The current geo-political tension in East Asia is at its normal 11 on a scale of 1-10: US-NK negotiations, Japan-Korea trade/boycott standoff, and US-China relations.
The following conversation is a very normal occurrence in almost every interaction with Korean speaking people here in the United States; particularly those of the older generation.
Me: “Hello.”
Korean Speaker: “I heard you speak Korean, lived in Korea?”
Me: “Yes…that’s right. I loved it.”
Korean Speaker: “What do you do now?”
Me: “I do research on East Asia. I research, report, and publish about East Asia: China, South Korea, North Korea, and Japan.”
Korean Speaker: “Japan is bad.”
Me: “Excuse me?”
Korean Speaker: “Japan is bad. Worse than Nazis….Why do you Americans like the Japanese?”
Me: “Um….er….worse than the Nazis?”
Korean Speaker: “Yes, they are terrible. Why do you Americans like the Japanese?”
Me: “America fought against the Japanese in World War II. It was terrible. Many people died. War is awful. It only ended because America dropped two nuclear bombs on Japan. It was terrible. It should never happen again. Thankfully World War II is in the past and we have all moved on.”
Actually, I never get around to saying the last comment about “World War II and nuclear bombs and moving on,” but I always think it. I usually just listen to their viewpoint, nod my head in agreement, and wish them a lovely day. I have found that it wouldn’t matter much what I’d said, trust me I have tried. They weren’t there for discussion, they were there to recruit me for their team. It was tribal politics at its best; join our team (South Korea, North Korea, and China) against the “evil Japanese” and let’s get revenge for World War II and the colonial period. Get revenge? Get reparations? You must be kidding.
South Koreans participate in a rally to denounce Japan’s new trade restrictions. Chung Sung Jun - Getty Images
![Members of the Our Future Party stage a performance to urge the Korean government to boycott the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. [NEWS1]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5500371ce4b07869ba2c0170/1571940879628-ZWD4OJFWGYD5T3PF5B03/Screen+Shot+2019-10-24+at+2.13.07+PM.png)
Members of the Our Future Party stage a performance to urge the Korean government to boycott the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. [NEWS1]
(AP photo by Ahn Young-joon).
But this is the current state of affairs in East Asia. As the political, economic, and cultural power of South Korea and China has grown by leaps and bounds, so has anti-Japanese rhetoric and sentiment. I FEAR IT WILL ONLY GET WORSE.
How much more should the Japanese people suffer? How many more nuclear bombs should we drop to satiate this blood lust? Certainly being a political, cultural, and economic leader of the world is enough for the South Korean ethnic-nationalists? Everyone loves the Korean Wave. Everyone loves K-pop. Everyone loves Gangnam style, Korean BBQ, and karaoke. Everyone loves Korean traditional dress, spicy rice cakes, and fried chicken. We don’t need to hate Japan in order to love Korea, do we? If that is the case, then Korean culture and politics, unfortunately, seems not yet ready to lead on a global stage.