expect to inject new vitality into the China-US trade and economic cooperation,” said Mr Jianhua Yu in his remark to the audience.

for closer cooperation between the city and China. Mayor Reed is scheduled to make his first visit to China from March 23-31 covering cities of Nanjing, Hangzhou, and Shenzhen. He is also scheduled to visit major telecommunications companies ZTE and Huawei Technologies in Shenzhen.

Chinese companies such as General Protecht Group and SANY have invested in manufacturing facility in Georgia in the past few years.

The seminar is jointly organized by the Georgia Department of Economic Development and China’s Investment Promotion Agency of Ministry of Commerce (CIPA).

Honorable Kasim Reed, Mayor of Atlanta extended his welcome greetings at the seminar and reiterate his wish

Shooting at Korean Spa in Norcross Leaves 5 Dead Norcross, February 22 - Five people were killed at Sujung Beauty Health and Sauna during a shooting rampage that occurred late Tuesday at approximately 8:40 pm. Norcross Police Chief Warren Summers said 59-year-old Jeong Soo Paek walked into the spa on the outskirts of Norcross, got into an argument and then shot four people before taking his own life. About 20 people were inside the spa when the shooting took place. Summers said the gunman had borrowed money to open the Conyers spa from someone other than his family members in Norcross. The amount of the loan had not been disclosed, he said. Paek was trying to get money from the business owned by his family in Norcross. He went to Su Jung Health

Sauna on Tuesday, where he shot his two sisters and their husbands before turning the .45 caliber gun on himself. “He was trying to get money back out of the business here in Norcross to go and open the spa (in Conyers),” Summers said Friday. “Part of the disagreement as we understand it is that they wouldn’t give him the money back.” Norcross police identified Paek as the gunman in the quadruple-homicide Thursday. According to reports, Paek went to the spa on Buford Highway Tuesday where he killed his two sisters and their husbands -- Kum Hi Song, 61, Byong Ok Kang, 64, Kum Sook Kim, 57 and Tae Yol Kim, 55. All four victims had ownership in the spa, which opened in 1998.

Strong Demand in Starter Homes Market By Dao Malaythong The Asian Real Estate Association of America (AREAA) is a nonprofit professional trade organization dedicated to promoting sustainable home ownership opportunities in Asian American communities. As one of the nation’s leading advocate for home ownership and housing issues, AREAA is dedicated to make the ultimate American Dream comes true. But, in reality, that dream is being affected by many challenges in the real estate market. The home ownership rate took another dip in the fourth quarter of 2011, falling for the seventh year in a row as fewer Americans own their homes. The home ownership rate now stands at 66 percent, a level that hasn’t been reached since 1997, the U.S. Census Bureau reported last month. The home ownership rate peaked at 69.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2004, and has gradually fallen ever since. Nearly 34 percent of occupied homes in the fourth quarter were rentals, Census data shows. The loan program for the Asian American is very limited. Large populations of Asian American are business owners and do not have the proper income structure to qualify for the loans. They would have to put significant amount of down payment to qualify for inexpensive homes. This prevents qualified buyers contributing to the recovery of the real estate market. In a growing number of housing markets, sellers are facing less competition now compared to a year ago. Inventory of for-sale homes has dropped by about 23 percent compared to this time last year and fell by 6 percent alone from December 2011 to January 2012, according to Realtor.com data. Investors are buying up properties in the price range of $40K-$100K. Investors are buying them with cash, therefore, creating tough competition to first time home buyers. Investor purchased 23 percent of homes in Jan. Rates was 21 percent in December and rised to 23 percent in January 2011. The national median existing home price for all housing types $154,700 in January, down 2.0 percent from January 2011. Distresses homes-

foreclosures and short sales which sell at deep discounts – accounted for 35 percent of January sales, up from 32 percent in December: they were 37 percent in January 2011. At this time of the year, there’re hardly inventory to show the buyers. Most of the listings are either pending or contingent. With the few properties left, they end up in multiple offers. According to Georgia First Multiple Listing Service , the report of residential single family properties sold in Jan. 2012 was 2,998. Out of the total transactions, 1081 was REO listings, and 280 were short sales listings. Resale properties are limited and the other options to consider is leasing instead of sale at this time. A new National Association of Realtors® collaboration with the U.S. Department of the Treasury will help realtors to better assist homeowners who are struggling to sell their homes in a short sale. Realtors who attend upcoming Making Home Affordable “Help for Homeowners” outreach events, sponsored by the Treasury Department, will learn insights to help them navigate the short sale process and have the opportunity to meet directly with loan servicer providers on their clients’ behalf for assistance with difficult transactions. Additional information for consumers about the “Help for Homeowners” events is at www.makinghomeaffordable.gov/get-assistance/homeowner-events/Pages/default. aspx. Real estate professionals can get more information or register to attend at www. hmpadmin.com/portal/resources/eventinfo.jsp. Source: “Home Ownership Rate Falls to 14Year Low,” HousingWire (Jan. 31, 2012) Dao Malaythong is the current President of Asian Real Estate Association of America (AREAA) Atlanta chapter and a broker with Atlanta Maxim Realty.

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March 1-15, 2012 Georgia Asian Times

BUSINESS

South Korea says US trade pact to take effect in March

SEOUL, February 21, 2012 (AFP) - South Korea and the United States have agreed that their long-delayed free trade agreement will take effect on March 15, Seoul’s trade ministry said Tuesday.

power following a parliamentary and presidential election this year.

The deal was signed in July 2007 but approved by the US Congress only last October after a partial renegotiation dealing mainly with the auto industry.

Two-way trade was worth $88 billion in 2010 and the US International Trade Commission has estimated that Korean exports to the United States would increase by $6.4-$6.9 billion annually.

