Readers’ voice

On the death penalty...

China, India, the U.S., Japan and several other major countries still use the death penalty. Especially when you consider that technically Korea is still in a state of war, and does suffer the threat of attack, assassinations or sabotage from North Korean agents, I believe the death penalty is an appropriate deterrent/punishment to consider. Korea’s death penalty seems quite in line with many nations today and logical considering the threats it faces.

― James Moyer, Anyang


On the relocation of vendors at Insa-dong...

Greetings,

A large part of Insa-dong’s charm comes from the street vendors ― while I’d love to see more things made locally and fewer things made in China, kicking them to some side project or another curb is far from ideal. A compromise should be reached soon enough ― it worked much the same with the Filipino Market in Hyehwa.

― Chris Backe, Seoul


On nuclear energy...

Germany’s ethics committee announced that the German government has decided to shut down all nuclear power plants by the end of 2021. This move not only corresponds to the view of the majority in Germany but is also a signal for the world.

Let us set aside the capitalists’ view and focus on our moral conscience. I think it is our duty to take responsibility and recognize the importance of renewable and sustainable energy. Economic growth should not be the excuse but the reason to move on. Nuclear power is dangerous in many aspects. We saw severe catastrophes in Chernobyl and recently in Fukushima.

Why cannot the world see green energy as a positive and rewarding investment? Green energy cannot meet the world’s demand for energy yet, but it still cheaper than to pay for the costs of economic damage like in Japan.

Green energy is safe and its development can only contribute to the economic development and growth of a state. Germany’s political move can hopefully wake up other people. The Korean nation should support a green and less dangerous world. We saw that catastrophes can unite people, and therefore we should do the same in order to prevent such incidents in future. We count on you.

― Kin-Yip Tong, Dortmund, Germany