By Choi Yearn-hong
Almost every day, major American newspapers print serious articles on North Korea. From President Barack Obama to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and to former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, North Korea has been depicted as a dangerous country under ``Dear Leader'' Kim Jong-il.
Kissinger wrote in his syndicated column: ``The U.S. alone cannot handle North Korea.'' China's role to contain North Korea's nuclear ambition has been well recognized since the Bush administration.
Many American people who know the Korean situation feel a war is possible on the Korean Peninsula under the present circumstances, but many South Korean people do not feel so.
So there is some distance between Washington and Seoul in perceiving the North Korean threat since it conducted an underground nuclear test and fired short- and medium-range missiles toward the East Sea in May.
The great majority of the South Korean people are indifferent or careless to North Korea's repeated threats over the years. They are used to the North Korean rhetoric of ``a sea of fire'' in Seoul.
There were a couple of sea battles in the West Sea (Yellow Sea) near Yeonpywong Island in 1999 and 2002 during the Kim Dae-jung administration that initiated the so-called Sunshine Policy toward North Korea.
The battles killed South Korean sailors. However, President Kim did not protest to North Korea's Dear Leader, his ``Dear Friend,'' nor attend the funeral and memorial services for the victims. It was unbelievable and lamentable.
Many South Korean people have already forgotten the Yeonpyeong encounter in 2002. One high school teacher asked his students: How many of you remember the sea battle?
Only two answered in the affirmative. The same teacher asked another question: How many of you remember the World Cup tournament in 2002? All the students said they remembered. Maybe they like to remember one happy thing, and forget a sad and tragic thing ― who knows?
This may be one of the great strengths of the Korean personality ― forgetting the sad and tragic thing easily. This may be a good psychological trait.
There may be a third Yeonpyong battle emerging on the sea-border. I hope not, but North Korea has warned of another ``local war,'' possibly in the same area.
One innocent tourist shot to death at the Mt. Geumgang tourist resort area did not bother South Korean people, other than their relatives. It was a malicious killing, but many South Koreans might have believed it to be accidental.
Now, the Gaeseong Industrial Complex is helpless under North Korean threats. One South Korean worker at the complex has been detained for some time.
The Roh Moo-hyun government initiated and was proud of launching the Gaeseong complex for a grand reconciliation scheme between the two Koreas. When it opened, many celebrated. But I predicted that disgraceful acts by North Korea would be perpetrated against the South Korean businesspeople at the complex.
Unfortunately, no one in the Roh administration predicted the kind of stressful situation we see today. Pitiful! I wonder how the massive investment policy in a most dangerous nation was possible without undertaking a proper risk analysis.
There was a good deal of wishful thinking, but it could not and cannot bring about reconciliation in a truer sense.
The two Koreas are still technically at war, but many South Korean people do not feel this. They were born after 1953, when the Korean War ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. They seem to accept skirmishes between soldiers along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).
There are a significant number of South Korean people who identify themselves as conservatives. They were quiet or silent during the 10 years of former leaders Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun, because they felt helpless under their rule.
They now feel the same kind of helplessness under conservative President Lee Myong-bak, who cannot break the old established rules ― but he is trying to stand up to North Korea's abusive language and threats
A friend of mine in Seoul asked me: What can we do against the North Korean threat? He answered with his own question: Be ready for war. But any war will be destructive, so we ignore the threat. The war will be very different from the 1950-53 Korean War.
Then, our family moved to the south in order to avoid the killing. Now, we don't even have the south to go to. The whole territory from Seoul to Busan, even Jeju, is in North Korea's firing range. So we don't need to head to the south when the war starts. As you know, modern warfare is totally different from that of the 1950s.
A friend of mine in Washington is completely different from my friend in Seoul.
North Korea was previously under the control of China, but now, it seems, Kim Jong-il has gone independent. So his behavior is unpredictable. He can easily start a war against South Korea.
Kim seems to think he can win a war on the Korean Peninsula if the United States does not intervene. North Korea out of the control of China can be dangerous.
President Obama has made it clear that the United States is not going to reward North Korean provocations. Enough is enough. This may make Kim decide to start a war. My American friend is reasonable in his own way of seeing things.
Many South Korean leaders from the left to the right suggest that President Obama should open the door to diplomacy. But North Korea has abandoned such a thing ― and betrayed it so many times in the past. By now, Kim Dae-jung should be agonizing over North Korea's behavior.
Are all South Korean people helpless? And is that why they are saying diplomacy should be opened?
Diplomacy is not bribery. Bribery cannot bring any progress toward reconciliation and reunification of the country. Wishful thinking cannot bring about anything fruitful in this modern age. Wishful thinking that Kim will become a saint or an angel will never see this materialize. That thinking itself is pathetic.
The distance between Washington and Seoul is far in my view.
Dr. Choi is a retired college professor after a long teaching career in the United States and Korea. He can be reached at yearnhchoi@gamil.com. The views expressed in the above article are those of the author and do not reflect the editorial policy of The Korea Times.