August 20, 2018

"Oh brother, it will be great when reunification happens. Let reunification happen, and let’s live together for even just one minute before we die."

Said Kim Soon Ok, 81, who was able to spend 11 hours with her brother Kim Byung-oh, 88, after the two were selected as part of a reunification of 90 families who had been separated in the Korean War nearly seven decades ago. She is quoted in "Tears, hugs, arguments as Korean families reunite seven decades after division" (WaPo).

32 comments:

Birkel said...

President Trump will probably cause a nuclear war between the Koreas.
-Trump haters

langford peel said...

Let's hear from all of the media scum who thought the Presidents efforts were worthless.

paminwi said...

What a beautiful outcome for a few families! Let's pray for more but celebrate what has happened. Baby steps for sure, but you have to start somewhere.

Seeing Red said...

Awwww! Still WINNING!

Trump gave some Koreans their dying wish!

Jim at said...

While there's a ways to go, it's a start.

I'm sure most of us remember the first weekend people from East Germany were able to walk through to the West. And look at it now.

No matter what your politics are, a reunited Korea would be a good thing.

Mike Sylwester said...

Did John Brennan's CIA predict that this would happen?

CJinPA said...

langford peel said...
"Let's hear from all of the media scum who thought the Presidents efforts were worthless"

I'm pulling for POTUS but I think these visits have been happening for several years.

Anonymous said...

God bless Trump.

Mike Sylwester said...

I wonder what John Brennan thinks about President Trump negotiating with Kim Jong-Il after North Korea hacked the Sony movie company's computers.

Maybe that's another example of President Trump's treason.

=====

Speaking of Brennan, today I heard a local talk-show host, Mark Simone, remark that anyone who saw Brennan hanging around a playground would probably call the police.

OldManRick said...

Seven decades - let that sink in. No one has managed to get even this simple change in seven decades.

Trump may be a loud-mouth, boor, and whatever you want to call him personally, but he understands that we aren't living in the 60's and 70's anymore. We don't need to continue a "war" with North Korea - it's been over for a long time. We don't need to prop up Europe against Russian tanks pouring through the Fulda Gap with heavy NATO presence and little European contribution. We don't need lopsided trade as we rebuild Europe - the Marshall Plan worked, it's done. The political science being taught in Universities is out dated, but those who were educated in it can't change.

Even little wins are good winning.

Bay Area Guy said...

One thing not to get lost -- on Korea, the Cold Warriors were honorable and correct.

Think of South Korea over the past 70 years -- thriving democracy. Yes, some hiccups and mistakes, but nonetheless, liberty and prosperity.

Now think of North Korea -- nuff said.

Now, think of all the tough, young American boys were sent to Korea to fight (and die) in hopes of saving the country. Well, we "only" saved half (South Korea).

Our Korean War vets are heroes. And, America, flaws and all, deserves much credit in sacrificing to save South Korea.

traditionalguy said...

The Stable Genius strikes again. When he talks softly and carries a big stick, the CIA war hawks call Trump treasonous for not verbally attacking . Trump made a world peace deal his way. IMPEACH HIM!

Meade said...

As my tshirt predicted a few months ago: https://www.flickr.com/photos/althouse/41807907531

Wince said...

“That’s a lie,” his nephew said, parroting North Korean propaganda. “American bastards waged the 6/25 war. We fought on our own.”

He must watch Rachel Maddow show.

“Yeah, that was good,” Cha Je-keun answered with a smile, ending the quarrel.

It's easier to be magnanimous when you don't live in a shit-hole country.

Wince said...

Meadehouse,

Never mind the Amazon portal you need to start selling those shirts exactly as shown.

Achilles said...

August 28th comes.

It is already clear there will be a wave. It just won’t be blue.

Watch for people to start moving assets to countries without extradition treaties soon.

narayanan said...

Achilles said...

August 28th comes. It is already clear there will be a wave. It just won’t be blue. Watch for people to start moving assets to countries without extradition treaties soon.

has hillary bought tickets?

Darrell said...

I hope Brennan has followed his comrades and put a cyanide pill in an hollowed out tooth, ready to bite at a moments notice.

gspencer said...

The picture told me immediately who lived in the North and who in the South.

exhelodrvr1 said...

It remains to be seen if NoKor will denuclearize, but they are clearly playing nicer now than previously. We'll see how much coverage this gets. (Also the recent lifting of regulatory restrictions for EpiPen generics - an example of the positive impact brought by the changes in regulations that this admin is undertaking.)

Howard said...

Meade: please create a clickable link as per professors orders

AllenS said...

Small steps, but steps in the right direction.

Meade said...

Sorry Howard -- typing on my phone. Too lazy to make clickable link. Professor can punish me later.

EDH: great idea. For someone less lazy than I. Source image here: https://www.axios.com/trump-north-korea-kim-jong-un-summit-1f641f39-a162-4311-be7b-c796daa11e67.html

MacMacConnell said...

EDH said,

"It's easier to be magnanimous when you don't live in a shit-hole country."

Only winners can be magnanimous.

Francisco D said...

Very few people thought that Germany would successfully reunify. Maybe the same can happen to Korea, if China allows it.

One of the biggest problems the Germans faced was integrating a workforce that had no work ethic or management skills. One of my client companies (automotive industry supplier) bought a company in the former East Germany and lost their entire investment in the mid-1990's.

The company could not recover and was bought out by a bigger supplier.

The Godfather said...

"Almost 70 years ago" is a little imprecise, but I assume that these families have been separated since the North invaded the South in June 1950. Military aggression tends to separate families.

exhelodrvr1 said...

Meade,
"Professor can punish me later."

Where is Lazlo when you need him?

Mike Sylwester said...

OT

Russian Escort Says She Gave Recordings of Deripaska Discussing 2016 Election Back To Deripaska

Art in LA said...

Yeah, whatever happened to Laslo, or was it Lazlo?

cronus titan said...

Ambassador SPock taught us that reunification of Romulus and Vulcan could never come through diplomacy. The Romulans negotiated unification to mask their scheme to conquer Vulcan. They were thwarted only through the heroic efforts of Spock, Picard and Data. Despite their shared genetics with Vulcan, Romulus was too war like and brutal. Spock taught us that unification could only come through decades of cultural exchange and grassroots desire. Spock teaches an important lesson.

https://trektapestry.com/2015/05/03/unification/

Spock's efforts on Romulus toward unification end up destroying Romulus but that is a lesson for another day.

Achilles said...

narayanan said...

has hillary bought tickets?

She keeps falling down stairs while grubbing for money in other countries.

Just saying.

todd galle said...

I don't remember where I read it, but it seems that while the Norks and the South both speak Korean, there are huge amounts of modern words, phrases and concepts current in the South that have no meaning in the North. Most tech language is meaningless drivel to the Norks. Most of North Korea is stuck in 1949 linguistically. What's up Daddio? might be futuristic to your average northerner.