South Korea’s parliament approved the free trade pact last November despite vehement protests from opposition lawmakers, one of whom set off a tear gas canister in the chamber.

Bangladesh PM proposes Yunus as World Bank chief DHAKA, February 23, 2012 (AFP) - Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has proposed that Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, with whom she has often clashed in the past, become the next president of the World Bank. Hasina told visiting EU parliamentarians on Wednesday that her compatriot Yunus, former head of microlender Grameen Bank, was respected for his pioneering role in using small loans to combat poverty. “She said if Professor Yunus becomes the World Bank president, he could spread micro-credit as a poverty alleviation tool across the globe,” said Hasina’s secretary Molla Waheduzzaman. World Bank President Robert Zoellick will step down at the end of his five-year term on June 30, setting up a race for the top post at the development bank. Yunus was fired by Bangladesh’s central bank last year for exceeding the mandatory retirement age -- in a move widely seen as engineered by Hasina’s government. The 70-year-old, known as the “banker to the poor”, challenged his

dismissal, but his appeal was thrown out by the Supreme Court. In an interview with the New York Times on Thursday, Yunus said the cause of his fractious relationship with Hasina was unclear. “She never explained so I don’t understand what went on, just speculation of various types in the press,” he said. “One is that she feels I’m a political threat, I don’t know why I’m a political threat.” Yunus and the Grameen Bank he founded won the Nobel peace prize in 2006 for creating “economic and social development from below”.

The main opposition party has urged President Barack Obama to renegotiate the deal. Otherwise, it says it will withdraw from the pact if it takes

Supporters say the deal will strengthen both economic and security ties between Seoul and its closest ally.

Export-dependent South Korea already has trade deals in force with the European Union, India, Chile, Peru, Singapore and the European Free Trade Association (Liechtenstein, Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland).

AirAsia’s 2011 net profit falls by almost half KUALA LUMPUR, February 22, 2012 (AFP) - Southeast Asia’s largest budget carrier AirAsia on Wednesday reported a fall in net profit by almost half in 2011 on year as it struggled with high fuel prices, but posted a record revenue. The Malaysia-based airline posted a revenue of 4.47 billion ringgit ($1.48 billion) for the year, up 13 percent from 2010.

The model has been copied in other developing countries and Yunus’s sacking was criticized by international supporters including the US government.

In a filing to Malaysia’s stock exchange, it said net profit for the financial year, which ended on December 31, was 564.1 million ringgit, compared to 1.06 billion ringgit in 2010.

Observers say Yunus was victimized by Hasina, whom he crossed in 2007 when he briefly set up a political party during a period of military rule.

AirAsia Chief Executive Tony Fernandes said the results were positive given the challenging global environment.

The World Bank will select its new president before April 20. The post has traditionally always been held by an American citizen, although there have been calls to reform the practice.

He said the loss in net profit was largely due to unrealized foreign exchange losses on translation and a deferred taxation. “Our full year results indicated that

we were on the right path -- that is, we managed matters that were within our control,” he said. “This is remarkable in an environment where macroeconomic factors such as fuel prices have impacted us and every other airline,” he added. He noted average fuel prices increased 36 percent over the year, accounting for half of the airline’s total cost. Net profit for the fourth quarter slumped 56.4 percent to 135.7 million ringgit year-on-year. Fernandes said the outlook for the 10-year-old airline was positive as the company looks forward to the listing of AirAsia Thailand and AirAsia Indonesia this year. The airline is also expected to take delivery of 20 new A320 Classics in 2012. Its 2010 full-year net profit nearly doubled compared to 2009.

Georgia Asian Times

March 1-15, 2012

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Drone makers cashing in as war tactics evolve SINGAPORE, February 26, 2012 (AFP) – They are deadly, hard to detect and fast becoming one of the most sought-after weapons in the air defense industry. Global demand for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), better known as drones, is heating up as armed forces invest in new systems to boost their ability to carry out reconnaissance and strikes without putting soldiers’ lives in danger. Propelled by a rise in Asian defense budgets, annual global spending on UAVs is forecast to almost double from the current $5.9 billion to $11.3 billion over the next decade, according to US-based defense research firm Teal Group. The Asia Pacific is the second largest buyer after the United States. “Almost every country in the region is trying to get their hands on drones or develop their own … Thailand, India, Singapore, Japan, Australia, Korea,” said Jon Grevatt of IHS Jane’s Defense Weekly. Home to more than half the world’s population, Asia also has some of the biggest potential flash-points from North Korea, to the South China Sea, South Asia and Afghanistan. “UAVs are necessary in this age when you want to win wars and at the same time you want to have less casualties,” said Tommy Silberring, who heads the drone division at Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). IAI, which pioneered the development of UAV technology for the Israeli military in the 1970s, was one of several defence manufacturers showing off drones at last week’s Singapore Airshow. The use of drones rather than manned aircraft helps make countries’ participation in multilateral war efforts more palatable to the public, said Silberring, a former Israeli air force colonel. “You really don’t want to tell your people that you are giving the lives of your soldiers for another country,” he said at the air show. Drones have played a crucial role in recent conflicts, with the United States relying on them to strike targets in the rugged tribal areas of Pakistan that are

