5 Reasons Why North Korea Hates The USA 'If there are 4 American bastards, and you
kill two, how many American bastards are there left to kill?'
This is a subtraction lesson from a North Korean classroom.
The children are expected to answer 'Two American bastards.'
Their hatred is so deep rooted that even while conducting a tour in the Sinchon museum, American's
are unflinchingly referred to as "bastards".
The news tells us about Kim Jong-Un's missile attacks and Trump's retorts to the provocation,
but understanding why the North Korean's view Americans the way they do is key to understanding
where the hatred stems.
Number one: The Forgotten War While Americans skim over a paragraph on the
Korean War in their history books between World War II and the Vietnam War, for the
North Koreans this war reshaped their lives forever.
Most Americans are unaware of the fact that during the war 635,000 tons of bombs and 32,557
tons of napalm were dropped on Korea, more than what had been used against the Japanese
during the actual World War.
While the war began because North Korea wanted to reclaim South Korea, the former lost 20%
of its population to war atrocities.
Every town in North Korea was razed to the ground, and only they were left to deal with
the repercussions.
Number two: Mistrust Kim II Sung mistrusted even his allies Russia
and China.
He had seen during the Korean War that they had not supported him fully, and when Russia
lost its super power label, North Korea lost its trade footing too.
With an entire country stricken with famine, Kim (and his future dynasty) saw the potential
in being self-reliant and not trusting anybody else.
In order for them to accomplish this, they needed to spark the same mistrust in their
people.
Number three: Self- preservation : The Kim Dynasty
The Kim dynasty has taken self-preservation so seriously that even in cases where there
is a choice between investments in agricultural development or military spending, the government
would opt for the latter.
This was accepted by its people because of the constant reminders of US hostility.
They had to protect themselves against all US threats, even if it meant forgoing a better
standard of living.
Number four: Propaganda This frame of mind was further perpetuated
by the last of the kin, Kim Jong Un, whose entire focus is on manufacturing consumer
goods and becoming a nuclear power.
In a country of 24 million people, out of which 1 million plus serve in the military
for ten years, it is surprising that there has been no uproar by the populace who are
shrouded with poverty and famine.
The Kim dynasty has run a tight ship.
The North Koreans have been indoctrinated since birth.
Their country is fueled by two factors; its hatred for Americans and its love for music,
and the two even converge in a music video where 'Save the world' plays against a
backdrop of New York getting bombed.
While this reckless rage might seem shocking, it has been carefully cultivated over years.
The Sinchon Museum chronicles the atrocities committed by the American soldiers.
A very famous story and statue is of an American man who stabbed a Korean woman to death, drank
her blood and then ate the flesh of her thigh, raw.
The whole premise of hating the US is based on fear and hate.
Most North Koreans haven't even met an American.
Most of what they know about them has been manufactured by the government.
Number five: Lack of exposure This leads us to an interesting end.
Why is it that most North Koreans haven't sought the truth out themselves?
North Korea is an insular country which is laden with shortage and despair.
Most of what they watch and what they know is controlled by the government, hence they
only know how much the Kim dynasty is willing to show.
Only in the recent past has the North Korean population been exposed to more, and that
is due to defectors.
These defectors take glimpses of American life in the form of television shows on USB
drives to show their countrymen back home.
These efforts have opened up North Korean minds to the possibility that their situation
with the US isn't as dire as it seems.
While the hatred that the North Koreans feel for the USA is exaggerated, and a lot of it
is unfounded, it is rooted in a bitter truth that American's cannot afford to forget
in light of recent history.
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