"We share blood. We are safe with them."
"I trust Kim JongIl more with nuclear weapons than George Bush."
"We have more to fear from USA than North Korea."
"North Korea would never attack South Korea."
"I am glad North Korea has nuclear weapons. Now America can't push them around."
All of the above statements were made to me by Koreans. Each statement was made by several different Koreans. Some of them were well traveled and educated. Some were University students. Some were business men. All left me wondering what kind of tobacco they were smoking.
It is hard to believe but a lot of Koreans bury their head in the sand when North Korea acts out. It isn't that they don't react strongly, it is the lengths they go to deny reality. North Korea would never attack? They attack South Korea in one form or another EVERY FUCKING YEAR. Whether it is border shootings, lobbing some artillery rounds, sinking ships. Yet, many South Koreans live in denial of this. It makes the mind wobble.
I remember when the North first detonated a nuclear bomb. I was working at a university. I asked the students about it and one said something like, "But we are a weak country." This was a girl referring to the North as "we." I didn't want to open that can of worms and further because I was afraid of finding snakes. It should be pointed out though, that the old people who remember North Korean soldiers coming to their villages and kidnapping all of the able young men and killing the town chief have a much less rosy view of North Korea. That is what the North Koreans did, they would enter small towns, conscript the teenagers, kill the town chief, and take all of the food.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, the older ones are become fewer and the younger ones seem ungrateful and forgetful.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first came to Korea in 2000 I'd often have random harabojis saluting me or sitting down by me on the train and holding my hand.
ReplyDeleteSoon after I had hysterical teens and adults who thought I was responsible for murdering middle school girls and had a hand in the Asian Financial Crisis.
The west managed to expunge blood thinking last century by and large.Why Koreans hang on to this archaic, non-modern thinking is beyond me. Given their little man of Asia complex, maybe it's just too much to let go of.
Friends and I got jumped by Koreans who wanted to beat up Americans (none of us were Americans) for the deaths of the two middle school girls.
ReplyDeleteI still get a little shocked by the way a lot of Koreans act when they first meet me. I am white therefore I must be american. As soon as they find out you are not American there is a visible change (for the better) in how they deal with you.
There is a lot of anti-Americanism in South Korea. And anti-Japanese sentiment. And anti-foreigner sentiment. Hmmm ... there just seems to be a lot of hate in South Korea.
It's odd isn't it. They blame the west and Japan for their ills yet secretly hope for solutions from them.
ReplyDeleteI was teaching people at a food company and they started getting pooey about that incident/ accident with the schoolgirls. Just stupid. What was to blame was Korean roads being used for both military and civilians. The class of ajeosshis was getting quite stroppy so I had to ask them where I'm from? Uhh.....America? No. Idiots. I was on the verge on saying to them shall we invite the Japanese back if America is such a problem? As for the speed skating thing which had EQUAL nationalistic stress.......fucking embarrassing. Of course no-one remembers the 1988 boxing. That was real Korean embarrassment material. And fuck South Korea for World Cup 2002. Hmm.....just thinking about Koreans in this regard infuriates me. I often wish I hadn't invested so much time there. Until I meet an OK Korean then all is fine, but Koreans xenophobia, lack of responsibility and culpability and general suspiciousness rarely leaves me feeling neutral and at ease.
Anyhoo, of course there's going to be a lot of hate in Korea when they're stuck in a residually feudalistic society.
Anyhoo, when I was there this year things were a lot more 'relaxed'. People are just keeping their heads down working.
foad thx.
DeleteAwww muffin at least you are polite while spouting your hate.
DeleteYeah, I never completely relaxed in Korea. Even when I was with friends. There was always the chance something could happen for no rational reason.
ReplyDeleteI thought I could let this go but talking to my sister-in-law she says the North Koreans are "sophisticated workers" and makes no distinction between north and south.
ReplyDeleteShe only had the vaguest of recollections of the corvette sinking.
What can you do.........pass the Victory Gin.
I know what you mean Mr. P. Less than 2 months after the naval attack in 2002 a Korean friend was going on about how the NorKs would never attack. When I brought that up it was poo poo'd as not serious.
ReplyDeleteKorea Beat has an interesting post on what some South Koreans are saying IN SUPPORT of the NorKs now.
ReplyDeletehttp://asiancorrespondent.com/korea-beat/netizens-editorialists-react-to-yeonpyeong-attack
It isn't just nutizens and regular whack-a-do's spouting crap. The Mayor of Incheon even accused South Korea of provoking the attack. Goptta move him to the whack-a-do list now.
ReplyDeleteThat person is disposable-kick them off to the side.
ReplyDeleteHells yeah.
ReplyDelete