On The Way To School (Today)

As usual, NPR brought me my morning information.  Secretary Rice gave her speech to North Korea.  I believe she did a great job, but I also know some will hear what lurked behind her words and become upset.  As for me, I heard once again what is absent in all our dealings with North Korea--understanding.

Why do we, when we think of nuclear weapons and North Korea, think they want to use them against us or sell them to those who might?  Proliferation of nuclear weapons and self defense are secondary issues for North Korea.  They want more than anything for other nations to respect them, not for their poverty, but in spite of it.  They want to be able to respect the nations as well; yet they have a difficult time when nations throw a sickening cocktail of pity and threats their way expecting them to just swallow it all down without so much as a peep.

Mongolia knows North Korea better than anyone does.  They have shown them ways to improve their standard of living without insulting the Koreans.  The Koreans are a proud and stubborn people.  They will not hear one word someone says if that person or nation starts out either issuing threats, or by saying, "Here, let us show you a better way."   You just don't do that to the North Koreans. 

What I wish Secretary Rice had said would have been, "To you the quiet nation of North Korea.  We are coming to understand your concerns about the stability of the world.  Because we have enjoyed a time of "plenty" we were blind to your plight.  We the United States ask you to forgive us our arrogance as we flaunted our reserves.  It is our hope to bring your nation a security that we won't attack you or invade you.  As you know, attacks such as those we are doing in Iraq at this time are because we had to remove a ruthless enemy who stole the hearts and lives of people in front of their loved ones.  Wars like the ones we are currently engaged in are to be avoided.   Know that we have worried for some time that you might side with the enemy we face and because of our already strained relationships with you, we were concerned you might sell your weapons to them or some other nefarious organization.  We never believed that you would attack us without feeling as though you were under a direct threat from us.  In the next few months, it is the hopes of America that we can arrive at an agreement that you won't sell your arms to our enemies, nor will we attack you unprovoked."  

If we in America would admit this to the North Koreans, they would have a much better reason to believe us and maybe even come to respect us as a country who is finally coming to respect them.