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ulsanchris
Joined: 19 Jun 2003
Location: take a wild guess
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 Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 6:43 am Post subject: Can We Ask Soldiers to Die for Such a Country? |
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Can We Ask Soldiers to Die for Such a Country?
http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200504/200504250039.html
Kim Jong-seon, the widow of Petty Officer Han Sang-guk, who was killed in a June 2002 naval battle with North Korea in the West Sea, turned her back on her homeland Sunday and boarded a flight bound for the United States. Before getting on her flight, she said, ��If the indifference and inhospitality shown to those soldiers who were killed or wounded protecting the nation continue, what soldier will lay down his life in the battlefield?�� |
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Derrek
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 6:48 am Post subject: |
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| Sometimes I wonder if Korean people will look at the current party in power and ask, "My god, what did we do?" |
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Mr. Literal
Joined: 03 Jul 2003
Location: Third rock from the Sun.
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| Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 3:41 pm Post subject: |
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| Derrek wrote: |
| Sometimes I wonder if Korean people will look at the current party in power and ask, "My god, what did we do?" |
Geez, I was kinda hoping that the American people would do the same thing. |
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Derrek
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 3:57 pm Post subject: |
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| Mr. Literal wrote: |
| Derrek wrote: |
| Sometimes I wonder if Korean people will look at the current party in power and ask, "My god, what did we do?" |
Geez, I was kinda hoping that the American people would do the same thing. |
We did, and we haven't elected a democrat to the presidency since.  |
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Real Reality
Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 3:58 pm Post subject: |
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During the first two remembrance ceremonies in 2003 and 2004, not one high-ranking government official, let alone the defense minister, showed up. The person who did send condolence letters to the bereaved was not a Korean government official but the commander of the U.S. Forces in Korea.
http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200504/200504250039.html |
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Captain Corea
Joined: 28 Feb 2005
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 8:47 pm Post subject: |
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I actually enjoyed this article and brought it into one of my classes.
I have to say, it made for some hot debates.
While I do think (and agree with one of my students) that a greiving wife will never really be "fullfilled" after the death of her husband and she may be asking for quite a lot, the Korean Gov. and civic leaders have done their best to shove any bad DPRK press to the back page. |
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Real Reality
Joined: 10 Jan 2003
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 8:58 pm Post subject: |
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| Captain Corea wrote: |
| the Korean Gov. and civic leaders have done their best to shove any bad DPRK press to the back page. |
back page?
It barely makes it on the printing press. It is almost not in the press room. |
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indiercj
Joined: 30 Jan 2003
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 9:31 pm Post subject: Re: Can We Ask Soldiers to Die for Such a Country? |
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| ulsanchris wrote: |
Can We Ask Soldiers to Die for Such a Country?
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Yes, you can. |
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chiaa
Joined: 23 Aug 2003
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| Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 10:13 pm Post subject: |
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Good find on that article. Really interesting.
I liked:
"A request by the families to move the bullet-riddled South Korean patrol boat to the Yongsan War Memorial, to show people that here were men who gave their lives for the country, were ignored." |
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Barking Mad Lord Snapcase
Joined: 04 Nov 2003
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| Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 11:06 pm Post subject: Re: Can We Ask Soldiers to Die for Such a Country? |
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| indiercj wrote: |
| ulsanchris wrote: |
Can We Ask Soldiers to Die for Such a Country?
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Yes, you can. |
So I trust you are in full support of American occupation? |
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tzechuk
Joined: 20 Dec 2004
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| Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2005 11:12 pm Post subject: |
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| Derrek wrote: |
| Sometimes I wonder if Korean people will look at the current party in power and ask, "My god, what did we do?" |
Yes, they do, Derrek. |
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Ya-ta Boy
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Location: Established in 1994
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| Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2005 4:02 am Post subject: |
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[/quote]the Korean Gov. and civic leaders have done their best to shove any bad DPRK press to the back page.
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Want to know why you so seldom see any bad Nork news?
"There remains much that is unreported in the South Korean media on these [human rights] issues as a result of an August 2000 agreement between Kim Jong-il and major news media not to report bad news about North Korea. Not surprisingly, a video showing a public execution in North Korea from early March has been making the rounds of many neighboring countries and is available on the web, but has yet to be shown on KBS, South Korea's key broadcast network. " (From "Three months of unrequited Korean love" by Scott Snyder in today's Asia Times Online, reprinted from Pacific Forum CSIS)
This goes a long way in accounting for some of the blinkered attitudes encountered from some people. Self censorship can be wonderful.
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W.T.Carl
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2005 4:11 am Post subject: |
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| What occupation? Who but an ignorant ravin' ratbag would consider a mere 37000 US military types an "occupation"? 500,000 maybe, but not 37000. |
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Barking Mad Lord Snapcase
Joined: 04 Nov 2003
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| Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2005 5:47 am Post subject: |
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| W.T.Carl wrote: |
| What occupation? Who but an ignorant ravin' ratbag would consider a mere 37000 US military types an "occupation"? 500,000 maybe, but not 37000. |
That was a Freudian slip. I used the broadest definition of the word. indiercj's post seemed a bit vague, so I needed some clarification.
For now, I am all for American military presence in South Korea. If they are not encouraged to stay, then expats should have no such obligation to stay either. |
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Guri Guy
Joined: 07 Sep 2003
Location: Bamboo Island
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| Posted: Tue Apr 26, 2005 8:49 am Post subject: |
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Korea will reap what it sows. Not honouring your war dead leads to lower morale. I'm sure army morale is not great as it should be and it will get worse. Anyone that can avoid serving in the military does.
As well, underappreciating your greatest ally (USA) and cozying up to North Korea and China, two countries that have evil intentions towards you, is plain idiotic.
Best of luck Korea, oh rudderless ship that seems clueless as to where it is going at the best of times. *sigh* |
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