strongholds of Taliban and Al-Qaeda operatives. US drones were also used in the NATOled intervention in Libya last year. According to IAI, its Heron UAVs are used by 18 customers around the world, including Singapore’s air force, which displayed its Heron 1 at the show. The Heron TP — the largest in the Israeli drone arsenal with the wingspan of a Boeing 737 passenger jet — is purported to have a range of more than 7,400 kilometers (4,600 miles). In the United States, homegrown manufacturers such as General Atomics and Northrop Grumman look set to benefit from the Pentagon’s recent plans to expand its current fleet of 7,494 drones by 30 percent. According to a congressional report released in January, the US military is expected to spend nearly $32 billion on new UAVs over the next eight years. “Over the next few years, we will definitely see an aggressive growth of unmanned systems being used by US forces around the world,” said Commander Robert Moss, a regional director at the United States Office of Naval Research Global. “There is a wide range of uses for unmanned systems, from surveillance work, gathering atmospheric data to direct combat strikes,” he said. This burgeoning demand has spurred Asian manufacturers to enter the market, which has long been dominated by Israeli and US companies. “We want to be in the unmanned arena but we are selective because there are already so many big players in the industry,” said Patrick Choy, vice president of international marketing at ST Engineering, a Singapore-based defence manufacturer. ST Engineering launched the Skyblade 360, the latest addition in a series of mini UAVs, at the airshow. Its predecessor, the Skyblade III, is used by the Singapore Armed Forces to provide reconnaissance and surveillance for ground forces.

Choy emphasized that ST Engineering had no intention of competing with Israeli and US manufacturers to build large UAVs. “We want to build a niche in the tactical area, where we are able to help small units with our UAV technology,” he said. “Unless you are a global power, you cannot convince customers to buy big UAVs which require supporting technology like satellites”. India is similarly modest about its Rustom-1 drone, a model of which was on display at the trade fair.

“Our main priority is to enhance the current capability of the Rustom… we have no intentions of exporting it,” said Parimal Kumar, a senior official from India’s Defense Research and Development Organization. IAI’s Silberring is unfazed by the nascent Asian drone manufacturers, and said demand for Israeli drones would remain high. “You just cannot compete with us… we look 20 years ahead to make sure we have products in the market no one will have,” he said.

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March 1-15, 2012 Georgia Asian Times

FEATURE Tsunami towns at crossroads, despite clean-up By Shingo Ito OTSUCHI, February 27, 2012 (AFP) - The boat that was dumped on the roof of Otsuchi’s two-storey hotel has gone, and much of the rubble that littered this fishing port has been cleared. But the town lies paralyzed, unable to rebuild and unwilling to abandon. Up and down Japan’s tsunami-ravaged coastline, roads have been repaired and are now busy with cars taking people back to the prefabricated units they have learned to call home in the last year. Devastated communities are gradually limping back to life, emerging from the ghostliness as new street lamps illuminate the night, lighting the way to clusters of small restaurants, shops and drug stores that have sprung up. In towns like Ofunato, the crumpled houses that lay strewn across the road and the battered shells of cars that littered the pavements are gone. Telegraph poles have been righted and the detritus of daily life has been cleared.

Large areas have been razed to reveal the dusty ground, pockmarked by traced outlines of houses, or gridded by the car park of what was once a supermarket. Here and there lie giant piles of debris, sorted by type. In other places a halfwrecked house stands sentinel, its owners untraceable and no one prepared to sign the order to pull it down. But the people who once lived in these towns are still wondering: what next? Some say the risk is too great and rebuilding towns that were in any case dying is not worth it. They say the crumbling economies that can no longer provide jobs for young people -- of whom there are fewer and fewer -- were killing these small settlements anyway. Maybe these places should pass into history, swallowed up by larger settlements built further inland.

Further south, the twisted rail tracks of Tagajo have been re-laid and services have restarted, linking this small town with its neighbors along the coast.

But others are desperate to have their villages and towns back, unprepared to surrender their birthplaces to the power of nature.

In Ishinomaki, a bridge that dammed the river with chunks of splintered houses is re-open to traffic.

In Otsuchi, memories of the horror of March 11, 2011 are still fresh.

Some areas look almost normal; the newly-laid tarmac with its freshly painted markings directs traffic towards brand new signals, where gleaming signs give directions. But the signs point to places that are there in name only. The streets of tightly packed houses in places like Rikuzentakata were reduced to matchwood by the ferocious waves. For months afterwards, fields of debris stretched where children had once played. Now, for the most part, these spaces are clear.

“When I fall asleep, I flash back to what I saw -- a lot of people were sinking into the waves one after another,” said Shigeru Yamazaki, 63, who lost his wife and mother in the tragedy. “But I won’t abandon the place I was born and raised,” said Yamazaki, who has reopened his clothing store at a prefabricated shopping mall, thrown up in a tsunamihit schoolyard. “I don’t want to see the name of Otsuchi disappear,” said Yamazaki. “We have to make it a place where young people can live.” Shimako Kariya, 78, says she is determined to spend the rest of her life here.

“My kids are telling me, ‘Let’s move, grandma,’ but I told them, ‘You can get out of here. I will hang in.’ I just can’t run away.” Otsuchi town mayor Yutaka Ikarigawa understands the feelings of those who want to rebuild at any cost, but says there have to be jobs if younger people are to stay. The town, 450 This combination of pictures shows the view of a tsunami hit area of Ofunato, kilometres (280 miles) from Tokyo, Iwate prefecture on March 14, 2011 (top) and the same scene as it appears on lost its main source January 15, 2012 (bottom). March 11 will mark the first anniversary of the massive tsunami that pummelled Japan, claiming more than 19,000 lives. of employment and income in January economy that will drive her away. when the local fishing cooperative went bust, owing 1.1 billion yen ($14 million). “We have to leave Otsuchi if my husband can’t sign a new contract with his company The tsunami claimed around 1,300 this spring,” she said. lives in Otsuchi. An exodus over the last 12 months has seen the town’s population “A hometown is important, but we have shrink by 17 percent as younger people to consider our children and family first.” leave in search of work. For those on the cusp of adulthood, there Even before tragedy struck, around a is no choice. third of those living in this once serene port were aged over 65. It is greying Japan in Riho Nagaoka will leave Otsuchi when miniature. she graduates from high school in late March. “It’s as if we are bleeding,” said mayor Ikarigawa. “We’ve got to stop this popula“There is nothing to do here -- no place tion outflow, no matter what. to work, no place to play,” said the 18-yearold as she stood by the abandoned railway “We are racing against time because a tracks that have not seen a train for almost delay in reconstruction will lead to the seca year. ondary tragedy” of depopulation, he said. “My hometown is my hometown, but “We are at a crossroads that will deterit is not a place to live anymore,” she said mine whether or not the town can survive.” quietly. For some, the way ahead is clear. Yuki Tanaka says it is the stumbling local

“I don’t think I will be able to make my dreams come true here.”

