Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Gopher]

[NAVFC]

Japan should definitely re arm. In these times, with the North Korean and Chinese threats, they need a military. Leaving their fate to be decided by other nations is foolish.

[laogaiguk]

[Kuros]

Japan Self-Defense Forces

[Moldy Rutabaga]

Should Japan rearm itself to fend off foreign aggression in a nuclear age? Yes.

Should Japan whitewash its history and past in an effort to herd its citizens into blind nationalism? No. They are different matters.

Ken:>

[laogaiguk]

[Ya-ta Boy]

Japan has prospered just fine with the current defense budget they have, under the wing of the US (much like South Korea). They are just emerging from a decade of poor economic performance and their population is aging fast. Why divert more of their money into military spending?

While the South Korean and Chinese governments deliberately manipulate public sentiment to keep anti-Japanese attitudes alive, they have fertile ground to work with. East Asians in general are nervous about an (re-)armed Japan. Why feed that fear unless there is a clear pay-off?

China's economy is half as big right now but will surpass Japan's 'soon'. Can Japan really afford to get in an arms race it can't win in the long run?

As for going nuclear, why complicate things any more than they are now? Too many already have nukes.

The wiser course for Japan to take is to limit its troop deployments to UN humanitarian missions.

[SPINOZA]

I voted 'yes' for all the obvious reasons, but I also want Japan and South Korea to join the nuclear club.

Why? Because if NK's apparent nuclearization led to a nuclearized Japan and SK, China would be most disappointed with NK.

[igotthisguitar]

[Privateer]

[chris_J2]

Japanese rearmourment gets a credible mention here, talking in the context of the October 6 detonation by Kim Jong Il / North Korea:

"First, China does not wish to give Japan the excuse to develop its own nuclear arsenal. A nuclear-armed Kim Jong Il gives Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe a compelling reason to arm Japan with nuclear weapons. Japan has enough plutonium to build some 8,000 nuclear warheads and it has the technology to build the missiles to deliver them accurately to Beijing. It may also encourage other Asian powers to seek to acquire nuclear weapons; Taiwan being foremost among these."

Source: http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=17677

Mr. DeVore (R.-Irvine) represents 450,000 people in coastal Orange County's 70th Assembly District. He also serves as a lieutenant colonel in the Army National Guard.

[SPINOZA]