Young people are familiar with the Korean War. It wasn’t that long ago. They teach it in school and most people have first hand accounts they hear from older relatives or someone they know. I think in this case it’s the older generation that’s idealistic. Young people are struggling in South Korea. Unless you go to a top school and hopefully land a job in Samsung or LG you’re screwed. Since it’s young people who will take on most of the responsibilities of taking in 25 million people and not retired or closed to retired people. They are not interested in taking on this responsibility. Personally I’m in the middle, although I’m not a Korean national but ethnicicaly I feel for the Korean Peninsula along with just being a human being. But I also don’t have to take on much of the real economic burden of reunification.
To be clear I’m not saying all young people don’t support it and all older people do. It’s still pretty split. Some older people who were there during the war time hate the north and call them reds in Korean and have a strong distrust of North Koreans. Some older Koreans still dream of unification due to reasons like relatives stuck in the north and such. Many young people do, but I’m just saying less and less young people want to take on the burden of unification. North Korea can barely feed their own people many burdens like the his will fall to the South Korean government and everyone understands that unification will take a toll on the South Korean economy. So it’s not as clean cut like you say that they will gladly take unification.
[quote=“Andrew0409, post:21, topic:158959, full:true”]
I think in this case it’s the older generation that’s idealistic. Young people are struggling in South Korea. Unless you go to a top school and hopefully land a job in Samsung or LG you’re screwed. Since it’s young people who will take on most of the responsibilities of taking in 25 million people and not retired or closed to retired people. They are not interested in taking on this responsibility. [/quote]
These kinds of trends almost always follow along economic lines. I’m surprised to hear you say these things because when I was keeping track 6 or more years ago, Korea had a really strong currency and doing well, and this is usually the case under your Minjoo, Democrat Party.
Doing some quick research, I see your government is doing stimulation, interest rates have dropped to 1.25% under Pak, which is the Saenuri Party. And the economy is looking pretty bleak. So that makes sense what you’re saying.
That was why Reagan waited to build our economy before he would even meet with Russian leaders, as he wanted to negotiate from a position of strength. In the 70’s, Americans had a more pessimistic, defeatist attitude and no stomach at all for beating the USSR.
All I can say is Korea’s gotta get with it on the economy again. They know how, they’ve done it before. It’s amazing how much economics affects your life, and people suspect it the least and are the least interested in it.
Most people want unification but not necessarily the burden of it should I say. And especially the economic burden. It would take a tremendous amount of effort to simulate 25 people who have not made much contact with each other for over half a decade. People in the south even struggle understanding when North Koreans speak. The culture is rather different as well. But at the end of the day if possible I do believe South Korea would reunify if possible. And I’m sure other countries are would also vegan humanitarian efforts to help so it most likely won’t all fall on South Koreans to help build up the north.
Germany went through much the same thing a while back. It all worked out in the end.
If young South Koreans don’t want unification, what do they want instead?
Korean economy is sick now, understandable. Assimilation and prosperity comes much more quickly when cooperating with the free market. The North has been impoverished for defying the market in the greatest degree. It will be up to the South to embrace that free market so they can introduce it to the Northerners. Otherwise, it’s gonna be a very difficult row to hoe as it is now.
Some would consider the economic burden of reunification now be more worrisome than what North Korea threatens to do. They have been separated for so long most young people don’t really view North Koreans as their own people. People do feel for the North Koreans, they just fear how they can take up 25million people that they don’t even relate to at this point. The benefits of reunification is long term. But short term most people just don’t see Kim jung un being a real threat in their daily lives. They have their own problems and North Korea is not on the top of the list for young people. They just want to get by with a decent life and job. Which is becoming harder and harder.
I wish you were there too. How will they spot the pirates without your expertise?
People - especially young people - have a hard time seeing the big picture. But when the shit hits the fan they’ll go through a spiritual growth spurt. That’s what happened with the Greatest Generation. Few people are tougher than they have to be… until suddenly they have to be tougher.
North Korea is gonna hit the fan sooner or later. South Korea’s current yuppie angst problems are going to seem small in retrospect. It’s all about the basis of comparison.
Again it’s not all young people. More and more people find reunification un acctractive. Even older generations voice their concern because they worry about their son and grandsons situation already and think reunification would be too much of a burden on them. As more time passes, the people in the south connect less and less with the norths identity as Koreans. Like most Taiwanese don’t recognize mainlanders and their people these days.
There’s a thread elsewhere discussing Taiwanese and their mainland relatives, arguing that this will somehow prevent Taiwanese from having a low opinion of those slack jawed commie yokel thieves and their sidewalk spitting ways. Sometimes distant relations are best kept at a distance. But they’re still family.
Again, Germany went through this and it turned out okay. Different culture, yes. But same species.
If (when?) the Norks invade, the hate will ratchet upward immensely. Will that kill desire for reunification? More likely it will just be seen as a hateful necessity to keep those bastards under control. No sane person expects reunification to be rainbows and unicorns. When reality hits the fan, they’ll see it for what it is: the lesser evil.