Georgia Asian Times March 1-15, 2012

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EVENTS

Photos: Minh Doan

Origami ~ Japanese Art of Paper Creations Atlanta, February 2012 — A series of origami demonstrations and workshops by Japan’s renowned origami expert Makoto Yamaguchi and his assistants, Eiko Matsuura and Kyohei Katsuka were held at Georgia Tech’s Robert C. Williams Paper Museum and SCAD Atlanta. Origami’s origin can be traced back to the Chinese Han Dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD). Origami is said to arrive in Japan in the 7th century and has since evolved to practical use such as gift wraps. When paper production techniques developed and ordinary people had relatively easy access to paper, origami blossomed into a popular paper folding art. Mr. Makoto Yamaguchi has been a professional origami artist since 1973. In 1989, he established a gallery called “Origami House,” which has become a headquarters for the training of young origami artists and a showcase for the work of Japanese and international origami creators. He is the head of the Japanese Origami Academic Society secretariat, a member of the Nippon Origami Association, a life member of OrigamiUSA, and a member of the British Origami Society. In addition, he is also the editor-in-chief of “Origami Tanteidan” magazine, which he created in 1990, and the author of more than 80 origami books in both Japanese and English. Mr. Yamaguchi is also the creator of “Origami Caravan,” a humanitarian effort for the children in the Sendai area affected by the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Mr. Yamaguchi shared his thoughts on origami in an exclusive interview with Georgia Asian Times. GAT: Is origami unique to Japan? Yamaguchi: In addition to Japan, there is postulation that origami is originated in China and Spain. It is difficult to know for certain. However, I think it’s fair to say that Japan has developed origami the most while respecting the culture of the art. That’s why the Japanese word “origami” is understood around the world. GAT: Do you used glue or scissors in origami? Yamaguchi: Scissors have been used in classic or traditional works. Amongst the amateur origami enthusiasts, there is a line of thinking in which scissors are prohibited. It is best to complete a creation using just a single square sheet of paper, but that doesn’t mean that scissors may not be used. Glue is often used to make two portions into one, or reinforcement.

If you fold paper that you happen to find nearby, then it becomes origami paper. To make a really attractive origami creation, I recommend trying many different types of paper.

GAT: Do you normally use only one sheet of paper in origami?

GAT: How does on become a skilled at origami?

Yamaguchi: Among the forms you can create though origami, there are those that only require one sheet of paper. There others which you need two or more sheets of paper. In certain cases – you have to make copies of one portion of a creation which is called “unit origami.”

Yamaguchi: First, you have to closely observe folding techniques, and then try to fold accurately and carefully. it’s especially important to make sure you create good creases.

GAT: What type of paper is used in origami? Yamaguchi: You are not required to use a certain type of paper in origami.

You should also try to make many different forms. Try making something while watching how’s its supposed to be done, and remember that if you can’t get to the next step, it’s likely you’ve made a mistake in an earlier step. Try going back and checking the previous few steps to see whether or not you did them correctly.

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EVENTS

March 1-15, 2012 Georgia Asian Times

Spring Reception ~ HK Econ & Trade Office New York Photos: Ben Hioe

L-R: William Ramsey, HK China Biz, Donald Tong, Commissioner of HK to USA, Anita Chan, Director, HK Econ & Trade Office NY.

Georgia Asian Times March 1-15, 2012

EVENTS

Page 11

America Korea Friendship Society (AKFS) Annual Dinner

Sunny Park, President of America Korea Frienship Society delivers welcome remark at the annual dinner.

Dr. Roger Tutterow shared his views on the US-Korea Free Trade Agreement at the dinner.

Photos: Ben Hioe

He Beom kim, Consul General of Republic of Korea presented the keynote address.

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ARTS

March 1-15, 2012 Georgia Asian Times

Former North Korean artist kicks off US exhibition in Atlanta Photos: Minh Doan

A former North Korean propaganda artist, Song Byeok escaped to South Korea in 2002 after enduring imprisonment, torture, and the loss of family members to famine. The renowned Korean contemporary artist and satirist is currently showcasing twenty acrylic paintings and six pieces never been seen works at the Goat Farm near downtown Atlanta from Feb 17-26, 2012. Speaking through a translator in an exclusive interview, Song Byeok shared his thoughts with Georgia Asian Times on February 19, 2012: GAT: Why do you choose Atlanta as your first stop in US to promote your work? SB: First of all, I am very honored to do my first US show in the birthplace of Martin Luther King. This is where civil rights movements started. GAT: Why do the North Korean regime choose you to be a propaganda artist? SB: I was working in a factory and was drawing sketches on the sides. My sketches was noticed by the factory supervisor and got noticed by the Labor Party officials. They thought my sketches were good enough and recruited me to work as a propaganda artist. GAT: Why do you choose satirical art for your work after you escaped to South Korea? SB: In order to inform the world about the reality inside North Korea. I hope to bring attention to what is happening inside the closed country. I also hope my work will be the “voice” for the oppressed inside the iron regime. GAT: What is the underlying message in your famous work “Take off your clothes” depicting Kim Jong Il in Marilyn Monroe’s body? SB: The inspiration is to send a message to North Korea regime that they need to open up the “closed” society. The tadpoles and fish in the painting represents North Korean peoples trying to escape from the country and often fails in their attempts. GAT: Where have you exhibited your work prior to Atlanta? SB: I have exhibited my works in Seoul, South Korea in January 2010. GAT: When and where is your next exhibition? SB: I hope to showcase my new works featuring more humorous paintings in an exhibition in Washington DC on April 10, 2012. GAT: What do you hope to accomplish from your exhibition in America? SB: In this world, there a lots of people who are suffering and without any hope. I want to provide hope for the oppressed individuals. I also hope my paintings will inspire Americans to pay attention to the despair, the lack of human rights, and lack of freedom in certain countries.

