YGHome comments

"We should continue giving North Korea bad hands until it implodes" [Sarge].

"The extinction of the North Korean regime and Democratic People’s Republic of Korea would be forever" [Occidentalis].

This is the American agenda. Meanwhile, the Koreans are just trying to defend themselves as long as they can. The cost, as far as the economy and civil life are concerned, is of course enormous.

Japan, China and the two parts of Korea should and could coexist. The only source of noise in the East-Asian arena is the desire of America to eliminate North Korea.

@mikehuntez

Such provocative drills have not been conducted before.

If they call off the exercise, on the other hand, they will again lose face. What should they do?

They should lose face, and adapt to that. Conducting these provocative drills is a misdeed.

They should adapt to the fact that SK is here, NK is there: Two states with two systems that constitute two parts of the same country, which should live side by side, respect each other and try to cooperate.

By holding those massive and provocative war game America tries to achieve either of the following: 1) encroach further into Korean territory and sovereignty slice by slice, or 2) ignite a total war in an aim to quench the free Korea at once.

I hope that the free Korea will never waver in the face of americanism.

tmarie, the bottom line of your comment is: "there is nothing wrong with the system; it is just that the people are lazy scum".

The illnesses described in the article by Terrie Lloyd are those of a system where the economy rolls only as a coincidental by-product of the greed of a few people. Such a system is called capitalism, or americanism. There exists an alternative system, which puts the well-being of all members of society as its objective, and rationally operates the economy, education, etc. to address this objective. This system is called socialism.

the opposing group is louder and more obnoxious [djuice].

You are confused about who is obnoxious.

America makes a sinister and cynical deliberate confusion between visiting and trespassing.

the U.S. needs an educated electorate that supports capitalism, not socialism. This can be accomplished by establishing mandatory economics courses at all levels of education.

Until then, the outcome of the U.S. education system will continue to be a “dumbocracy.”

What did you learn at school today, dear little boy of mine?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VucczIg98Gw

Socialism has the potential to produce much more wealth than americanism. Moreover, socialism can also solve problems in a rational way. In contrast, americanism is an inhumane system, which causes the degeneration of humankind and immense suffering. Americanism is leading towards a holocaust for this entire planet, and the inhabitants of the planet cannot go on with such system.

It would be better to show front page images that are about the real life of Japan, images of her natural and human landscapes, or that relate to her culture and tradition. Why always those artificial images of models who pose in the framework of some commercial?

Mark: In a situation such as I describe, the details might be hidden from shareholders. Having easy access to the details may help them understand what is going on in their company.

Let me explain why it applies to private companies as well: In a private company, a clique of executives and shareholders can assume control of the company by force. The executives in the clique then make maneuvers to endow the shareholders in the clique with much more shares than they deserve according to their amounts of investments. These shareholders, in return, bestow upon these executives some benefits which are much more than generous. This can happen even when the financial state of the company is far from being glorious. The other shareholders, those who are being cheated, are also being intimidated using various methods, and cannot even convene a shareholders meeting. Such cases happen.

They are a good group, but they emphasize sexy appearance too much.

Why not just let the internal processes within North Korea determine the political system there, without external interference?

Why not just pay back 90 million gold francs plus interest?

Because this is not enough. They have to pay also for CAUSING the disaster: The disaster was caused by poverty, whose one of myriad revelations is the poor building quality.

South Korea should stop spreading propaganda leaflets inside North Korea using balloons.

Until when will Ireland be ruled from London?

Here is my rebuttal. I respect the need to stay on topic very much, but my answer should be as complete as tkoind2's.

The aspects touched in tkoind2's post are 1) Saving effort from Japan by relying on American protection, with this also including the fact that most Japanese youth are not required to serve in the army, and the fact that there is a lesser need to spend on military technology. 2) The possibility to keep the pacifist constitution. 3) The economic stimulus, especially in peripheral areas 4) Various positive functions that are not related to military confrontations 5) Thwarting aggressive conflicts with Russia, China and North Korea. To these five aspects I would like to add 6) The national dignity of Japan and her people.

I will start with aspect 5, because this is crux of the whole issue. Today, speaking about a threat to Japan from China is ridiculous, as the friendship between the two countries is growing stronger from day to day. Yes, there is a territorial dispute with Russia, which is minor. As regards the threat from North Korea, there is a vicious loop here: The American bases are there to (seemingly) address the threat, but the threat is also CREATED because of the American presence: This loop will disperse once Japan dissociates itself from the project of changing the regime in North Korea. I return now to aspect 1: With the correct assessment of the threats, the military effort required from Japan is not greater than what is required from a large country in Western Europe. Aspect 2: The support of the American presence, which does not symbolize peace, makes the pacifist constitution void anyway. Aspect 3: Japan should not need this kind of stimulus: Instead of injecting economic demands via a foreign military presence, it is possible to inject such demands using other methods. Aspect 4: Together, Japan plus the other Asian countries form a mighty bloc, which can help itself in such matters. Finally, I conclude with aspect 6: It is contrary to the national dignity of Japan to be dependent on a foreign force.

tkoind2, thank you for your elaborate and serious reply. I would be glad to provide my rebuttal. However, this would expand the scope of the discussion. Moderator, may that be okay?

Moderator: As long as you stay on topic.

The existence of American bases on Japanese soil is not a cornerstone of peace. Quite the contrary: It is a source of danger. And it is also a nuisance.

The only time NK makes "peace" noises is when threats aren't working. Or the dear little jerk runs out of luxury items [ca1ic0cat].

I disagree to your statement, as well as to its language.

Coexistence and cooperation between the two parts of Korea are needed.

A system which is driven by the morbid insatiable urge of a few individuals to accumulate money cannot address the needs of mankind.

In response to SuperLib's request, I now explain further what I mean: In many confrontations when there is an aggressive/criminal side and a non-aggressive side, the aggressive side, which initiates the confrontation, tries to attribute this confrontation to the other side in a manner that cannot make any sense. The absurd "if talk", with the void "if", is a typical example.

The question of who is the aggressor should be addressed in earnest. The North proposed replacing the armistice agreement with a peace treaty, but was dismissed. The North keeps saying that they are willing to give up their nukes in the framework of a comprehensive move which will put an end to all hostility, but is being rebuffed. The North says all the time that they want reunification on a federal basis, by implementing the joint declaration reached during the term of Kim Dae Jung, but is being ignored. On the other hand the South has harassed fishing boats of the North, and then went on to initiate maritime clashes near the shores of the North. This is the picture, as regards the aforementioned question.

South Korea warned of launching a pre-emptive strike if the North was preparing a nuclear attack. The "if talk" is the typical talk of a Mafioso. The thug doesn't say "I am going to smash you because I want to". He would rather say "If you misbehave than I am going to smash you now". The South Korean government is a government of thugs and warmongers. The North is left with no choice but to try and respond somehow, and their response is very reasonable.

On the one hand a rich country with a very powerful economy. On the other hand homeless people who have nothing and expire in the frosty street. This is the face of capitalism.

The fact is that the process of global warming continues, and Arctic ice continues to melt.