Comments on: America Ranked Greatest Ally & Threat to South Korea

By: carl hungus

carl hungus — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 14:33:14 +0000

Good God. Why do we have anything to do with these egomaniac ingrates? The sooner they are left to wallow in their own slime, the better. Quit giving them visas as well. Tell the Norks to help themselves, we won't pitch in this time.

By: American Students Ignorant of the Korean War As Well

American Students Ignorant of the Korean War As Well — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 23:02:04 +0000

[...] last week where a survey was released that showed the majority of Korean students did not know who started the Korean War or when it occurred? Well this just goes to show American students are just as ignorant about [...]

By: Hamilton

Hamilton — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 19:21:37 +0000

It is ironic that no one in the poll identified the greatest threat to South Korea which is the Korean Teacher's Union. That is the one that potentially will bring the house down.

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GI Korea, I somewhat agree with your assessment but would increase the scope of disaster and regional misery. Some regimes like nK are very very efficient at crushing their people. When their economic methods fail they find an enemy to blame which would be Japan and the US. The old Soviet republics just never had that level of ruthlessness. The norks kill everyone they can that disagrees with them and locks the minor "criminals" in gulags to work as slave labor for the state.

By: Gerry

Gerry — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 12:15:48 +0000

The US had little if any interest in Korea at the end of the war with Japan. The Russians were the aggressors in taking North Korea at the end of the war and establishing the 38th paralel, the Russians and US met an impass as to who should control Korea, then the Russians urged Kim Il Sung to do what he needed to do to harass the South, while building a Stalinist regiem. It was the beginning of the end at that time. Sing Man Rhee was no better, in that all he wanted to do was attack the North (To unify the country). The US would not provide Rhee the military resources to do so. Even McArthur wanted nothing to do with Korea, as he was rebuilding Japan and was thought of as an emporer, and was thouroughly enjoying the ego trip. Song convinced Stalin he could take all of Korea in three weeks if he had the tanks and aircraft. Stalin was actually reluctant, but provided the military hardware anyway.(No Russian troops) China was aware (ref: mtg May 1950 Beijing, Mao and Sung. Russian archives)and offered seven divisions, but Song turned him down because of past chinese history. Even so, 45,000 veteren chinese troops of Korean ancestry were transfered to the NK army. (so much for the "just protecting chinas buffer zone"). Then came the invasion (that intell on the US side, saying something was up,was ignored by McArthur) led by Russian t-34 tanks and YAK bombers. The SKs had nothing to stop them but fought as well as they could. Same with the US troops. The origins of the Korean war had little if nothing to do with the US and its "political" ambitions.

By: Mark

Mark — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:50:25 +0000

All in good time. Pakistan as well.

By: ChickenHead

ChickenHead — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:45:56 +0000

Mark,

I say we bomb Iran and make it a one-front war!

That would simplify things.

By: shattered

shattered — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:41:18 +0000

"More people to put in the Gulags"

So what? All the bark and dirt you can eat. LOL

By: Mark

Mark — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:21:57 +0000

Since we're doing 20/20 hindsight here, I'll say that had we not become bogged down in counterinsurgency in Afghanistan and Iraq, we'd own Iran and North Korea right now.

By: GI Korea

GI Korea — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 11:16:39 +0000

I think a united communist Korea would be similar to the backward Eastern European countries that collapsed after the fall of the Soviet Union. I suspect the gulags would just be bigger because of the size of the puring needed in South Korea after the war.

I think the cult of Kim would still have been established and based of course around ethnic nationalism as well as a Japanese threat instead of the American threat it claims to be under today.

Notice the North Koreans began developing their nuclear capabilities after the Cold War because I believe the Soviets would not allow the North Koreans to obtain nuclear weapons under their patronage.

I am interested to hear others opinions on this.

By: Hamilton

Hamilton — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 09:16:44 +0000

"The World would be a better place."

I disagree, Kim IL Sung would have applied his very efficient management style to the South as he did in the North. After all the Southern purges, don't forget all the North Koreans who fled him, he would hold a unified Korea. A bigger just as hungry, backward nK focused on Japan would exist today. More people to put in the Gulags, more resources to build and export ballistic, chemical and nuclear technology. No the world would not be a better place.