Yeah,but the real difference between “liberal” and “conservative” aren’t much in Korea compared to Japan.
Rho may be a liberal in the local standard,but he was pretty much a nationlist just like others in many ways.

Besides can you really expect the check-and-balance mechanism from “political parties” that come and go in every presidential elections?

Here in Japan,political parties are inpermanent stitutions belong to the groups,not the belonging of some political contenders establish in one day and tear it down the next.

Violent demonstrations and general strikes were norm in Japan from 1952 to 1970.Gwanju didn’t happen in Japan simply because the riot police used tear gas instead of live bullets and LDP politicians choose to resign before the political turmoil gets out of control.

Not that I undermine the sacrifice of the people in Gwangju in any way,though.

What do you think would happen?

Would you cheapen it and discount it totally, because the response was with armed weapons?

I think a lot of you would write down Bush as Most Evil President Ever, and celebrate the resistance for eternity.

But, of course, that is day-dreaming.

George W. Bush would never do such a thing. And you know it, too.

He really does belong in Mount Rushmore.

The govt they were rebeling against, was it legitimate?

Was it?

Kyong Sang’s Son, the first, Park Gyn Hye’s father, he rolled in with tanks. He was couping against the govt. He should have been shot, right? He was shot after more than 2 decades.

Kyong Sang’s Son, the 2nd, General Jun Doo Hwan. Who gave him the country? The people? He took it. It’s coup. He should have been shot, right? He was rebelling against the people for personal and regional gain.

The people of Kwangju. They were in armed rebellion after trying daemo. They were rebelling against the new South Korean military govt. With guns. They should have been shot, right? You make the call.

The way Park and Chun took over is no different than the recent Thailand military coup.

they do that in 3rd world countries, too.

It took quite a while before the protesters armed themselves.

I actually didn’t believe my parents when they told me some people still believe that bullshit spewed by Chun regime. Well, you live and learn I guess…

“That’s a terrible analogy. A much better one would be the LA riots in the 90s.”

No, THAT would be a terrible analogy. Gwangju was a protest about democracy. LA riot was a riot stemming from racial tension. Besides, the analogy is to point out that faultiness of a minor sector of a particular event(communist/ultraliberal extremist) does not define the entire event (Gwangju/Million Man) at all.

On the spot.

That is what happened in Kwangju.

Analogy to the Independence War does not fly. Even today, a group of people arm themselves and shoot at the military, then there is no choice.

No choice at all.

[the rest of south korea still votes by region]

South Korea was capitalist, but was never much democratic.

It’s even more convincing to say it was a capitalist, fascist state, whose government, economy, and social system was modeled after
…

Japan.

with some of the US stuff mixed in.

Gradually, more of the US stuff made up the core of it.

Unlike Japan, Korea can say it has a 2 major party system, where the governing body has a realistic chance of being replaced based on how liberal or conservative the people feel. Wow !

Democracy as it is practiced in the US, is a rare thing to be found in the rest of the world.

South Korea took it the way Japan took it.
And now, it took a step beyond Japan.

In a way, People’s Republic of China is also a capitalist, fascist state, but there you have no way to replace the governing body.

To say it another way, the people of Kyong Sang Do used every trick in the book, to make South Korea a capitalist, fascist state.

At the expense of other -do’s.
Label someone a communist, develop their region only.

This is also classically seen in 3rd world countries. Phillipines, that I know for sure.

Those people are still worshipping Park Gyn Hye.

Also, in 3rd world countries, they worship and elect the daughters of dead dictators of the past.

Isn’t South Korea too good to be like that?

I think it is.

Great arguement. Got me convinced…