North Korea Demands Direct Talks With U.S.

[Jon24]

Mike wrote:

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One more time: the United States had a peacekeeping force in Japan. No significant presence in Korea. There were no "two Army Groups" to have been lost.

which two?

[Jon24]

laojim wrote:

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I praised nobody. I'm not fond of monarchs. I am not impressed with the North Korean government, but they never asked for my approval so I suppose it hardly matters. It is all very well to recognize the north in some technical sense but they are not friendly. Everyone recognizes the north in one sense or another. So what? Rumor had it that Mr. Kim's son was to take the reigns which would make the head of state position hereditary over three generations. This is clearly within a well defined tradition in Korea.
I don't know why you would object to listing the US as one of the invaders of Korea. It was in the newspapers in the fifties and on the TV too. Of course it was not phrased that way when I was in school but so what? I think that if it was mentioned at all it was referred to as the march of freedom or some such thing.
You know, it's all right to go beyond what they taught in school in those days.

I guess my point is for someone whom has such a great grasp of the history of the Koreas, you seem to have little grasp of how the country operates. They are the last/only Maoist Communist state around. Even the Chinese got away from it. After world war 2 The Koreas were occupied by USSR< USA<. They split it in half, The US held free elections to decide how the country was to be run, the commie's wouldn't allow the north to do that. So as the cold war heated up, THE NORTH invaded the south. Thats why I object, because we didn't, they did. Opinions are one thing but do you think your view could be slanted one way or another if you had an important fact like that wrong?

[laojim]

Jon24 wrote:

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I guess my point is for someone whom has such a great grasp of the history of the Koreas, you seem to have little grasp of how the country operates. They are the last/only Maoist Communist state around. Even the Chinese got away from it. After world war 2 The Koreas were occupied by USSR< USA<. They split it in half, The US held free elections to decide how the country was to be run, the commie's wouldn't allow the north to do that. So as the cold war heated up, THE NORTH invaded the south. Thats why I object, because we didn't, they did. Opinions are one thing but do you think your view could be slanted one way or another if you had an important fact like that wrong?

The American army was not sitting quietly minding its own business when suddenly, out of a clear blue sky, the North Koreans invaded. The US raised a force of soldiers and brought them to Korea. This is called invading. They didn't just happen to be sitting at home in Korea when the North Koreans showed up. They all came to Korea from other posts or from the states where they enlisted or were drafted. Yup, definitely an invasion. You can argue if it was right or wrong, but it was certainly an invasion.

It is you who fail to understand. I have read about as much of Marx and Mao as I could without falling asleep and nowhere in the writings of either man do they suggest that in the socialist states they advocate is there such a thing as an hereditary leadership. Indeed they went to great pains to insist that the leadership should come from the people. This does not seem to be the case in Korea, which seems to be developing into some sort of monarchy of the Kim dynasty. That isn't Marxism. That isn't Mao Xue. That is monarchy.

You seem to think that if some American politician says they are Marxists it must be true. Flapdoodle.

[Jon24]

laojim wrote:

<quoted text>
The American army was not sitting quietly minding its own business when suddenly, out of a clear blue sky, the North Koreans invaded. The US raised a force of soldiers and brought them to Korea. This is called invading. They didn't just happen to be sitting at home in Korea when the North Koreans showed up. They all came to Korea from other posts or from the states where they enlisted or were drafted. Yup, definitely an invasion. You can argue if it was right or wrong, but it was certainly an invasion.
It is you who fail to understand. I have read about as much of Marx and Mao as I could without falling asleep and nowhere in the writings of either man do they suggest that in the socialist states they advocate is there such a thing as an hereditary leadership. Indeed they went to great pains to insist that the leadership should come from the people. This does not seem to be the case in Korea, which seems to be developing into some sort of monarchy of the Kim dynasty. That isn't Marxism. That isn't Mao Xue. That is monarchy.
You seem to think that if some American politician says they are Marxists it must be true. Flapdoodle.

You must work hard for this kind of foolishness. Lets see,
"The American army was not sitting quietly minding its own business when suddenly, out of a clear blue sky, the North Koreans invaded"

http://www.historycentral.com/asia/NKoreaInva...
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2792.htm

"The Korean War begins with an attack made by North Korean forces across the 38th parallel dividing North and South Korea. The attack took place on June 24th 1950, and was a complete surprise to the American administration. It was feared that this attack heralded the beginning of World War III."

Well yes they did.

ok so, if you have a friend and he invites you over to his house, do you call it an invaision?

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Type: Highly centralized communist state.
Independence: August 15, 1945--Korean liberation from Japan; September 9, 1948--establishment of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (D.P.R.K., or North Korea), marking its separation from the Republic of Korea (R.O.K., or South Korea).

North Korea has a centralized government under the rigid control of the communist Korean Workers' Party (KWP), to which all government officials belong. A few minor political parties are allowed to exist in name only. Kim Il-sung ruled North Korea from 1948 until his death in July 1994. Kim served both as Secretary General of the KWP and as President of North Korea.

Little is known about the actual lines of power and authority in the North Korean Government despite the formal structure set forth in the constitution. Following the death of Kim Il-sung, his son--Kim Jong-il--inherited supreme power. Kim Jong-il was named General Secretary of the KWP in October 1997, and in September 1998, the Supreme People's Assembly (SPA) reconfirmed Kim Jong-il as Chairman of the National Defense Commission and declared that position as the "highest office of state." However, the President of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly, Kim Yong-nam, serves as the nominal head of state. North Korea's 1972 constitution was amended in late 1992, September 1998, and in April 2009.

So in a nut shell, he's your typical thug 2 bit dictator.