Comments on: I second the Yangban — the DPRK bores me http://www.rjkoehler.com/2004/02/26/i-second-the-yangban-the-dprk-bores-me/ Korea... in Blog Format Sun, 12 Oct 2008 21:12:20 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 By: The Marmot http://www.rjkoehler.com/2004/02/26/i-second-the-yangban-the-dprk-bores-me/#comment-2219 The Marmot Fri, 27 Feb 2004 21:17:36 +0000 http://rjkoehler.com/?p=567#comment-2219 I think you're missing the point here, Shin. If Jeong wants to fund his party's own foreign policy perogatives with Japanese money, he'd best be sensitive to issues considered important by Tokyo. It's not like Japan doesn't have other options here, and most of those options are much less conducive to Seoul's interests than the one currently being employed by Japan (i.e., sitting down at the six-party talks and possibly being asked to pay a king's ransom). Given the way the North Korea dropped the diplomatic ball with the abduction issue, I think Japan has behaved remarkably well, although I admit, it's been much more "provocative" than Seoul, which (as Slim points out), prefers to pretend that the South Korean abductee and POW issue doesn't exist. Besides, Jeong's telling Japan to separate the political from the economic (????짼쩍 ?쨋????) was pure horseshit -- like South Korea, if Japan is going to throw good money down the drain that is otherwise known as the DPRK, it's not going to do so because it thinks it's a good business decision. Just ask Hyundai. Aid to North Korea, as well as "private" investment in North Korea (if the South Korean case is anything to go by), is a decidedly political affair. I think you’re missing the point here, Shin. If Jeong wants to fund his party’s own foreign policy perogatives with Japanese money, he’d best be sensitive to issues considered important by Tokyo. It’s not like Japan doesn’t have other options here, and most of those options are much less conducive to Seoul’s interests than the one currently being employed by Japan (i.e., sitting down at the six-party talks and possibly being asked to pay a king’s ransom). Given the way the North Korea dropped the diplomatic ball with the abduction issue, I think Japan has behaved remarkably well, although I admit, it’s been much more “provocative” than Seoul, which (as Slim points out), prefers to pretend that the South Korean abductee and POW issue doesn’t exist.

Besides, Jeong’s telling Japan to separate the political from the economic (????짼쩍 ?쨋????) was pure horseshit — like South Korea, if Japan is going to throw good money down the drain that is otherwise known as the DPRK, it’s not going to do so because it thinks it’s a good business decision. Just ask Hyundai. Aid to North Korea, as well as “private” investment in North Korea (if the South Korean case is anything to go by), is a decidedly political affair.

]]> By: slim http://www.rjkoehler.com/2004/02/26/i-second-the-yangban-the-dprk-bores-me/#comment-2218 slim Fri, 27 Feb 2004 16:44:23 +0000 http://rjkoehler.com/?p=567#comment-2218 The real travesty is that the "progressive" leaders of the ROK don't "deem important" the at least 500 SOUTH KOREANS who have been abducted by the North Koreans. The real travesty is that the “progressive” leaders of the ROK don’t “deem important” the at least 500 SOUTH KOREANS who have been abducted by the North Koreans.

]]> By: shin jong il http://www.rjkoehler.com/2004/02/26/i-second-the-yangban-the-dprk-bores-me/#comment-2217 shin jong il Fri, 27 Feb 2004 13:05:55 +0000 http://rjkoehler.com/?p=567#comment-2217 '..deem important (kidnappings)...' excuse me? you're saying the abduction of SIX japanese citizens should be important to the korean people? maybe the pm of japan should go and pray at yasukuni. perhaps you should too, mr marmot. pray for the hundreds of thousands of koreans abducted by your good friends there in nippon. the nerve. ‘..deem important (kidnappings)…’

excuse me? you’re saying the abduction of SIX japanese citizens should be important to the korean people? maybe the pm of japan should go and pray at yasukuni. perhaps you should too, mr marmot. pray for the hundreds of thousands of koreans abducted by your good friends there in nippon.

the nerve.

]]> By: Len Peters http://www.rjkoehler.com/2004/02/26/i-second-the-yangban-the-dprk-bores-me/#comment-2216 Len Peters Fri, 27 Feb 2004 08:55:39 +0000 http://rjkoehler.com/?p=567#comment-2216 Interesting how the South Koreans are so eager to help their "brothers" in the North...when America pays for it. Interesting how the South Koreans are so eager to help their “brothers” in the North…when America pays for it.

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