Comments on: US Beef Protests Dwindle as Anti-US Groups Show Their True Colors

By: Exposing the Anti-US Activists as Violence Continues In Seoul

Exposing the Anti-US Activists as Violence Continues In Seoul — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 07:07:04 +0000

[...] protests against the importation of US beef into Korea (that really has nothing to do with US beef) broke out once again in downtown Seoul. The conflict began yesterday when the Korean police gave a [...]

By: Far East Economic Review On Korea’s Misinformation Age

Far East Economic Review On Korea’s Misinformation Age — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 18:59:06 +0000

[...] these groups’ real agendas which are anti-US and pro-Pyongyang. However, this strategy may have backfired because since the shift in message attendance at the protests has fallen and there are signs [...]

By: DPRK Studies

DPRK Studies — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 22:52:03 +0000

South Korea’s Brummagem Civil Society…

A good number of South Koreans seem to confuse democracy with truly mindless mass protesting based on blatantly false information that could easily be debunked but rarely is, at least by South Koreans themselves. The uproar, this time, ostensibly bega…

By: Dumbasses

Dumbasses — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 20:04:16 +0000

(I should have said “real” Canadians, because in the heart of every “Corean” their only loyalty is to “Corea”)

By: Dumbasses

Dumbasses — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 20:02:54 +0000

because the heart of Corea is anti-American in nature.

Yep, even the Canadian Kyopos hate America. Never met one that liked America. Know plenty of Canadians that like/love the States. Way too many Koreans in Canada as it is. I would take 50 arabs to get rid of one Korean.

By: Jax

Jax — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 19:40:41 +0000

I did not say that the units had to leave Korea as units.

You could do a repeat of 1990’s Europe by deactivating the units in Korea and dispersing the departing troops according to the needs (and housing availability) of the Army.

By: GI Korea

GI Korea — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 19:33:42 +0000

The difference between moving soldiers to a combat zone and back to the US is the housing issue. When 2BCT, 2ID returned from Iraq I know guys that were living in rented out college dorm rooms because there was no barracks space for them because it was an unplanned troop withdrawal.

It is not uncommon for soldiers returning from Iraq to live in temporary housing until barracks space gets opened up when another unit deploys freeing their barracks. Look at the controversy that happened in regards to 82nd Airborne soldiers that redeployed from Afghanistan and were stuck in substandard barracks a few months ago.

The closing of US bases during the latest BRAC as well as the decision to reduce troops in both Korea and Germany has caused a housing crisis that is slowly being taken care of with new facilities being constructed on bases across the country.

More US troops will be coming home from Iraq next year in one way or another which will have priority on open barracks space, leaving any unplanned reductions of forces in USFK impossible for a least the next few years until new facilities can be funded and constructed to house all these soldiers.

By: Jax

Jax — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 19:08:14 +0000

GI Korea,

I agree that finding the political will in Washington would be a monumental task, but I disagree with the notion that the logistics would take years.

Formally returning the US camps to the ROKs might take a couple of years (mostly due to legal wrangling over clean up), but vacating the camps of troops could be easily done in 6 months.

The Surge moved 30,000+ troops and equipment into Iraq under combat conditions in 6 months, so moving 20,000+ troops out of Korea under peacetime conditions would be a walk in the park. Only the will is needed.

By: GI Korea

GI Korea — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 18:46:04 +0000

Sonagi I totally agree with your comments about 2MB about how his recent actions would be interpreted on the Korean street, which once again reinforces my view about the underlying anti-Americanism in Korea.

2MB can look like he is kowtowing to China and no one cares, but if he looks like he is kowtowing to America all hell breaks loose.

As far as the US military getting out of Korea, just logistically it would take years, then you add in the time it would take for someone in Washington to have the political will to do something and it just stretches it out that much farther.

By: Sonagi

Sonagi — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:44:11 +0000

I have maintanied that the leaders that organized these protests are manipulating the population to politically neuter 2MB and then eventually shift the protests toward their anti-US leftist agenda. The average Kim on the street is protesting because he thinks 2MB is actually importing US meat that is going to kill them and kowtowing to the Americans which is absurd as I have continuously shown to be.

I agree with you that these protesters are willing tools of the left. 2MB has, however, made himself a target by pushing the unpopular and poorly conceived canal plan and by agreeing to import beef right after a visit to Washington, the timing of the two events setting him up to be tarred as a US stooge.

I agree with Jhaelin, Mark. Even if your “clear, hold, build” comment was meant in jest, it’s no joke that political cleansing was carried out by both sides during the post-WWII struggle for power in Korea. We don’t need to clear, hold, or build in Korea. We need to get out and leave Korea to determine its own fate, and US miltary logical planning should reflect that. Quite frankly, I wouldn’t want to see a US soldier get a hangnail defending Korea.