Georgia Asian Times March 1-15, 2012

Song Byeok “Departures”

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Photos: Minh Doan, Rendy Tendean

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March 1-15, 2012 Georgia Asian Times

Misc Asia Taiwan Evergreen tycoon vows to give all to charity TAIPEI, February 7, 2012 (AFP) - Taiwan tycoon Chang Yung-fa, the founder of Evergreen Group, one of the island’s leading conglomerates, Tuesday pledged to donate all of his wealth to charity after he dies.

China’s Wang Shu wins architecture’s top honor

The 85-year-old billionaire, one of Taiwan’s richest men, made the promise at the launch of a new book, saying he would leave all his money to charities rather than his children.

LOS ANGELES, February 28, 2012 (AFP) - Chinese architect Wang Shu is this year’s winner of the Pritzker prize, his profession’s highest honor, in recognition of his efforts in designing “timeless” buildings in a nation in rapid flux, the foundation that oversees the prize announced Tuesday.

sometimes known as the Nobel prize of architecture.

Wang, 48, whose modestly named practice Amateur Architecture Studio is based in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou, is only the second architect of Chinese origin to win the Pritzker, after Guangzhou-born I.M. Pei in 1983.

Trained in architecture at the Nanjing Institute of Technology, Wang undertook his first project, a local youth center outside Hangzhou, in 1990, then spend a decade alongside craftsmen to gain hands-on building experience.

“As with any great architecture, Wang Shu’s work is able to transcend that debate, producing an architecture that is timeless, deeply rooted in its context and yet universal.”

“Wang Shu’s oeuvre, seen in depth by the jurors during a visit to China, left no doubt that we were witnessing the work of a master,” said jury chairman and British property developer Lord Peter Palumbo.

His first major undertaking, a Suzhou University library in 2000 that earned him a national prize, was followed by art and history museums in Ningbo, sections of the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, and an apartment complex.

Other Pritzker laureates include Norman Foster, Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers. Last year the honor went to Portugal’s Eduardo Soutoo de Moura.

He said the decision to give the Pritzker to Wang -- and in doing so catapult him into the elite of global architecture -- was unanimous among the nine jurors who included past laureates Zaha Hadid and Glenn Murcutt. The $100,000 honor will be formally presented to Wang in Beijing on May 25. “This is really a big surprise,” said Wang in a statement issued by the Hyatt Foundation of Los Angeles, which administers the prize that is

“I am tremendously honored... I suddenly realized that I’ve done many things over the last decade. It proves that earnest hard work and persistence lead to positive outcomes.”

His fondness for marrying old and new, and his passion for sustainability, once saw him salvage more than two million tiles from demolished traditional houses to finish roofs at the Hangzhou art school. “The question of the proper relation of present to past is particularly timely, for the recent process of urbanization in China invites debate as to whether architecture should be anchored in tradition or should look only toward the future,” Palumbo said.

“My children have stocks and they can make a living. They should strive for more (money),” Chang told reporters. Chang, whose business empire includes the EVA international airline, aviation technology, shipping, and hotels, did not specify the amount he would give away. His wealth was estimated at $1.6 billion in 2011 according to Forbes magazine. Chang is the latest of a number of local tycoons, including technology giant Foxconn’s head Terry Gou, who have pledged to donate most of their assets to charities.

Georgia Asian Times March 1-15, 2012

Misc Asia

Words of Wisdom

Linsanity takes over the Linternet WASHINGTON, February 18, 2012 (AFP) – The NBA’s newest star Jeremy Lin is not just a phenomenon on court. He’s one online too. The New York Knicks’ point guard has been racking up Twitter followers, Facebook fans and YouTube views as fast as he has been scoring points and dishing out assists. Google searches for his name are more popular in recent weeks than for sports royalty such as Kobe Bryant, Tiger Woods and David Beckham. Lin’s Wikipedia biography has grown to over 5,000 words chronicling his unlikely and meteoric rise from undrafted and twice-discarded benchwarmer to stardom in Madison Square Garden, the world’s biggest basketball stage. Lin’s dazzling run has spawned a multitude of Lin-inspired plays on words — Linsanity, Lincredible etc. — and there’s an online Jeremy Lin Word Generator at Linwords.com for anyone in need of Linspiration. A search for “Jeremy Lin” on online auction house eBay turns up more than 15,000 Lin-related items, from “Linsanity” T-shirts for as little as $8.99 to a trading card from his rookie year with the Golden State Warriors for $68,888. The uniform the 23-year-old Lin wore for his first game with the Knicks, in which he played just one minute and 27 seconds and missed his only shot, sold on eBay for $40,000 this week.

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According to the NBA, Lin’s No. 17 Knicks jersey has been the top-selling shirt online since he came off the bench against the New York Nets on February 4 to score 25 points and earn a spot in the starting rotation. The NBA said NBAStore.com has shipped Lin merchandise to 23 countries since his breakout game with Taiwan, Hong Kong and Australia ranking third, fourth and fifth on the list after the United States and Canada. Lin is the first US-born player in the NBA of Taiwanese and Chinese heritage and he has already developed a devoted following among many AsianAmericans and in China, Taiwan, the Philippines and other countries. Traffic to the NYKnicks.com website between February 5 and February 12 was 550 percent higher than during the previous week as basketball fans from around the world searched for Lin news and video highlights.

