I Became Park Jeong-ui’s Nephew - Chapter 275



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He became Park Jeong-ui’s nephew. – (275)

“Before the Japan-Korea Annexation, the average life expectancy in Joseon was 24 years, but after the annexation, it increased to 56 years. Do you acknowledge this?”

“Yes, but it’s not because of Japan. It’s just that the infant mortality rate has decreased. When you become an adult, you don’t die as much.”

“Look at the population growth rate. When Korea was first annexed, the population was only 10 million. But by 1945, it was over 20 million.”

“Then is the increase in the African population also due to the rule of Western powers? Even countries like Africa have a growing population. The fact that the Japanese reign was peaceful cannot be used as evidence just because the population increased.”

“No. Under Japanese rule, rice production in Korea more than tripled. I admit that a significant amount of it was exported to Japan, but Koreans were able to buy a lot of grains by selling rice. This is closely related to population growth….”

“Hello. The consumption of mixed grains in Joseon actually decreased. From 1915 to 1919, Joseon people consumed an average of 2 seok, 3 seong, and 2 jak of mixed grains, but in 1934, they only ate 1 seok, 6 do, 5 seong, and 7 jak. At that time, Joseon people were starving. What on earth is your basis for saying that?”

Here in Japan, a hot topic has hit Japanese society.

Japan has already apologized to Korea for its past history, and this is no longer something to be discussed in political circles.

But why is there a movement in academia to glorify the Japanese colonial period?

This started with data recently released in the United States.

[Europe – The economic growth rate of countries under American colonial rule was only 1-3%. However, under Japanese colonial rule, Joseon recorded an average annual growth rate of 4%, which was a very unique phenomenon among countries under colonial rule at the time.]

If this is true, Koreans should bow down to the Imperial Palace instead of blaming Japan.

But that’s not the case, so there must have been talk of this in Japan as well. In fact, during the cultural rule period, Japan invested a lot in Joseon and even exempted it from income tax.

So is all this a favor from the Imperial Empire for the Korean people?

At that time, the Korean people were so poor that Japan could not even collect taxes.

The productivity from rural areas was about 10 million seok of rice, which was barely enough to feed the farmers.

So, they laid the infrastructure and made investments in Japan, and they set the stage for people to come to the city, work, and pay taxes.

But what was the result?

Even if Japan continued to pour money into it, it was realistically impossible to provide jobs to that many Koreans.

“Isn’t this just pouring water into a bottomless pit?”

“Hey, okay, okay, you guys should come here and work.”

This is why so many Koreans went to Japan to get jobs, and it goes without saying that Koreans suffered from low-wage labor in mainland Japan.

However, Japan’s infrastructure construction targeting Joseon continued steadily, and the number of Joseon-affiliated companies increased from just 112 in 1919 to 2,768 in 1939.

At first glance, it seems like the number of Korean companies has increased, but this is like a fly on a cart.

If a Japanese company’s capital was 10, a Korean company’s capital was less than 1.

Even if the number of Korean companies increased to 2,000 or 3,000, the main business was ultimately monopolized by Japanese companies. Even if we assume that Korea grew tenfold under Japanese colonial rule, this does not mean that Koreans are ten times better off than before.

If a fly gets on a cart, is the fly driving the cart?

A fly is just a fly; it cannot lead a cart.

For 36 years, the owner of the cart was Japan, and the pro-Japanese collaborators ignored that and thought they were the owners of the cart.

No matter what statistics or facts you bring up, it is true that Koreans were exploited during the Japanese colonial period.

Ultimately, the point of this case is how to interpret statistics.

It is true that rice production more than doubled during the Japanese colonial period and that much of it was smuggled to Japan, but didn’t Koreans also accumulate wealth based on that rice?

But there is a flaw in this logic.

The fact that the landowners monopolized rice meant that they became rich by selling rice to Japan, but was that possible for the farmers?

Since there is no rice to sell in the market, the consumption of miscellaneous grains has also decreased.

As rice consumption and grain consumption were simultaneously destroyed, many Koreans suffered from chronic hunger.

Meanwhile, landowners accumulated wealth by selling rice.

To say that the economy has improved just by looking at this is just lip service.

American scholars had not thought of this until then; Joseon’s economic explosion was only to supply goods to mainland Japan.

But what do you mean by an average annual economic growth rate of 4%?

They only produced rice diligently because it was for their own consumption, but the majority of Koreans could not eat rice, let alone mixed grains.

This is why even the Korean history academia has been turned upside down.

The Korean government also mobilized historians to correct history.

“If you are a scholar, you should interpret the statistics properly. During the Japanese colonial period, Korea’s economic growth rate was 4%? You should figure out where all that went. The majority of Koreans could not eat rice, let alone grains. These are statistics directly collected by the Japanese Government-General at the time, so there is no room for controversy.”

The American university professor remained silent in response to the Korean scholars’ rebuttal.

As we pay the price for glorifying Japan’s rule over Korea by only looking at fragments, the Japanese academic community, which had been clamoring that Japan’s colonial rule was not wrong, has also become quiet.

