Saenuri Party leader Kim Moo-sung once again stirred controversy. On December 18, while volunteering to deliver coal briquettes, he made a racist remark at a student from Nigeria, "Your face is the same color as this briquette." James Pearson, a correspondent for Reuter mentioned in his Twitter account, "Truly outrageous," and criticized, "He is like Trump." Gwak Min-su, currently a student in the United Kingdom posted on his Facebook page, "If the leader of the opposition party in the U.K. told me, 'Your skin is the same color as cheese,' public opinion would have gone wild calling for his resignation. He probably would have actually resigned."

What about Korea? Some media covered the story in a minor article and the incident made some ripples on social media, but there was nothing close to a demand for his resignation. The reason is probably because Kim apologized. But this apology was better left unsaid (I'll explain why later on).
The real reason Kim's rash words were never properly treated as news lies somewhere else. First, the press tends to ignore Kim's political weight and influence. Although he leads the race among the next presidential candidates, many are skeptical as to whether he will be able to finally become the Saenuri Party candidate in 2017. People don't see him as president material whenever they see him bow low before President Park Geun-hye. Next, people tend to apply a lenient ruler on Kim Moo-sung the individual and the conservative party known as the Saenuri Party. Kim's nickname is "General Moo." It implies an image of a broad-minded boss, a tough male. The media doesn't see Kim's frequent slips of the tongue as a problem with his character, but a problem that arises because of his "tough" style. The press is generous and tolerant. If the leaders of the opposition such as Moon Jae-in, Park Won-soon and Ahn Cheol-soo had poured out rash words like Kim, what would have happened?
I don't think Kim's words can be forgiven for any reason. Regardless of what the political analysts think, Kim is the leader among future presidential candidates from the voters' perspective. Who would have imagined that Donald Trump would be having his sights on the White House? Every single action and words of a powerful presidential candidate should be subject to verification and criticism. It is not something we can accept by considering his personal nature or style. After all, being macho is nothing to be proud of in the twenty-first century.

I was surprised at how Kim had compared the skin color of the African student with the color of briquettes, but I was even more astonished with the apology he had posted on Facebook. Kim said that he had not considered the fact that his expression of friendliness could hurt the other person. This reminds me of the explanation given by former Chairman of the National Assembly Park Hee-tae, who sexually harassed a caddy at a golf course, "She was like my granddaughter." Taking a casual tone and mentioning skin color to a foreigner he has seen for the first time is not an expression of friendliness, but a confession of his lack of common sense, culture, and intellect.

At this point, I would like to review Kim's "analects." I selected them by category. ① Derogatory to women: "We should nominate them (women) for proportional representation according to the number of babies they have," "Could we put national defense in the hands of a female prime minister in case the president is in some accident?" ② Views on the press: (To a reporter asking his position on the arrest of his former secretary) "Why are you bringing up such nonsense?" ③ Views on labor: (To a young man making a plea for part-time workers and their poor working conditions) "Think of it as a good experience in your life and work hard. There is no other way," "If we didn't have those strikes with workers swinging steel pipes, our GNP would have surpassed US$30,000," ④ Freedom of assembly: "The president should have suppressed the candlelight vigils with force," "Just as the world is embarking to eradicate ISIL hiding behind masks, we should embark on combatting demonstrators hiding behind masks," ⑤ Ideology "Ninety percent of our country's historians are leftist," ⑥ Regionalism "If the nation was on a level as high as that of Gangnam, we would need an election," ⑦ Diplomatic mistakes "We would rather opt for the U.S. than China" And the list goes on.
A slip of the tongue that unwittingly reveals the inner thoughts is called a Freudian slip. According to Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, a slip of the tongue is not a simple mistake. The repressed unconscious intervenes in the conscious and unintentionally reveals the thoughts one wants to hide from others. This is why we cannot discard Kim's mistakes so lightly.

In his book, Bitchy Progressive (Ssagaji Eopneun Jinbo), Kang Joon-man, a professor at Chonbuk National University argues for the need of a "decent progressive." I agree. However, decency is not a virtue required of the progressives alone. It is also difficult to tolerate indecent conservatives. In other words, there is no reason to be particularly generous to Kim Moo-sung.
I would like to share with Kim an effective way to prove his boss-like temperament and his masculinity. Try speaking frankly to President Park, whom he has assisted for so long, out of loyalty. Even if the president shoots a "laser," do not succumb, but try to speak your view till the end. One is only entitled to be a "man" when he is weak to the weak and strong to the strong. Being powerless before a person in power and acting recklessly towards foreigners, women, laborers and the youth is not being tough, but being a coward.