One could not cross a bridge constructed by oneself. Bhutanese Proverb

One moment is worth more than a thousand gold pieces. Korean Proverb

An ungrateful person loses his way. Burmese Proverb

When cats have horns. Malay Proverb

Only when all contribute their firewood can they build up a strong fire. Chinese Proverb

A debt of gold we can repay, kindness indebts till our dying day. Malay proverb

Mankind fears an evil man but heaven does not. Chinese Proverb

Talk little, do much. Mongolian Proverb

It is never too late to offer anything that is good. Filipino Proverb If you don’t persevere, you can expect no reward. Filipino Proverb A pearl is worthless as long as it is still in its shell. Indian Proverb Hunger drives good taste away. Indian Proverb A Buddhist recitation into a horse’s ear. Japanese Proverb

From a little bit of laziness, much laziness will come. Mongolian Proverb If you’ve got only a little water, don’t try fighting a fire. Thai Proverb A hair can hide a mountain. Thai Proverb Gods, devils and men are alike in actions and thoughts. Tibetan Proverb Cure the illness that is not yet an illness. Tibetan Proverb

A powerful person underneath the deck. Japanese Proverb

When you eat, check the pots and pans; When you sit, check the direction. Vietnamese Proverb

Aim high in your career but stay humble in your heart. Korean Proverb

It’s better to have lots of children than to have lots of material goods. Vietnamese Proverb

advice to Harvard applicants such as “If you already have glasses, get bigger glasses.”

It’s not just videos of the 38 points Lin dropped on the Los Angeles Lakers or his emphatic dunk against the Washington Wizards that are attracting views, although they’ve each been watched millions of times.

Filmed during the lockout that delayed the start of this year’s NBA season Lin opens the video by explaining that he is making it because “I have no life and no job.”

Goofy comedy videos made by Lin before he became a household name have been drawing attention to his previously little-known YouTube channel, TheJlin7.

Another video attracting attention is that of the nerdy handshake Lin shares before each game with Knicks teammate Landry Fields. Like Lin, Fields is also a graduate of a prestigious university, in his case Stanford.

One of the videos, entitled “How to Get Into Harvard,” Lin’s alma mater, has been viewed 1.7 million times. It has Lin providing tongue-in-cheek

The brief handshake features Lin and Fields slapping palms, paging through an imaginary book and miming putting a pair of glasses in their pockets.

The hoopla around Lin has seen his Twitter feed, @JLin7, explode from less than 30,000 followers on February 3 to more than 400,000, according to Twitter Counter. Lin’s Facebook page has nearly 700,000 fans and features a status update from early January which epitomizes just how obscure he was before beginning his magical streak. “Every time I try to get into Madison Square Garden, the security guards ask me if I’m a trainer,” Lin said, ending the message with “LOL,” the acronym for “laughing out loud.”

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March 1-15, 2012 Georgia Asian Times

LIFESTYLE Philippine swordsmith has Hollywood touch POZORRUBIO, February 12, 2012 (AFP) – Filomeno de Guzman does not know Sparta from medieval Scotland, but the Philippine swordsmith is an expert at replicating ancient warriors’ tools for killing each other. A stubby ex-military sergeant who has never set foot abroad, de Guzman and 15 rice farmer-neighbors who moonlight as blacksmiths craft old truck leaf springs into things of terrible beauty. The business feeds an overseas market for replica swords of Roman gladiators, Greek infantry and Japanese samurais, as well as movie-inspired weapons from “Braveheart”, “Conan the Barbarian”, and “Rambo”. “Swords are enjoying a renaissance in Hollywood. That means the storied weapon remains popular, and that works in our favor,” said de Guzman, 63, during a visit to his workshop in a farming area of the northern Philippines. De Guzman never went to university and confesses he does not know much about ancient history, although he does enjoy learning from movies. “Hollywood, yes, I love Hollywood

movies. I watched ‘Braveheart’, ‘Gladiator’, ‘Lord of the Rings’, ‘Conan the Barbarian’, ‘Rambo’, and ‘Samurai’, all on DVD,” he said. De Guzman’s unlikely export business had its origins in him deciding to quit the Philippine security forces in 1980 and taking free government lessons in metalworks. He began producing kitchen knives using a wood-fired forge in his backyard, set amid vast rice fields in the farming town of Pozorrubio, 180 kilometres (110 miles) north of Manila. “It’s a good, non-perishable product. All households need blacksmiths and their knives,” de Guzman explained of his career choice. However US soldiers deployed at two nearby US military bases soon noticed his craftsmanship and they also began commissioning him to make knives. Later on the soldiers started ordering swords and, as the demand for more elaborate designs grew, he started delving into books on ancient weaponry. When a friend took some of his swords to an exhibition in the United States in the 1990s, de Guzman was connected with an American distributor and his international business was cemented.

dress up with Renaissance costumes and bring swords to annual festivals,” he said. More than 100 models hang on pegs on his office wall, including copies of short Roman empire infantry swords and a massive broadsword like those used by Spartans against Persians in the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 B.C.

If there are orders we all work together, but since they are farmers, the crops get first priority and the shop orders just have to wait. My distributor understands,” he said.

De Guzman said he had sold more than 1,000 Excalibur swords from the Arthurian legend.

However lawyers in Hollywood have occasionally been less understanding of his profession.

He has also exported a similar number of the Sir William Wallace sword, popularized by the 1995 Mel Gibson “Braveheart” film of the 13th-century Scot who fought English rule.

