User:Clari 2010

Hello! I am a new member of WikiProject Korea. As an ethnic Korean born and raised outside of Korea Peninsula, my interests in Korean related topics are keen. Learning the history and culture of Korea and Korean people from the main stream cultures gave me many somewhat distorted views and misconceptions regarding the 70 some million people in and from Korea peninsular. In America, they are particularly misunderstood and under-represented in almost every aspect of civil life, especially compared with their neighbors, Japanese, Mandarin, Chinese, with whom they have shared some thousand years of history and culture, among whom they have each maintained their own political and cultural identity. Korea needs to know world, as much as world needs to know Korea. To renew a lost identity is something Koreans are obliged to do, which is a painful burden sometimes, and yet a humanitarian adventure.

Some good hearted Americans asked if Korea's fate in Modern era might be much different if 1871 Shinmiyangyo or so called United States expedition to Korea would take a different result, say a treaty with US like Japanese did in 1853. My personal opinion is that, the conflict and the consequent treaties with Japanese who were empowered 2 decades ago with western technologies and acquiesce from US for its expansion in Asia has its reasons not on the surface. The misunderstanding between the haughty and arrogant Americans(they didn't even bother with bringing a Korean translator with the expedition, instead, a Chinese translator served for some written message translation using hanji, what understanding and respect could have resulted from this kind of communication, one could hardly imagine), and the reasonably suspicious Koreans who had just had some conflicts with outsiders, could be one factor. It's also very likely for young and adventurous American power in 19 century to overlook Korea as its potential ally after it achieved desirable trophies in Asia, or say, treaties with and influences in mainland China, Japan.

What Korea peninsular has undergone, Korean people have gone through, is nothing but tragedy since then. The North is suffering long term isolation - which could be called torture in war. One cannot stop worrying about people living in such torturing isolation for so long, if he or she still cares about moral in today's politics. Nonetheless, the north definitely sees or had seen US as their potential friend. Not long ago, by denying a cornered country's request for a direct talk, US was again but an arrogant super power to them that refuse to give them a last chance for hope. To practice such a irony policy towards a small country that has been isolated for so long, will only add to the people's misery in the North Korea.

To hope for a united Korea probably won't do much. Koreans love the world, I believe, they need understanding and support from the world. Germany united, Israel got their home country. Korea, will unite.