So, wouldn’t such errors not exist in modern society?

Is Ukraine really happy under Russian rule?

First of all, it is true that Ukraine was exploited under the Soviet system.

But it is a sad fact that the Soviet Union, which exploited Ukraine in that way, was also in deficit.

According to a joint investigation by the Korean Central Intelligence Agency and the Russian government, the Soviet Union had a deficit of 30 billion rubles every year since the five years before its collapse.

Not only the Soviet Union itself, but also Azerbaijan, Georgia, Romania and Estonia were all in total chaos. What on earth was going on in the Soviet Union?

Korean statisticians published their results based on research over the past 10 years.

“At that time, the oil and natural gas production in the Soviet Union was 1.2 billion rubles and 300 million rubles, respectively. But these were prices traded within the Soviet Union. Considering that the same amount of energy was traded in the West for 3 billion rubles and 800 million rubles, the Soviet Union was distributing energy domestically at incredibly cheap prices. That’s the problem.”

It’s not like they’re digging the ground to do business, so what’s the point if companies sell energy so cheaply?

This logic also applies to governments. Was it because the Soviet Union’s energy production technology was so superior to that of the West that it was able to supply energy at such a cheap price?

Of course not.

It was just because the Soviet government forcibly suppressed the price.

The cost of energy production was high, but supply prices were extremely low, so the Soviet Union had no choice but to continue to accumulate deficits.

This is the real reason why the Soviet Union had a deficit of 30 billion rubles every year.

They were somehow able to cover their deficit by exporting to Europe, but when Korea and the US joined hands to further lower energy prices, they could not hold out and collapsed.

The Soviet Union’s annual deficit on the eve of its collapse was a whopping 50 billion rubles, and its debt increased explosively in just a few years.

This shows how fatal the economic sanctions of the Western world were to the Soviet Union at the time. What about now?

Soviet communism collapsed, and the Russian government can no longer suppress energy prices as it used to.

As a result, energy prices in the Russian Republic are skyrocketing, which is normal.

The question is whether workers’ wages have increased as much as the energy boom has. If only this had been done well, the Russian government would not have been criticized by Ukraine.

Energy prices have tripled since the collapse of the Soviet Union, while wages have doubled.

Isn’t this why Ukraine is so dissatisfied?

When proper statistics came out, the Russian government was left speechless.

Raising wages would stabilize security in Ukraine, and only then would the Russian republic have a justification to rule the land.

Eventually, Russia pushed for wage increases, bringing wage increases almost in line with the inflation rate.

Then Ukraine will not be able to say that the Soviet Union is exploiting us.

In fact, Ukraine’s economic growth rate has been more than 3% per year since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

It is so important to correctly interpret statistics and apply them to reality, and in that sense, Korea has complete control over its overseas territories.

The inflation rate in the Taiwan-Songhu-Jinling-Yan-Manchuria-Inner Mongolia region was 4.5% over the past three years, and the wage growth rate was 4.5%.

That’s why I have no words,

In fact, the growth rate of overseas territories is higher than that of mainland Korea.

It can’t be helped because the Korean mainland is already saturated, there’s nothing left to dig up, and there’s nothing more to do on this small peninsula.

This is why the Korean government is gradually turning its attention overseas.

Wouldn’t it be better to move the capital from the cramped Korean peninsula to the continent?

But that is opposed by Koreans from the mainland.

If the government moves its capital overseas, what will happen to the mainlanders? If the economy of overseas territories grows further, the voices of Chinese people may become louder.

Korean natives are throwing a tantrum, saying that’s not right.

However, Chinese Koreans strongly requested that the capital be relocated.

“How long will the Korean government be trapped in the Korean Peninsula?!!”

“Korea will develop further only if we come out to the continent!! We will take the lead!!”

The growth potential of overseas territories, which has already been proven by statistics,

In fact, there is a prediction that if Korea moves its capital to the continent, its average annual growth rate could jump to 6-7%.

If we maintain that pace for 5 years, we will overtake the US economy.

The world balance is literally tipped.

“But for now, the natives are still important.”

“In reality, it is the locals who pay the most taxes, right?”

But Korean politicians are silent.

The Korean government’s budget this year is about 5 trillion won, 63% of which is paid by Koreans.

Even though overseas territories have expanded, the Korean economy still revolves around the Korean Peninsula. So are we going to abandon that and go to China?

Who would dare say such a thing?

It is not something that even a head of state can easily decide on.

“So we need to expand our overseas territory.”

What is clear is that heads of state continue to invest in overseas territories.

If we continue at the current pace, the economies of Korea and its overseas territories will be almost equal in 20 years, and by then, Chinese Koreans will be able to confidently raise their voices, saying that we pay the same amount of taxes as you.

The problem is that if this continues, a civil war may break out.

How long will the overseas ethnic groups that have grown to be as big as mainland Korea continue to be under the feet of Koreans?

Koreans in Korea will try to suppress it by force, which is why there are even talks of stopping investment in overseas territories.

Is it right to say that they would hinder national economic development for their own benefit?

Although seemingly peaceful, Korea also faced these problems.