“I named one of my knives ‘Rambo III’,” de Guzman said of a 46-centimetre Bowie blade. “I got a letter from the Rambo producers, telling me, ‘Don’t use our name Rambo or we will sue you.’”

The two-handed sword, with a 73-centimetre (28-inch) long blade, weighs five kilograms (11 pounds) and sells for $600 abroad, according to de Guzman.

Nevertheless, after renaming it ‘The Stallone’, after the movie’s star, there had been no more threatening letters.

While declining to talk in detail about how much money he had made exporting the weapons, de Guzman said his profession had allowed him to send his four children to university.

De Guzman also insists his popular “Braveheart” Wallace sword was not a movie rip-off, but made from specifications his distributor gave him of the original, which is stored at a museum in Scotland.

His home is also clearly middle class, no small achievement in the Philippines where roughly one quarter of the country’s 100 million people live on a dollar a day or less.

After his distributor recently broke into Germany’s sword market, de Guzman is looking to explore more deeply the blood-soaked history of medieval Europe.

De Guzman describes his overseas clientele as medieval warfare and history buffs with a lot of disposable income.

De Guzman has also provided extra employment for his rice farming neighbors, who gather in his backyard in their basketball shorts and sandals to work the forge and mould metal when orders come in.

“I am already developing a prototype Teutonic great sword,” he said, referring to two-handed blades used by Germanic knights in the 11th-13th Century Crusades in Muslim lands.

“I was told these are people who

“Like me, they are also unschooled.

A few other Philippine smithies also craft swords for export, though de Guzman believes he is the biggest exporter. The majority of his work now caters for the overseas market, although he still makes some knives and machetes for local housewives and farmers.

Georgia Asian Times March 1-15, 2012

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HEALTH Hepatitis C kills more Americans than HIV: study WASHINGTON, February 23, 2012 (AFP) - More Americans died in 2007 of hepatitis C infection, which causes incurable liver disease, than from the virus that causes AIDS, US health authorities said this week. More than 15,000 people died of hepatitis C infection in 2007, compared to 12,734 who died from HIV-related causes, said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Prior to 2007, human immunodeficiency virus was more deadly than hepatitis C, which often causes no symptoms and can be passed between injected drug users, or people who have unprotected sex with a hepatitis C infected partner. About 1.5 percent of the US population is infected with hepatitis C, making it one of the most common causes of chronic liver disease in the United States today, according to the US National Library of Medicine. The disease can cause cirrhosis of the liver and liver cancer. Treatments to remove the virus from the blood include weekly injections of of pegylated interferon alfa, and a twice daily capsule called Ribavarin. However there is no vaccine to prevent hepatitis C. Researchers said the shift in mortality rates is largely due to the success of treating HIV. “The decrease in deaths from HIV infection in the past decades reflects the availability and utilization of highly effective therapies, as well as effective national implementation of programs for prevention and care,” said the study. “A similar approach to HBV and HCV prevention might lead to similar reductions in mortality from viral hepatitis over time.”

Antibiotics don’t help sinusitis: US researchers WASHINGTON, February 14, 2012 (AFP) – Antibiotics provide little help to people with sinus infections, according to a study released Tuesday which suggested doctors are prescribing the drugs too often. The study appearing in Wednesday’s Journal of the American Medical Association found that using the common antibiotic amoxicillin for patients with acute uncomplicated rhinosinusitis “did not result in a significant difference in symptoms compared to patients who received placebo.” “Patients don’t get better faster or have fewer symptoms when they get antibiotics,” said Jay Piccirillo of Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, the study’s senior author. “Our results show that antibiotics aren’t necessary for a basic sinus infection — most people get better on their own.” Antibiotics are commonly used to treat

the condition, which involves inflammation of the nasal cavity and sinuses, even though there is limited evidence supporting their effectiveness, the researchers said, warning about the dangers of overuse of antibiotics. The study authors said one in five antibiotics prescribed for adults in the United States is for sinus infections, and that many people come to expect this treatment. “We feel antibiotics are overused in the primary-care setting,” says Jane Garbutt, a professor of medicine and the paper’s first author. “There is a movement afoot, led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to try to improve the judicious use of antibiotics. We hope this study provides scientific evidence that doctors can use with patients to explain that an antibiotic is not likely to help an acute sinus infection.”

The research, one of many highlighting the problems of resistance to antibiotics, said such drugs should be reserved “for patients with moderately severe or severe symptoms.” Instead of giving antibiotics, such as the amoxicillin used in this study, the researchers suggest treating symptoms, such as pain, cough and congestion, along with watchful waiting to see whether further treatment is necessary. The study included 166 adults with moderate, severe or very severe symptoms such as sinuses and nasal discharge that lasted between seven and 28 days.

Common sleeping pills linked with higher death risk PARIS, February 27, 2012 (AFP) - Commonly-prescribed sleeping pills are linked to a more-than fourfold risk of premature death, according to an American study published in the journal BMJ Open on Monday. These medications were also associated at higher doses with a 35-percent increased risk of cancer as compared with non-users, but the reason for this is unclear. Doctors led by Daniel Kripke of the Scripps Clinic Viterbi Family Sleep Center in La Jolla, California, looked at the medical records of more than 10,500 adults living in Pennsylvania who were taking prescribed sleeping aids. These were compared against more than 23,600 counterparts, matched for age, health and background, who did not take these drugs. The study ranged over two and a half years, and looked at widely-prescribed sleeping pills, including benzodiazepines, non-benzodiazepines, barbiturates and sedatives.

