UW Professor Leads Academic Discussion in North Korea
You can’t call it a negotiation or a peace talk when no Government reps are present.
When I first read the title of the above article, I wondered what sort of stuff this professor was smoking, but in reading the article and commentary from others on the discussion that was held, it seems to me like this was just a mock trial sort of deal. I think it’s great that this man is choosing to do something about a problem he is very concerned about, but in the grande scheme of things, only talks between the governments of North Korea and other nations will resolve any of the problems there.
What I do think Mr. Hellman has managed to accomplish, is showing the North Korean government and other governments of the world that talks in North Korea are possible and a positive outcome, for all parties involved, is even more possible. That is something I find to be very laudable. He’s setting an example for everyone, not just for our government and the idea that North Korea’s government might be more responsive to talks as a result of his effort is a thought that I find to be very encouraging.
I can’t say that I am up to date on the situation in North Korea. All I know is that Kim Jong Il is a very eccentric man, who might possibly be in need of prozac or lithium. Because I’ve never heard him speak or even read transcripts of some of his speeches, I cannot say that with any degree of certainty, all I can give you is the picture that has been painted for me by the American press.
What I can say is that I am very concerned about the circumstances with North Korea right now. I dislike the fact that our government has put North Korea on the back burner for so long. Given the larger issues that we were coping with in Iraq, however, it’s understandable that North Korea’s possibility of going nuclear would take a back seat. With China so close and having more resources than we do at this point in time, I can see why it was better to go after Iraq and leave North Korea for later, but entrusting global safety to China is also something I’m not terribly fond of.
I see this as a situation where it was a choice between the lesser of two evils. Sure, Hussein was a nut (as evidenced by the insanity prevalent in his sons), and Kim Jong Il may be a nut as well, but who presented the lesser danger to America at the time. There were no right answers at the time. The only thing to do was follow your instincts, and instinct led President Bush to Iraq.
June 12, 2005 12:38 pm 
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By Dave Justus, June 13, 2005 @ 4:23 am
I don’t think that what this guy is doing is terribly useful. Pretty much he is just generating good PR for NK. While I think his motives are good, he strikes me as being terribly naive.
Negotiations between countries tend to be more hobbesian than he imagines. NK (and the U.S. for that matter) isn’t looking for a solution that will make everyone happy, they are looking to get the most that they can out of the situation. Part of the tactics for getting there is ‘refusing’ to negotiate, trying to put pressure on the other side to make concessions ahead of time.
Hellman may not understand this, but he is simply helping NK in their strategy.
By Random Gemini, June 13, 2005 @ 9:34 am
I give the guy credit for doing something about a problem that concerns him, rather than sitting on his laurels watching the world float by. Few Americans have initiative on this scale and it’s something to be admired.
I do realize that nothing will change in terms of negotiations between the governments, but I disagree that what he has done is not useful. It’s set an example that peace can be achieved if we work at it hard enough, and in my universe that’s an incredibly important example to set.
By Dave Justus, June 13, 2005 @ 1:23 pm
I don’t see how he is setting an example that peace can be achieved.
From what I can read, he is pretty much spelling out concessions the U.S. should make. That isn’t helpful.
Even if we are willing to make those concessions, letting NK know that ahead of time makes the negotiations more, not less difficult.
As it is, all he is doing is supplying PR for NK to use to show that the U.S. government is being ‘uncoperative’ and apply more pressure on our government to make concessions.
Like I said, I assume his heart is in the right place, but he is naive.
By Random Gemini, June 13, 2005 @ 4:36 pm
I don’t understand how you can say that this is giving the North Korean government good PR.
I suppose if one were naive, and did not pay attention to the fact that the article says specifically that no US government representatives and no North Korean government representatives were present for this academic conference, one might possibly infer that, but I don’t feel that this particular article spins the circumstance in that direction.
All the outcome of the conference told us was something that any human being, with a moderately healthy amount of faith in humanity, would have already known.
But.. I do tend to forget that a large portion of the populace fails to read beyond the spin and sees things as the media intends them to be seen.
What I’m saying here, is that I understand your point, but I think the guy deserves credit for standing up and doing something about a situation that troubles him. More Americans should. Rather than calling him naive and being pessimistic about the outcomes of his choice, isn’t it admirable that he took the initiative to do something at all?
My example, today as I was driving home, a little old man was riding his bicycle through the construction zone and did a header straight into the intersection (his bike tires must have slipped on the gravel). I slowed down long enough to see that he was able to get back up, but that was it. I feel bad that I didn’t pull the car over to see if he was okay, and I’m really not sure why I didn’t stop.
Shouldn’t we, in our fast growing era of global community, take the responsibility to do something about the things that concern us? I really felt bad for that man today, I was concerned for his well-being, I had a cell phone. If he needed medical attention, I had it within my power to make sure that he received it long before he could get to a pay phone to call for help.
I’m not talking about in terms of socialist government patting the heads of the sheep. I’m talking about each person taking that responsibility upon themselves to choose to stand up for what they think is right. If a few people are inspired to follow in this man’s footsteps, it places us on a path where we are willing to help each other on a global scale. That, in my opinion, is something that is far from useless.