Maybe it is the time for America to listen to others?

Author: YoonOk Kim


About two weeks ago~~~in the middle of May, 2011, US veteran Steve House told an Arizona television channel that he and others were ordered to dig a long trench in S. Korea and buried about 250, 55-gallon drums of Agent Orange at Camp Carroll in 1978~~~in S. Korea. Steve House was stationed in S. Korea as an Army heavy equipment operator.



After his claim, more veterans came forward to claim the same issues~~~ buried hazardous chemicals in S. Korea~~~ but different parts of S. Korea. People were/are concerned, VERY SCARED AND WORRIED. I am also concerned as a citizen of the Mother Earth. We have come too far~~~too fast~~~too high. This is the time to slow down and look around to help each other and to protect our Mother Earth.



This all happened last week and this week, and now US and S.Korea have a joint investigation to verify these claims as requested by concerned Korean Officials.



I would like to say Thank You to US veteran Steve House who came forward because of his medical symptoms and because he knew that Agent Orange was bad for people.



Without his revealing his digging and burying experience, we would not know about the hazardous chemical burials!



***



Born and raised in S. Korea and came to America to study, I have lived in America for 17 years now.



During my seventeen years of living in America since 1994, I see both good side and ugly side of America. I have witnessed good and bad, justice and injustice, fairness and unfairness, corruption and willing to fix corruption of America. I have met wonderful American friends and also have some bad experiences. My overall experience in relation to America has been mostly a positive one.



One thing I would like to point out today is I have noticed that many Americans think that Americans owe their freedom to the US military. I also noticed that many Americans think that US military are in S.Korea to help S.Korea.



In reality, why US military need to be in S.Korea?



Do they use S.Korea to control all other Asian countries?



Or, do they use S.Korea to dump all the hazardous chemical and nuclear wastes?



This is NOT about American people~~~This is about US foreign policy and US military action, which not only affect America, but also negatively affects the whole world.



We as ordinary people are the same and are blinded through media and Bureaucracy.



We all know that Agent Orange and related chemicals are hazardous for people and our environment. If the claim of US veteran Steve House is true~~~we all need to think about people who have lived the areas where US military buried Agent Orange. People have lived there for such a long time around those places without knowing what were buried~~~toxic herbicide Agent Orange.



I consider the act of burying Agent Orange in the foreign soil as treacherous crime.



This is not only problems of people who have lived there, but also American problem.



I think this is the Time to clean up any messes US military have created!



What would you do?



Would you take those toxic chemicals back to America?



We have learned news that US had a plan to build a place to bury nuclear wastes in S. Korea, 2005.



We have to act that Agent Orange must be destroyed and disposed safely since there are many people and veterans who were/are exposed to these agents ~~~some died because of cancer development.



This untold act of our environmental and human destruction caused by US military should seriously be looked and never allow such things from happening again.



I say, Let's all take full responsibility and fix it all together!



I also noticed that many America think that America, as the greatest country, has to lead the way to peace~~~America needs to lead the world.



I think this concept of leading the world has led America into building bigger and bigger military empire ever across our world. This requires more and more military actions with and without Americans' knowing, which have ruled out military action against so many others.



Yes, I want No more wars!
Yes, I want No more violence!
Yes, I want to recover the health of Mother Earth to save life and humanity~~~
Yes, I want to focus LESS on the capitalism, consumerism, and luxury system, but focus MORE on harmony with nature~~~ Mother Earth~~~SOIL.
Yes, I am here to plant seeds of love, healing, and peace in the Happy Garden of Universe.
Yes, I want all of us to Live Well & Live Simple with mutual respect and co-existence, NOT just live better at the expense of others!



Maybe it is the time for America to listen others?
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/environment-articles/maybe-it-is-the-time-for-america-to-listen-to-others-4853061.html


About the Author


YoonOk Kim began writing after experiencing a near-death from her brain aneurysm rupture in 2007. After more than one month of hospitalization in the ICU, she came home with many setbacks.



When she felt she had NO hope and NO life and NO tomorrow, her backyard welcomed her to start new life...a new chapter. By working in the soil, planting seeds, and connecting to mother earth, she asked herself, "Who am I?".



With her feet and her two hands, like roots, connecting with the warmth of the mother soil, she dig up the soil to plant seeds of love and healing.



In the same way she dig in her garden, she dig up the story of her mother and her grandmother, while the history of her birth land, Korea, lingers in the background. Suddenly, something clicked, and initially, she did not know what it was. Because she never thought that way, but she now realizes that her family story is a part of history--not separate from it. Through the rootedness from the plants, she now feels and smells the soil.



This was how she started writing her stories to understand the root~~~the SOIL.