The overall number of deaths that occurred during this period was small in both groups, being less than a thousand in total. But there was a striking difference in mortality, the researchers found. Those who took between 18 and 132 doses of the pills per year were 4.6 times likelier to die than the “control” group. Even those who took less than 18 annual doses were more than 3.5 times likelier to die. “Rough order-of-magnitude estimates... suggest that in 2010, hypnotics (sleeping pills) may have been associated with 320,000 to 507,000 excess deaths in the USA alone,” says the study. Details of how individuals died were not disclosed, and the authors stress that they have found a statistical link but not a cause. But they sound the alarm, given the vast number of people who take these drugs.

“We estimate that approximately six to 10 percent of US adults used these drugs in 2010 and the percentages may be higher in parts of Europe,” they write. The average age of the people in the study was 54. The researchers say they took into account factors that could skew the comparison between the two groups, such as whether an individual smoked or had a pre-existing health condition. However, they were unable to take depression, anxiety and other emotional factors into account, as these diagnoses are kept secret under Pennsylvania law. Previous research into sleeping pills has found a link with car accidents and serious falls, “night-eating syndromes” of bingeing on food, regurgitation in the oesophagus and peptic ulcer disease.

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March 1-15, 2012 Georgia Asian Times

March Horoscope Dragon (2012 2000 1988 1976 1964 1952 1940 1928 1916 1904) Your friends and relatives may give you the cold shoulder. Just don’t count on them or let it bother you. Whether you’re at work or home you’ll need to show people where your heart or ideas really are. Be true to yourself, whatever the pressures, and you’ll come through shining. You won’t be able to please every-one, so don’t twist your mind or make startling compromises to try.

Dog (2006 1994 1982 1970 1958 1946 1934 1922 1910) There is increase in reputation and fortune. Don’t let other people take advantage of you. There may be some disharmony in your relationship. At work, be wary of the traps that your adversaries will set up for you. Heart wise, you’ll be very easily aroused; but don’t pull the wool over your own eyes: if somebody makes your head turn, wait some time nevertheless before accepting the event as true.

Snake (2001 1989 1977 1965 1953 1941 1929 1917 1905) There is always something unexpected that happens which is out of your control. Someone may make you lose money and get you involved in legal action. By the mid of the month, you’ll have accepted that a certain relationship is not developing in the way that you want it to. Whether this refers to a friend, lover or child, let them find their own way. You won’t regret it. Don’t turn a deaf ear to a friend who calls out for help; your loyalty will quickly be rewarded.

Pig (2007 1995 1983 1971 1959 1947 1935 1923 1911) When you are in trouble, there is someone ready to offer help. You will receive good profit in your investments. This is a good time to pass any tests. You’ll be able to consolidate your professional position, or to find an employment that’s much more satisfactory to you. Above all, don’t let yourself be fooled by the misleading speeches of various religious sects.

Horse (2002 1990 1978 1966 1954 1942 1930 1918 1906) It is damaging to you if you have any confrontations, so be extra careful when working with the opposite sex. Your return in your investments will be lucrative. A rather neutral month: prudently keep a low figure instead of seeking the limelight. Heartwise, your charm will be very effective and you’ll make some sweet conquests.

Goat (2003 1991 1979 1967 1955 1943 1931 1919 1907) You will be happy about your earnings. You will receive unexpected rewards. Be careful around water and avoid swimming. After the 25th, there’ll be tensions at home. For some of you this’ll mean that the past will raise an ugly head. Beware of small health problems; cope with them without delay.

Monkey (2004 1992 1980 1968 1956 1944 1932 1920 1908) Your good reputation will prove profitable to you. Respect and love yourself and you will follow the right path. You feel that you are without support. You’ll meet a person who will quickly take on a great importance in your life. Single Monkeys should open their eyes and seek out new social venues. If you don’t mix with new people, it considerably narrows your chances of meeting someone suitable. Whatever you’re up to, you’ll find a helping hand or useful word of advice when you need.

Rooster (2005 1993 1981 1969 1957 1945 1933 1921 1909) It may seem like you’re walking down a rocky road but stay calm and stay true to your purpose. Take precautions while driving to avoid accidents. With your capacity for persuasion, combined with your solid common sense, you’ll succeed in concluding a financial transaction that nevertheless seemed very difficult. It is time to start new projects, seek love if you’re single, look for a job or start a business.

Rat (2008 1996 1984 1972 1960 1948 1936 1924 1912) Advance in career and good job opportunities. More wealth comes in from your business. Work within the limits of the laws. Single Rats who have a potential lover in their sights, should make their wishes known. Work could prove stressful, but stay on course and try not to criticise others – you never know who’s listening.

Ox (2009 1997 1985 1973 1961 1949 1937 1925 1913) Family members are harming you and creating trouble for you. If there are any legal matters, it is to your best interest to settle out of court. You will be doing a lot of thinking, about where you are in your love life and career. However, even if you’re disappointed by the way things are going at the moment, bright Celestial energies suggest that it’s definitely not as bad as you feel. You’ll probably decide to stay on course and persevere with your current situation – good move!

Tiger (2010 1998 1986 1974 1962 1950 1938 1926 1914) Fame and wealth are within your reach. Lots of opportunities will come to you. For male Tigers, watch out for the opposite sex. Show confidence financially but keep frugality in the back of your mind. Spiritually orientated Tigers need to get back to their meditation and reading. Reintroduce your consciousness to the flow of things. If you’re in a love relationship, open your heart to your partner’s needs. There is something that you’re not doing, or are not doing enough. Rabbit (2011 1999 1987 1975 1963 1951 1939 1927 1915 1903) Watch out for unexpected accidents including natural disasters and illnesses. Be calm and don’t be frightened if there is a death in the family. Rabbit in politics or stressful careers will find themselves fighting to maintain their positions. After that you’ll be able to clear your head, finish things off and make some much needed progress. Those in sales or any competitive fields will be able to make exciting new contacts and generally get things rolling after the mid of the month.

Georgia Asian Times March 1-15, 2012

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