I have the latest, breaking news from Seoul. Wait for it…

Yes, more beef protests.

President Lee Myung-bak, who has utterly caved into public pressure, sent Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon on a diplomatic mission to the USA in order to allay public fears about the importation of American beef. Over the course of his visit, the Trade Minister did not officially “renegotiate” the April 18th agreement (since that would go against international trade practices). However, he was able to make certain amendments to the agreement, which ensured that beef from cattle older than 30 months old would not be exported to South Korea.

On top of this, President Lee completely reshuffled his cabinet. While the Trade Minister was Stateside, he replaced all seven of his presidential secretaries with the hopes of regaining lost public support. Many of these former politicians have had trouble readjusting to life outside of the Blue House because they are being hounded every step of the way.

It would seem, despite the fact that the public’s demands were largely met, the protests have continued, albeit with less enthusiasm.

Protestor #1: What? You mean…they just…gave into our demands?
Protestor #2: Hmm, yeah….
Protestor #3: Well, what do we do now?
Protestor #1: Uhh, let’s continue the protests anyway!

Ok, it’s pretty obvious I’ve over-simplified the protests. Please refer to my other article to learn more about the elements involved in the ongoing protests. However, it’s safe to say, that most Western expatriates are quite puzzled by, what appears to be, the nonsensical demonstrations (never mind that they didn’t make much sense to us to begin with).

The Chosun-ilbo printed this comic strip with the following caption:

As violent protesters rejoice in their actions during candlelight vigils in Seoul, an ordinary family is shocked, saying, “I think they’re going in the wrong direction.”

Signs are that ordinary citizens are turning their backs on the protests originally prompted by fears over U.S. beef imports, while a hard core of professional left-wing demonstrators remain determined to harness them to a smorgasbord of causes.