DashFiveGuy wrote:
No, I don't really care to elaborate to be honest. Judging by your post and some of the comments made I suspect that you are ignorant of the events that lead up to the Korean conflict as well as events during the hostilities and after the cease fire. You are of course enititled to your own opinion and I certainly do not begrudge you for it regardless whether I agree with it or not.
You asked a question and I provided my answer.
Well, I'd like to be enlightened and cleared of my ignorance. And since you clearly have an opinion of your own, do you care to share? For the better of all?
The events leading up to the conflict? What are you referring to? The Japanese occupation? The liberation of the northern part of Korea by the Soviet Union or the defeat of japanese forces in the south by the American army? The Division of Korea, unilaterally without Korean consent? The installation of a anti-communist hardliner 'Republic' in the south and a Communist Republic in the north? The elections called by Kim Il-sung on the 7th of June, the diplomates sent by the North to discuses the elections, arrested by the south?
Both sides were desperate to reunite their people, but backed by superpowers fighting their own 'cold' war.
Both sides threatened each other, both fired shots across the brow.
But what has to be remembered is that South Korea, like South Vietnam, is a artificial state. And like in Vietnam, artificial states face revolts and rebellions that can only be put down by force. The Mungyeong Massacre is just one 'recorded' example of this.
There is no question at all, that America created the Republic of south Korea, and maintained it so.
Now, i'm sure your talking about narrower, contained events that simmered below the surface but had major impacts on history. (stop me if anything i'm saying isn't factual)
The events during the war?
Well, It all came to a front when North Korea, fuelled by patriotic jealous (and backed more or less by Russia and China), moved their armed forces into the south, to reunite Korea in one sweeping move.
south Korean armed resistance was unable to stop the unifying army and by 28th of June Seoul had been liberated by the North. Not before Rhee ordered the Bodo League massacre and the bombing of bridges that still had people on them.
A short times work, the North Korean army had managed to liberate most of Korea, and it was looking like peace was actually going to visit the besieged people of Korea.
However, south Korea was saved, by the mass force of the United States army (which even back then was the most powerful) leading a ragtag "UN" invasion force. North Korea had control over 90& of Korea, before America invaded again and stomped on the ill-equiped and trained forces of Korea. They themselves pushed back and stopped only by the intervention of the People's Republic of China (again, stop me if anything i'm saying isn't factual)
During the war, a whole list of war crimes were committed, some by the communists in the North, most by the American forces in the south, including chemical warfare which had been outlawed since world war one (but lets be real, international law has no bearings on America.)
But, again, here I think you mean less reported events, that simmered below the flash and bang of what we read about today.
The events after the war?
Some would like to think we've yet to see them, as the war never really ended.
The boom of south Koreas' economy and military power? Fuelled solely by the most power economy in the world.
The collapse(more or less) of North Koreas' economy and military power(the Soviets' and Chinese weren't nearly as capable of propping up another country, clearly the Soviets' weren't even capable of propping up their own country)
The many hostile actions taken by both sides throughout the years...
North Korea now struggles forward, against a tidal wave of suppression that they are wholly incapable of fighting, yet continue to do so out of pride and honour. Developing nukes and trying to retain an army to counter an enemy could wipe it out without some much as breaking a sweat.
Please, expel my ignorance, and enlighten me to the things I don't know about Korea. Though, I don't think I mentioned the Korean war in my reply this topic... (*Slaps self in head and mutters 'I told you to pro-read what you post. Don't just mutter nonsense')
But the topic here is the threat posed to B.C ( and Canada as a greater) by a Nuclear North Korea.
There is none.
North Korea has nuclear weapons, which it has every right to. They are wholly incapable of reaching anywhere near Canada. Period.
So, instead of joining America in it's perpetual cycle of warmongering and fear, we should lead the world community in welcoming North Korea into a new era of cooperation. Help boost it's economy and standard of living, encourage dialogue not order it. No one bites the hand that feeds them, if we help North Korea, they are less likely to act aggressively (if we stop this war against them, they have no reason to defend themselves against us)
Then nukes or not, we can bring peace and prosperity to Korea. Or, we can stop yammering because North Korea is a self determining state that builds nukes like the rest of us, and goes into space like everyone else. Give them food and money and we might see another gangnam style... oh, in that case, maybe we shouldn't
Now I know you don't want to enlighten me, you'd rather just 'know' your right and i'm wrong... The American way of thinking.
"As the starving cannot feed the hungry - ignorance cannot be expel by the ignorant"