[DeCal] Why Should I Care About Korea - Spring 2010?

This is an outline of the presentaiton I gave this past Tuesday.

Objective of the presentation:

1. The United States is committed to defending South Korea with twenty thousand U.S. soldiers, who by design, are supposed to die in the event of a North Korean attack. And, the committment is enormous (half a million soldiers - OPlan 5027 (original link was bad). There is also a OPlan 5029 that South Korean President Lee Myung Bak recently agreed to that outlines what the United States and South Korea will do in the event of the North Korean regime collapsing). 

2. The events that are unfolding in the Koreas have a direct historical explanation and that during the rest of this semester, we will examine the historical dimension behind these events.  

Why should I care about Korea?

The United States is bound to goto war, moreso than by treaty, but by the continuing presence of U.S. soldiers that serve as a "tripwire." In the event of a North Korean attack on South Korea, the United States would instantly find that about 20,000 American soliders would be dead and the country will instantly be at war. The United States is actually then committed to sending half a million soldiers to Korea (Operational Plan 5027).

According to the 04 December 2000 South Korean Defense Ministry White Paper, the United States would deploy up to 690,000 troops on the Korean peninsula if a new war breaks out. The United States apparently had considerably increased the number of troops that would be deployed in any new Korean conflict. The figure had risen from 480,000 in plans made in the early 1990s and 630,000 in the mid-1990s. The latest Time Phased Forces Deployment Data for any contingency on the Korean Peninsula is comprised of 690,000 troops, 160 Navy ships and 1,600 aircraft deployed from the U.S. within 90 days (OPlan 5027-00, GlobalSecurity.org).

This is a very scary thought, especially in light of current U.S. committments to Iraq and Afghanistan and potential problems that may arise with Iran and China (as the U.S. is committed to defending Taiwan as well). Moreover, as the United States is currently in a position of seeing rising government deficits for the forseeable future, it becomes even scarier that those in control of U.S. foreign policy with respect to North Korea could actually fail to form a single, coherent policy as happened during the first half of the first George W. Bush administration ("A Long Road to Pyongyang" : Foreign Affairs Nov/Dec 2007). This is probably the number one reason why Korea should be important to all Americans and that students such as ourselves should take an interest as to first what is going on over there and what it is the United States government is actually doing about it. Not many Americans or South Koreans actually think war is possible, but, as pointed out in class that is exactly what was said about World War I. World War I did in fact occur and Europe has yet to regain its position in the world that it had enjoyed in the time leading upto the Great War.

Past fifteen years or so...

Major trends and events on the Korean Peninsula in the past fifteen years were also explored -- the most significant of which was the belief that North Korea was indeed interested in giving up nuclear weapons and introducing market reforms. However, I pointed out that informal markets that did spring up in North Korea did not mean that North Korea was actually interested in reforming its economy (as many in South Korea, Europe, and some in the United States believed), but rather that it was a loss of North Korean state control over its people that led informal markets to spring up as they replaced the food distribution regime that collapsed during the famine. This did not become apparent until the twilight years of the second George W. Bush administration (Also, I did refer to a large market area in the northern outskirts of Pyongyang and I couldn't remember its name. The market district I was referring to is: Pyongsong (not to be confused with the city of the same name)). Moreover, the significance of the famine was also pointed out in that it has for the first time since the end of the Korean War, made it possible to get some idea of what is actually going on in North Korea.

A point that I also touched upon:

Voice of America:

America does indeed have a government owned, news broadcasting agency that was formed after the end of World War II. However, as the United States Federal Government is prohibited by law of broadcasting directly to American citizens -- a form of propoganda, it is not widely known to Americans. However, in the 21st century and with access to the Internet, Americans can at any given time go and check it out.

[Decal] Week 2: Why History Matters

Reading for this week is:

Pyong, Gap Min. "A Comparison of the Korean Minorities in China and Japan." International Migration Review 26.1 (1992): 4-21.

We will be going into Why History Matters, particularly when we talk about Korea and in trying to understand all the peculiar institutions in both North Korea and South Korea.

