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Published: November 16th 2006
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Box of Pepero
Link courtesy of Wiki - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepero_Day America has its fair share of commercial holidays. I won't list them, but you can imagine which holidays were created simply to sell things, and which holidays over time have become extremely commercialized. Well, in Korea, there's a day called Pepero Day. Now Pepero is a candy treat of sorts. It means "thin, like a stick" and is simply a thin cylindrical cookie-stick dipped in chocolate. Most Holidays are commemorating some special date, or event. Now, why would there be a holiday celebrating candy? Does it have some historical or religious significance? Or is there simply no shame at all in being direct about the commercialism of the holiday? I'm going to go with the latter, because it turns out that
Pepero is manufactured solely by Lotte which is a huge department store in Korea. They are everywhere and I happen to have one right outside my window.
How can you have a holiday named after a candy? It's like having a Snickers Day, where kids and young couples exchange different sized and holiday-packaged Snickers with each other. Well, I'll tell you the one crucial factor that allows people to accept Pepero Day as a holiday and not as a
Lotte Plaza
The view out of my window at night looks out onto Lotte Plaza, which happens to be the sole manufacturer of Pepero! commercial fraud. Pepero Day is not just celebrated on any random day. No, because if it were then it wouldn't be a holiday. If Christmas were celebrated on just any random day, it wouldn't be Christmas. And you can't celebrate July 4th on July 9th. It just doesn't make sense. So, when is Pepero Day? Well it's November 11th, of course. Of course! It can't be on November 22nd, or even in October. It has to be November 11th. Why, do you ask? Well think of the numerical writing of Nov. 11th... Picture it in your mind... What does it look like? It has to be Pepero Day, because 11/11 looks just like a bunch of Pepero's lined up! Yes, this simple numerical representation of a date has led to the genious marketing campaign of one department store, Lotte, to create a nationwide holiday that facilitates the mass consumption of Pepero sticks! How about that for amazing?
And the answer is yes - I did have some students give me Pepero for Pepero Day. And, yes, I did see school girls walking around on November 11th selling boxes of Pepero to people passing by - a lot like you would see girl scouts selling girl scout cookies. My buddy Hanif actually did purchase a "gift-wrapped basket of Pepero" for his girlfriend. Because, that's what you do on Pepero Day.
Now, I recommend to anybody and everybody with an ounce of capitalism in their blood to start this holiday in America. Either create your own Pepero-like candy, or become the sole distributor of Pepero. Then, start up an intensive marketing campaign, and reap in the endless profits of selling Pepero the week of November 11th! It's easy as pie, or should I say as cookie dipped in chocolate? And you know America would just eat it right up (pun intended). So, to all you non-believers - Happy Belated Pepero Day!
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The Vege
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Long Live Capitalism
Get siiiiick capitalism!!!!!!!!! Hip hip hoo-ray! Hip Hip Hooo-ray!