South Korean Blogger Arrested

I don't think this has gotten enough 'play', so to speak. Governments do this sort of thing as a warning to dissidents, especially in times of economic vulnerability.

"A South Korean blogger pleaded not guilty Saturday to charges that he spread false economic information on the Internet, a news report said, in a case that drew heated debate over freedom of speech. The blogger, identified only by his surname Park, gained prominence among South Koreans because some of his dire predictions about the global economy, including the collapse of Lehman Brothers, later proved to be correct."

I also find it interesting that he was largely self-taught. One can learn a lot with leisure time, a library, the internet, and interest in a subject.

"Park described himself in Web entries as a former securities firm employee with a master's degree earned in the United States and experience in the field of corporate acquisitions and takeovers, according to local media. His deeply analytical style and sometimes prescient forecasts made Park a star on the Web, earning him the nickname 'economic president on the Internet'. But prosecutors said Park was an unemployed resident of Seoul who studied economics on his own after graduating from a vocational high school and a junior college with a major in information and communication."

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Update: It looks like this guy was acquitted, which is great news.