Looks like Camp Humphreys is getting closer and closer to getting the expansion going. There was another protest there. Honestly, the police are not tough enough on the protestors. This is why they keep coming back. There is another version of the Stripes article here.

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Although this appears to be a two way communication I am compelled to interject. It appears we have a young school person who has presented her perspective. Therefore I feel I should add my 2 cents worth.

I believe Korea has professional protestors. It is their life ambition to join the ranks for any cause. These individuals are paid by the interest groups who are attempting to sway the public opinion. I am sure the government is aware of these intervals. There are also individuals who are extremist and want anarchy for 1. sick sense of enjoyment 2. implants from brethren from the north. There are also the Professor’s who want 1. Provoke students thinking (rare), Gain publicity to increase enrollment in their classes (most likely) or are racist and have a dislike for Western society.

When you peel the onion away the remainder of the group is the people who really matter.

I was in Korea when most of the significant historical events occurred. The riots in Gwang Ju were horrendous. These riots only intensified the pre-existing dislike, for Americans in Cholla Nam Do. Although the only Americans near the area were reporters. There were no US soldiers involved. That did not appear to have any impact on the perception of the American though.

Now to the point

If you research the history of the aftermath of the war and compare the resources of the nK and the south you will see the nK had far more resources; however, South Korea is a very prosperous nation and a power house in Asia. How did this occur.

The south was spending 3-5% of their GDP on Defense. I believe the average is 13% Defense expenditures from industrialized nations. This 3-5% from a relatively poor nation was meager to say the least. Therefore how was the south able to pull it off. The south had a great President (Park Chung Hee) who established the path to follow. In addition to the dollars the US Gov was spending on the defense for the country while they established there were concessions made for sending soldiers in support of Vietnam. The residual was equipment to modernize the army. When the US turns over the mission to the ROK government they incur the US made equipment to support the mission. They are very anal during the process as anyone who has ever been involved in the process will attest to. This is not new, and has been going for years.


The north’s investment in weapons systems has historically been 20 – 27% of their GDP. They were not interested in building an infrastructure rather their impetus was to invest in their military.

In no way can I take away the determination and resourcefulness of the Korean people. I really admire the progress they made over the years; however, they could not have accomplished this alone. It was the US who supported them on the path to building the power house today. I believe anyone who has seen the transformation would agree. It appears as though a lot of this resourcefulness was lost along the way. I have addressed this in previous post.

This is also the reason the older generation remembers the times when the US was there to lend support.

When I see protest where the US flag is being abused, I take it personally. When the US flag was lit ablaze the government allowed those involved to continue unabated. When the nK flag was lit the protestors were apprehended by the KNP immediately.

There have been several protest that have ended peacefully; however, in most cases these have been internal issues. There is a high incidence of violence occurring when the protest involves US presence. You can draw far more media attention in the world, by creating anarchy where US soldiers are the issue.

Therefore, the questions really are;

1. Is the US presence still required to maintain stability in the region?

2. How much more will the US tolerate being spit on by those who have a propensity to change history to fit their perceptions?

3. re-Unification what will it cost, and what are the advantages/disadvantages?

You what? i wanted to see them trush in there and kill everyone?

The koreans have set up a system for protests. and for the most part they work, peaceful protests and go on for awile and then end. they have there trust to protect. i think they should be commended that they didn't go in and have a violent reaction wtih the protesters not scorned. how would you feel if you had someone come in where you've always lived, give you pennies on the dollar and tell you to leave?

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When did I talk about killing anyone? You are overreacting. I am not recommending Gawanju tactics!

Is chaining yourself to a tree or a building part of the "system for protests"? I am 100% for peaceful protests, but not for breaking the law. When people break the law they should be arrested. If they resist arrest then force should be used. If you allow people to break the law and you do nothing, what are you telling the protestors? Forget the legal system, breaking the law is more effective.

Koreans want Americans to leave Seoul. Where do you put them? It is natural to expand existing U.S. installations vice building new ones. No matter where the U.S. forces go, there will be Koreans protesting. Koreans in Seoul protested for Americans to leave. Now they are leaving Koreans are protesting against them coming to Pyongtaek. No matter where they go, there will be protestors!

Bottomline, if protestors break the law they should be arrested. If they resist arrest, they must be physically restrained. Allowing protestors to break the law sets a dangerous precedence.

I would feel terrible! Do you honestly know how much the farmers got for their land or are you just making your own estimate that they are getting pennies?

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I don't agree with these tactics either and i was reading it on a website a few months back, though there figires could be wrong.

but the way you where putting it it made it sound like all protesting should stop.

and for the most part i've found korean protests to be some of the most orgenized protests.

i agree i don't want to see people do illigal actions and i hope this ends peacefully

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I agree! Most Korean protests are held professionally. Koreans show up, make their point and go home. That is what protesting is about! Everyone must follow the legal processes. Go through the court and try to stop the land from being taken. If that fails, protest and try to effect change. That is all you can do! Taking illegal actions only hurts your cause.

I am still curious how much the land deal was. Did the farmers get screwed financially?

Taichan, I am not taking the governments side, but could this be a way to get more money? Let's say the government pays a fair price for the land, but you want more. Why not go to the press and say, "we are getting pennies" for our land and protest. Then you can force the government to pay even more money. I don't know the facts, I am just trying to make sense of these protests.

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its the same thing happening in the states and its taken over a year to even think about changing the law... and a lot of people have lost there houses

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Taichan,

I just realized Hiker replied as well and your comments were most likely directed at him. Sorry for the confusion!

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Mike;

Nice try; however. I only replied after her response. <g>

I guess I have to say sorry to you Hiker as well! When the server crashed it jacked up the posts for a day. Your post moved up before mine, so I thought she was replying to you.

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