Also, a draft copy of this week's presentation has also been uploaded.

[DeCal] Why Should I Care About Korea?

The first meeting for Breaking Down Borders: Korea DeCal is on Monday and one of the things that we will be talking about is "Why Should I Care About North Korea?" Or, Korea at all for that matter (Other than to be a more well rounded and informed individual). You see those are the wise words of none other than former U.S. President George W. Bush as reported in Bob Woodward's book, State of Denial:

George W. pulled Bandar aside. "Bandar, I guess you're the best asshole who
knows about the world. Explain to me one thing." "Governor, what is it?" "Why
should I care about North Korea?" Bandar said he didn't really know. It was one
of the few countries that he did not work on for King Fahd. "I get these
briefings on all parts of the world," Bush said, "and everybody is talking to me
about North Korea." "I'll tell you what, Governor," Bandar said. "One reason
should make you care about North Korea." "All right, smart alek," Bush said,
"tell me." "The 38,000 American troops right on the border." ..."If nothing else
counts, this counts. One shot across the border and you lose half these people
immediately. You lose 15,000 Americans in a chemical or biological or even
regular attack. The United State of America is at war instantly." "Hmmm," Bush
said. "I wish those assholes would put things just point-blank to me. I get half
a book telling me about the history of North Korea." "Now I tell you another
answer to that. You don't want to care about North Korea anymore?" Bandar asked.
The Saudis wanted America to focus on the Middle East and not get drawn into a
conflict in East Asia. "I didn't say that," Bush replied. "But if you don't, you
withdrawl those troops back. Then it becomes a local conflict. Then you have the
whole time to decide, 'Should I get involved? Not involved?' Etc." At that
moment, Colin Powell approached. "Colin," Bush said, "come here. Bandar and I
were shooting the bull, just two fighter pilots shooting the bull." He didn't
mention the topic. "Mr. Governor," Bandar said, "General Powell is almost a
fighter pilot. He can shoot the bull almost as good as us." (I obtained this excerpt directly from this blog).

You see, I'm of the belief that President George W. Bush, the first president I voted for during the 2000 election cycle, though I really was pulling for Senator John McCain at that time, became president since he was a likeable figure thought to be not too different than the average American (Though, former President Gore's likeability issue and disgraced activist Ralph Nader probably also had something to do with it). So, when then Saudi Ambassador to the U.S. becomes a tutor of George W. Bush's and answers precisely why the U.S. should care and in a very concise manner too, it should go someway in helping us to understand as well.

If the U.S. probably had a very public debate about fighting another Korean War, then I doubt U.S. public opinion would support it at all (meaning if another war did break out then I'd think another Republican would get elected to office, probably not too unlike that of, let's say, another President Eisenhower). Why else would both Republican and Democratic administrations --except for the first Clinton administration, oddly enough -- be so willing to accomodate North Korea? (George W. Bush's first administration doesn't count. During his first administration, there really was no U.S. policy towards North Korea -- I'd suggest reading "The Long Road To Pyongyang" (Foreign Affairs Nov/Dec 2007).

"But a look back at the history of the Bush administration's approach to North Korea highlights a somewhat different aspect of the White House's foreign policy. The portrait that emerges is not one of a confrontational, militaristic administration; what instead becomes apparent is an image of a White House with extremely poor conceptual strategies and decision-making processes" ("The Long Road to Pyongyang" : Foreign Affairs)

At any rate, if North Korea launched an invasion, then overnight the U.S. would have about twenty thousand dead Americans. What happened on 9/11 will pale in comparison to the loss of life if such an event were to truly occur. It is in this light that the U.S. should care. Basically, North Korea holds U.S. foreign policy hostage; that is North Korea can basically force the U.S. to be at war overnight.

If twenty thousand Americans died overnight, there'd be no way that the U.S. would let it just pass by (and no way that the North Korean regime would survive in tact of course). But, nonetheless, aside from general and genuine concerns of North Korean proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile technology, counterfeiting U.S. dollars, abducting foreign nationals, and, of course, probably the worst human rights violations in the history of the world, this is the prime reason, why we as Americans should care.