Editorial
August 2006

Let me first express my appreciation for all of the authors who came though with relatively short notice to provide the high quality material that has enabled me to complete five issues in 2006. That’s a Herculean task, and I could not have done it without the generous assistance, not only of the authors, but of other members who have provided consultation so readily. I was commenting to my wife tonight how amazing it is that we can still have such quality articles on new material after more than 50 years of publication of Korean Philately, for a volunteer group who receives no reward except for the pleasure of sharing what they enjoy in their hobby. Thanks to all. And keep those contributions coming.

Unfortunately, after that flurry of activity, I got caught up in my professional obligations again. I have now carved out some time during these next two weeks to complete the issues for 2006. 1 have time also set aside for work in November, hoping to get a good start on catching up on our 2007 issues. This will require that you keep those articles coming. John Talmage has graciously stepped forward to volunteer to help with the layout. This will take some training time for him to get ready to do this, but it will be a considerable help and should allow me, then, to keep up to date, once I catch up.

As of August 31, 2007, 1 retired from the University of Minnesota, and on September 1 I began a new, full-time job as Senior Professor and Executive Director of International Human Resource Development Programs at Texas A&M University. We will continue to travel back and forth between Texas and Minnesota, as well as continuing to spend a lot of time in the air with my international travel. What fun!

I recently received a big package of stamps from a business friend in Seoul, who regularly sends me all envelopes that he receives. There were 36 covers, about a third of them were large envelopes. There were a couple of interesting aspects to the covers, however. First, as has been observed many times in other countries, almost none of the envelopes had stamps—6 of the 36, and only 1 of the 6 was a commemorative. So the question, as always, is, who is using stamps today? Or is anyone? Are they becoming simply a form of additional revenue for a country?

The other interesting thing for me was to look at what was on the cover of the envelopes.
Figure 1 has neither postage nor a postage meter. It has a company-printed indication that postage has been paid, a process often used for large mass mailers. The circle in the upper right corner reads, “East Seoul Post Office! Subsequent Payment of Postage.”

Figure 2 is a registered envelope with a definitive stamp (1,720w) and a registration label in the bottom left. The Korean on the top line reads, “I paid,” while the Korean below the bar code indicates registered mail.

Figure 3 also has a registration label, but, unlike Figure 2, the postage is incorporated into the registration label (also 1,720w). The sticker below the registration label, but associated with it, apparently, reads: “Auto recognition system integrated solution."

I’m still looking for someone who is willing to write an article on postage meters. This is a relatively unexplored area. This is in marked contrast to Linn ‘s relatively frequent articles on postage meters. I still find it very strange that no one is coming forward with any collection of “My Stamps.” That would make a very interesting article for our readers.

Congratulations to Robert W. Collins who received a gold medal for his exhibit, “Korean War,” during StampShow 2006.

In October, 2006, I turned on CNN the day after the purported nuclear test conducted by North Korea. I recognized the voice and the face, and, sure enough, there was our very owll president, Peter Beck, being interviewed on the implications of the test. In a follow-up e-mail, Peter confirmed that it was him, and that he had participated in 100 interviews following the test.

Finally, I have received the tear sheets from Scott’s in anticipation of their 2009 publications. They are inviting suggestions for improving all areas of the catalogue, but I (and others in our society) have been asked to provide suggestions on the two Korean sections. Do you have suggestions? Please feel free to pass them on to me, and I will see that they get in the hands of the Scott's editors. KP