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KOREA: A STUDY IN CONTRASTSNORTH KOREA and SOUTH KOREA, 2 countries whose climate, resources, geographical location, and bloodlines are almost identical, provide an accurate and stunning contrast on the effect of government in the lives of people, their culture, and their economies. The satellite photo below was taken of the entire Korean Peninsula at night and graphically depicts the darkness of North Korea as compared to South Korea. (NASA added the border lines.) N. Korea appears dark in the photo (except for a small dot that is Pyongyang, the capital) for a very good reason—they generate almost no electricity for night time use by ordinary citizens, so the country is dark from sunset to sunrise. By contrast S. Korea is well lite, especially around the capital city of Soul. Satellite photo of N. and S. Korea. China can be seen to the northwest. Notice that S. Korea is not only brighter than N. Korea, it is also brighter than mainland China. A BRIEF HISTORY OF NORTH AND SOUTH KOREAIn 1910 Japan gained and retained control of the Korean Peninsula until her defeat in World War II. Following the war in 1948, Korea was split with the USSR and China gaining control of the north while the southern portion was to be overseen by the United States. In 1950 the peace was broken when China instigated and supplied an enormous number of troops for an attack by the north against the south. The resulting war was deadly with more than 3,000,000 Koreans killed—most of them were civilians. Finally, in 1953 with the war still raging, the United Nations brokered a cease-fire. Peace was finally restored. To insure lasting peace, a DEMILITARIZED ZONE (DMZ) was established on the border between the 2 nations. Neither side was to violate this neutral zone, but to insure compliance, each country stationed armed troops along their respective borders. Happily, the buffer zone between the two armies has been consistently respected. The DMZ today still marks the border between these two nations, and it is still guarded by military personnel (including some American soldiers who assist S. Korea in this regard). Ironically, a state of war still technically exists because South Korea never signed the official peace treaty.In theory these 2 countries are as similar as any 2 countries on earth. Most all Koreans come from the same blood-lines, they share the same history until the 1940s, they share the same peninsula, and find little difference in climate and other natural factors. Yet, since WW II, the contrast in life-styles, standard-of-living, and politics is stark. Keep reading to learn what happened to cause 2 extremely similar peoples to go in completely different directions. GO ON TO THE NEXT PAGENORTH KOREANorth Korea is a country of some 26 million people that borders China and Russia to the north along with South Korea. Pyongyang is the capital and largest city.Pyongyang, N. Korea (Note one car in the photo)N. Korea is a one-party state led by Kim Jung-un, a dictator with absolute power over his country. Citizens are trained from a very young age to hold their ruler in very high regard, referring to him as the ‘Dear Leader’ and giving him credit for every positive thing that happens.N. Korean citizens pay homage to gigantic statues of Kim Jung-un’s father and grandfather. N. Korea is a ‘military first’ country, with more than 9 million citizens (37% of the population) serving in some military related capacity. There are more than a million active duty soldiers, making the N. Korean army the 4th largest in the world. (China, USA, and India have larger armies.) Their military first strategy has enabled them to develop nuclear weapons, a fact that threatens world peace. In addition to the military, Government controls every aspect of life in N. Korea including its retarded and inefficient socialist economy. North Koreans arguably have the lowest standard-of-living of any developed country in the world. The worst manifestation of the dictator led socialism is the constant shortage of food.The United Nations estimates that two in five North Koreans lack sufficient food and access to basic healthcare and sanitation, and more than 70 percent of the population relies on international food aid to survive. A full 41 percent of the DPRK’s population is thought to be undernourished and basically everyone is undersized. In the 1990s famine took the lives of between 250,000 and 400,000 N. Koreans.The darkness of North Korea vividly portrayed above, however, reaches beyond a lack of electricity and a shortage of food, touching negatively every life in that country. Government oppression of its citizens is all inclusive, including travel bans, no contact with the outside world, and no internet usage. The citizens who own cell phones can call only within the borders of N. Korea. A 2014 United Nations inquiry into human rights in North Korea concluded that the “gravity, scale, and nature of these violations reveal a state that does not have any parallel in the contemporary world”. Of course the N Korean government has denied these findings. SOUTH KOREASouth Korea, on the other hand, boasts the 11th largest economy, the third longest life expectancy, and access to some of the best medical care in the world.S. Korea is a world leader in international trade. Its people are ‘innovative’, well educated, and hard working. Advanced technology is widely available with S. Koreans having the fastest internet service in the world. Obviously South Korea is a wealthy country where most of its citizens enjoy a high standard-of-living.Samsung headquarters, downtown Seoul, the capital of S. Korea. 25% of the 54 million citizens of S. Korea live in the Seoul metro area. It should be noted that the government in S. Korea is NOT repressive. S. Korean people freely elect their government leaders and enjoy many personal freedoms such as freedom of the press and freedom of speech. As in the United States, the Korean constitution has provided for the separation of powers by creating 3 distinct ‘branches of government. The result has been an open, free South Korean society. S. Koreans are rewarded for their labor and enjoy ownership of private property under their free market/capitalistic economic system. The next time you hear an American politician campaign on the promise of more free stuff (socialism) and declare capitalism to be a greedy failure, think of NORTH KOREA, RUSSIA, CHINA, CUBA, and VENEZUELA…then think of SINGAPORE, TAIWAN, HONG KONG, AND SOUTH KOREA, small, crowded countries with few resources that somehow discovered ways to succeed based on free market economics and personal freedoms for their citizens. Great Scott, are we not blessed to have been born in the United States! But beware, there are MANY Americans, some well-meaning and some who are just plain tyrants, who criticize everything about America and want to see it “FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGED”. A candidate for President in the upcoming election used that very phrase yesterday on national T.V.Lenin fundamentally changed Russia. Zedong fundamentally changed China. Castro fundamentally changed Cuba and Chavez changed Venezuela. Any fundamental changes to American will endanger the liberties we should hold dear and the prosperity that we so enjoy. Kim Jung-un, N. Korean Dictator and Moon Jae-in, S. Korean President Can you recognize a tyrant when you see one? Could you have picked out the tyrant from the non-tyrant above? Both are well dressed and both are smiling. So why is it important for people your age to pay attention to the world and learn to think with clarity and common sense? That’s easy…to avoid the tyrants! ................
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