Korea Advice

I'm inclined to agree with this- China should be encouraged to invade North Korea. North Korea's unprovoked attack on a South Korean naval ship is as blatant an act of war as anyone's ever seen and it is hard to see how North Korea will be dealt with in the long term without all out war.

It may be difficult to see what China gets out of it, but the DPRK must be destabilising. Perhaps a US withdrawal from the Korean peninsula and Japan would be a carrot to dangle in front of them in return for sorting out the North.

Victimhood Poker: Oriental Edition.

Okay:

A South Korean man has been fined one million won ($865; £520) for making discriminatory remarks against an Indian professor.

I've read things about casual racism towards foreigners in Korea before so this is perhaps not a huge surprise, although I don't know how widespread it is. However:

The man yelled racist comments and said "Arab! Arab!" at the Indian man while on a bus in July, the judge said.

The professor felt publically insulted by the comments, he added.

Surely the it is also a bit racist ot consider "Arab" to be an insult? So the Korean simply has to find himself an Arab who is offended at the Indian in order to perform victimhood jujitsu on him.

Unusual Historic Interpretations.

In the Korean Peninsula the North Korean state clearly views every American move as a possible precursor to an attack. The same is true of the South Korean, Japanese and Taiwanese Governments and their ally, the US. Given the history of the Korean War this is hardly surprising; a popular Socialist interim-Government was attacked by an American backed anti-Soviet force and much of the Peninsula was laid waste.

WTF!?

Given that the USA had begun reducing it's presence in Korea prior to the war and in the early stages they and the South Korean forces were nearly driven off the peninsula it seems hard to come to the conclusion that they attacked the North.

I'm not sure what evidence there is for believing that the NK regime was initially popular either.

An Example To Follow.

Troughing MPs, take a look at how corrupt politicians redeem themselves in other countries:

The former president of South Korea, Roh Moo-hyun, who had been under investigation for alleged corruption, has apparently committed suicide.

A spokesman said Mr Roh, 62, appeared to have jumped into a ravine while mountain climbing near his home and had left a brief suicide note.

Just saying.....

I predict conspiracy theories will now emerge, but as I don't speak Korean I will not be able to say "I told you so".