Indeed, the burden could be unsustainable. Currently, North Koreans have a bad time assimilating into the rat race, dog eat dog Korean society. South Korea has enough problems of its own without taking in 25 million illiterate, desperate and aimless masses. Easy trabnsition it is not, and the costs have been calculated, way over what South Korea alone can handle.
Please remember China threatened to dump millions of people on England and flood the UK with refugees unless it handed Hong Kong over.
Plus there are too many vested interests in keeping teh NK regime. All those weapons deals, drug trading, human trafficking… they will need an alternate route… or they will take over in teh chaos. Imagine Iraq plus 5.
You keep talking about the big picture. But I feel like you’re not getting the big picture. It’s not necessary people don’t want unification. The idea of it sounds great and family is family is very sentimental. But the big picture is that South Korea would have a extremely hard time taking in the north. 25 million unskilled worker would not only have a hard time assimilating into the globalized world, but with South Koreans itself. I find what you say idealistic. But being of Korean ethnicity myself I have a certain perspective you do not. I’m not exactly fluent in Korean but I do speak and understand it. But when I listen to the north speak. It’s really difficult for me to even understand what they are speaking about sometimes. There is a strong sentiment that one day Korea will unify. But the big picture is that people find it less and less appealing to do so at the financial cost. And although there is some fear of North Korean attacking. Most just think they will topple on itself knowing that what they are doing is unsustainable. Why should South Koreans send their own off to war when it’s likely the north will fall eventually on their own? And South Koreans do take defense seriously as my Korean friends all do 2 years of military service and it’s actually serious. Maybe not like Israel but makes Taiwan’s conscription look like a joke. So people are ready to defend. But not go to war and then take all the financial burden of it after the war.
I think Rowland has the big picture. What you’re saying is also correct, it will be difficult, buts its only a part, but not a factor ultimately preventing it.
Brexit is a good example, and admittedly a close vote. The older people voted for it, because they know. They experienced greater prosperity when they were in charge and called their own shots. And when Europe took their sovereignty, they saw the situation deteriorate, culturally and economically. They had the big picture.
The young people mostly voted to stay in Europe, because their experience is limited, they were born under the European aegis, they didn’t know anything else, the greatness of Britain in times past, the 80s, the Victorian age, the British Empire. They lived their life in the status quo of European management and couldn’t fathom anything else, in a greater prosperity.
How exactly do you dump a mass of people onto an island nation against their will?
Sheesh. You don’t even need to build a wall.
You guys understimate the strenght of millions of fanatics led by lunatics?
North Koreans are not fanatics. There isn’t any similarities to Muslim nations and religious fervor either.
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When this sort of regime topples on its own, it typically topples only after creating a lot of trouble for neighbors. Such as, for example, invading.
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When the Norks invade, you won’t have to send your kids off to war. The war will come to your kids.
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These people are pretty messed up, but they’re not suicide bombers. Their particular crazy cult has no afterlife. In fact, fear of death is what holds it together.
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What you’re describing is what’s happening in the US right now, which a lot of people think is just fine and a lot of other people think is awful. But one crucial differences is the Mexicans aren’t threatening to use nukes. Again, consider the alternatives. Life is full of shitty choices.
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But it won’t actually be as bad as that, because you can keep those peasants right where they are, and they won’t consume the social services or take away all the jobs. They’ll be miserable, but they’re used to that. Then, gradually, you can up their quality of life.
(What’s with all these immigration analogies anyway? We’re talking about absorbing a land mass that has people in it, not people without a place to put them. It’s not immigration, folks. It’s got absolutely nothing to do with immigration.)
Of course, the former ruling class will have to face a Nuremberg trial setup. Or die when their bunkers cave in on them. But screw them.
Germany managed it.
온라인 셀프 설문 플랫폼 나우앤서베이(www.nownsurvey.com)는 지난주(2014. 8. 11~14) 전국 20~60대 성인 남녀 513명을 대상으로 통일에 대한 온라인 설문조사를 실시한 결과 참가자의 57%에 해당되는 292명이 20년 내에는 통일이 불가능 할 것으로 보고 있다는 조사 결과를 밝혔다.
통일에 대해서는 45%가 찬성하고 있으며 반대는 21%, 잘 모르겠다 34%로 나타났다. 특히 남녀의 응답이 차이가 있었는데 남성은 51%, 여성은 31%가 찬성하는 것으로 나타나 여성보다는 남성이 더 통일을 긍정적으로 생각하고 있는 것으로 나타났다.
Most relevant points: Online survey back in 2014 (couldn’t find anything better). Those surveyed were 20-60 years old. Men and women. 513 total surveyed. Over half of respondents (57%) do not believe unification will happen within 20 years.
45% were in favor of unification, 21% against, 34% don’t know. 51% of males and 31% of females were in favor of unification.
(No point to make. I was curious, that’s all.)
Edit: Cool info on a unification tax (a tax to get ready for unification costs). Most don’t like the idea. Read is disagree, blue is agree. With the top bar being the total population (all ages). 