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ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
Impact of Corean Unification
t's been over a decade since the Iron Curtain came crashing down in Europe. The Bamboo Curtain is little more than a quaint phrase. Yet the Cold War remains very much alive on the Corean peninsula.
Across a 186-mile DMZ glare opposing armies collectively totaling 1.7 million. By all reckoning the Pyongyang regime should have become ideological roadkill following the collapse of communism. Instead, it remains an impregnable roadblock to the economic integration of East Asia, the world's fastest-growing region.
How can an economic nonentity be such a roadblock?
Consider its location at what should have been the crossroads of East Asia. With 56% of the peninsula's land mass, North Corea separates on one side the world's greatest market and labor pool (China) and the biggest reserve of natural resources (Sibera) from, on the other, two of the world's leading technological and manufacturing nations (Japan and South Corea).
But for Pyongyang's intransigence Seoul would already be linked by railroads and superhighways to Beijing, Moscow, Berlin, Paris and London. All those cities would also be linked to Tokyo via a bridge across the 126-mile strait dividing Shimonoseki from Pusan. The savings in shipping cost and time alone could amount to tens of billions of dollars a year. Such a trans-Eurasian land link would accelerate the cultural and economic integration of not only East Asia, but the world. In the process, the Corean peninsula would shed the burden of financing the world's most heavily fortified frontier and become the center of the global economy.
That's the vision dancing before the eyes of farsighted statesmen and business leaders pushing for the political leaps of faith needed to keep Pyongyang taking its unsteady baby steps toward opening North Corea.
But skeptics and pessimists abound. Even a loose confederation with the North would only burden and destabilize South Corea's economy and political system, they argue. For decades to come the impact on the global economy would be entirely negative as investors and customers begin shunning the uncertainties, denying capital and trading partners to hundreds of world-class Corean manufacturers. The ultimate result, argue the naysayers, would be to throw a monkey wrench into an alignment that has allowed three decades of strong growth for East Asia.
What is the likely impact of Corean unification?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
(Updated
Wednesday, Jan 22, 2025, 06:38:55 AM)
Annapolis-Harvard Law Grad,
"You find it hard to believe that there are Asians who went to Annapolis and Harvard Law?"
There are about 3-10 asians each year who end up in at West Point, Naval Acedemy, or Air Force Acedemy from my old HS. There are about 7-25 asians who end up at Harvard-Radcliff each year from my HS. Still did not deter me from calling a twinkie a twinkie when I saw one.
Your academic background is considered quite common among my peers. It takes quite a lot to impress my peers when it comes to measuring the success of a man over a lifetime. Unless you're planning to win a Nobel Prize or become an unquestioned leader in a particular field, we would consider you to be a slacker.
I am more dumbfounded by the fact you find one's academic background to be significant at all in these discussions.
Do you think the Naval Acedemy gave you the breadth of a liberal arts education to tackle this topic.
Your first experience as plebe was to memorize the USA version of Mao's little red book. And recite it from memory if an upper classmen questioned you. That is considered to be as intellectually challenging as beathing among my peers.
AC Dropout
Thursday, June 20, 2002 at 10:46:14 (PDT)
ka,
I care about overseas Chinese in America as I do the Chinese in China. I voice my opinions more about those in China, because it is a given my practices in USA society help all Americans (regardless of ethnic origin) in some sense.
The right to bear arms, 1st admentment, is our safe guard to overthrow the government.
In practice the freedom of the press is not as liberal as most average USA citizens believe it to be. In addition we are in war time now, so the executive branch has requested censorship of all sensitive material pertaining to the war on terror. In practice the freest society in terms of speech and press I ever lived under was ROC Taiwan, even though their censorship law on paper are tougher than the USA. In comparison of PRC and USA, greater commercialization allows for USA to appear freer.
But the road of China reform...If you want an analysis by foriegn influence, I would have to say the milestone of change to come was when Nixon went to see Mao. And prior to the the war-monger Kissenger was sent to China on a fact finding mission.
This is a point we must try to reach with N. Korea, where heads of state can just meet, with no preconditions, to build a bridge of trust. I am not a foriegn affair policy maker expert. I have no clue how to reach this point than any other person. But I'm pretty sure the first step to this road does not start with dialogues like "NK, You evil," and "USA, you bully."
AC Dropout
Thursday, June 20, 2002 at 09:48:57 (PDT)
Annapolis-Harvard Law Grad,
DWG is more of a comment of your inner nature, not your outer appearance. Since this medium does not allow for phenotypic analysis of one another.
Personal narratives are interesting reference, but not historic interpretations. Please talk to someone who is willing to explain the trivial academic difference of the two. I don’t really have patience for those who obvious are my academic inferiors.
Please, find a thesaurus. Your over use of the word “idiot” is jaded. Probably because you heard it thoughout your lifetime to describe your own failing.
It is also quite obvious you did not attend those institutions of higher learning. And if you did you did not gain admittance by your own merits alone.
AC Dropout
Thursday, June 20, 2002 at 09:15:17 (PDT)
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