Why I Won't Mind Paying More for My Moo Goo Gai Pan

Posted by Joshua White on 07.12.2006

This column is proof that internet columnists can solve international problems. Now, if only Bush would read what I have to say.

It's been a little over a week since North Korea launched seven missiles. In some sense we should all be relieved. It was for the most part a failure. The missiles didn't really work as they should. However, on the other hand, it is a little scary because North Korea is trying to figure out how to launch missiles that could theoretically hit Hawaii or Alaska. If left to their devices they could eventually have missiles that could reach the mainland. So, there is some amount of danger in letting this country go on without any sort of intervention. This is especially true when you remember (and how could you forget if you watch the news?) that North Korea is working towards having nuclear capabilities.

Since Clinton was in office we have been trying to get Pyongyang to stop attempting to manufacture any sort of nuclear weapon. We have given them tons of aid and technology. How do they respond? Basically, they slap us in the face and ask for more money and aid.

So what do we do? If we care at all about not being held hostage by Kim Jong Il, then we have to stop him some how. No matter what you think about Bush, he's right about this particular issue: diplomacy is the correct method for handling Kim Jong Il and North Korea at this moment in time.

We cannot just storm in there like we did with Iraq. First, we already have over 100,000 soldiers being used in Iraq and Afghanistan. While I'm not sure how many we have left to be used, I'm sure it isn't nearly enough to march on Pyongyang. Further, America doesn't really like their soldiers dying. We've only lost 2,000 in Iraq and Afghanistan and we think that it is a huge number. By some estimates, if we were to go to war with North Korea we'll lose over 10,000 of our own men (for more discussion on this sujbect take a look at the link at the bottom of column). Just remember, they have about a million men and women willing to die for their leader. And then, as soon as we do anything remotely aggressive towards North Korea, they will start lobbing their missiles (the ones that do work) towards Seoul and probably even Japan. Civilians would be dying all over the place and destruction would be everywhere. American ain't be wanting that.

We could stop sending them aid. But I'm not sure that would work either. In 2005, the North Korean government just sent out a statement that due to a better than expected harvest, they won't be needing as much aid that year. They could easily do this again to stave off this sort of manipulation. So this sort of pressure won't work with them. Plus, I think that the North Korean government would be more than willing to let their people suffer in order to make themselves appear tougher than they are. And finally, I'm not sure that we send them enough to really make an impact when we take it away.

America doesn't have the power over Kim Jung Il that we'd like. This is obvious from the lack of six party talks alone. If we had any power in this situation, then we'd be there talking. But you know who does have power? A few hints: big country. Lots of people. Soon to take over our role as the only super-power in the world. That's right boys and girls (do any girls actually read this site?). I'm talking about China.

China gives huge amounts of aid to Korea. According to this site, which is actually quoting another site, the amount in 2004 was more than $450 million dollars. On top of that, the CIA factbook says that North Korea exports 45% of it's goods to China, and imports over 30% of its imports from China. But remember, China doesn't need North Korea. The amount of imports and exports going in and coming out of North Korea is most likely minuscule compared to the economic beast that is mainland China. However, North Korea needs China. They need 'em bad. This is where we, the United States, step in.

As I just said, China doesn't need North Korea, but they (the Chinese) do need us. I would claim (though I'm not sure that i could totally back it up...I'm nothing if not honest) that it is the United States, in large part, that is making China the global power that it is becoming. We buy one-fifth of their exports, spending $157 billion. If we were to simply stop buying their products, their economy would slow down dramatically. As they only buy 4% of our goods, if they were to retaliate by not buying our products we could move on.

So what do we do? Well, I think that we should force China to force North Korea into six-party talks. We will not be manipulated by North Korea into one on one discussions. The way that we force China to do what we'd like is that we simply tell them that until they put what we consider appropriate pressure on North Korea to come to the table we'll be putting a sizeable tariff on all Chinese goods entering into this country. This will hurt the Chinese as they won't sell as much in the US. The Chinese economy will slow down, though it won't stop. Their power will be diminished. And this is exactly what they don't want. I think that eventually this could lead to the pressure from the Chinese that is needed in this situation.

Does this mean that North Korea will bow down to the Chinese immediately? No. And we need not keep the tariff on until Kim Jong 2 makes the political move that we're looking for. We only need to keep the tariff on until the Chinese do what we want them to do.

Will this affect how much we pay at our local Wal-mart? Yeah, probably. If we tell every store in America that they owe a tax for buying a certain product, then that extra cost will inevitably be passed on to the consumer. We won't be able to buy as much. We won't live quite the lifestyle that we were living. We may suffer a bit. I don't know about you, my followers, but I think that this may be an acceptable consequence of being forced to deal with North Korea. For if we don't respond, and respond resolutely there may be very dire consequences.

I have heard no one, liberal or conservative, say that the situation with North Korea is just ducky and we shouldn't do anything at all. The only debate is how we are to handle them now. Personally, I don't care what has happened in the past. I don't care if Clinton did or didn't appease Kim Jong 2. I don't care if Bush did or didn't break past American promises with North Korea. We need to deal with the situation as it is. Certainly, what Clinton and Bush's actions have helped to influence Kim Jong Il's actions, but ultimately he (Kim Jong Il) is responsible for his own deeds. And we need to focus on what just happened, and how that affects the international community, including the US.

The answer as I have suggested is a stiff tariff on Chinese goods. We need to let the Chinese know that we realize that we have helped their economic growth considerably. As a way of saying "thank you America" we are asking the Chinese to use their power over one of our enemies.

Is there a downside? Aside from the potential that we'll have to pay more at Target, I don't see any. I can't understand why China is so adamant about helping North Korea. Is it just a brotherhood of Communist countries thing? They have nothing to win from helping North Korea (well, they may think that they are going to make us look weaker by forcing us to do some thing that we don't want to). So with all this said, there should be no real reason that China shouldn't do as we ask. Think of it as a favor.

So in order to stop a potential war, to stop a possible missile hitting America, to stop the destruction of the cities of our allies...yes, I'll pay more for my cheap plastic jump rope.


While doing a little bit of research for this column I came across the following sites that I found interesting. I thought that I would spread the love.

This documentary shows the history of the conflict between the US and North Korea. You'll need some time to watch it, but it is totally worth it. The best scene for my money is watching all the North Koreans sob hysterically when Kim Il Sun died. (Thank you Jason for the link.)

In the lower right hand part of this page is a Windows Media player icon. Click on it and watch a one minute video presented by the (this is their real name) Korean Friendship Association. It is great!


One final note: I'm thinking about changing my column title. I've never really identified my column by a title. So, I don't think that it will hurt any. Tentatively, I'd like to call my column "The Devil's Advocate." This could work because 1) I am one of the few people on this site who defend a more conservative perspective. On this site, at least, I'm arguing for the minority. And 2) this name would allow me in the future to argue for things I haven't fully committed myself to. Sometimes it is good to just write down your ideas. Then I could have you, my followers, read what I have to say and tell me why I'm right or wrong. Occasionally, my columns would be more of a discussion then a speech.

If you have any comments on my column or my new column name I'd really like to hear what you have to say.