Yesterday the lost sailors of the Cheonan were laid to rest in a military funeral. On the several occasions I've eaten out over the past month the Cheonan was nearly the only thing on restaurant TV's. There have been strong reactions throughout the country... many critical of the government's reaction, salvage operation, and dissemination of details. The country's tone changed as more details were released, and it becomes more apparent that an external event (likely a torpedo) caused the ship to go down. It seems this is a delicate topic, but the country is united by it. From the local English papers I read, it sounds like the sentiment is to not forget the incident but lay it to rest and approach the enemy economically and internationally. The economy looks bright, the currency is climbing, and I don't think young men would like to go to war at this time against this threat.
Tonight we have a staff dinner for Teacher's Day. We'll eat raw trout salad... same as last year. I don't think the atmosphere will be right to ask their opinions about the event mentioned above... or speculate on what is to come. But I'd like to.
In the background I've been reading 1984, and have begun "Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader, North Korea And The Kim Dynasty." The books are frighteningly complementary.
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