Q: What made you interested in the historical issue of the Comfort Women? Why did you get involved?

 

The Story of the Comfort Women and Their Statues Make No Sense to Me

A: Well, what got me interested were a few things. They had equal weight. Number 1, I kept hearing this Comfort Woman issue coming from the Koreans, and when I started to instill some logic into it, the story didn’t hold up. It didn’t make any sense.
I was still was on the sidelines in reference to it, but what infuriated me about the Koreans was that monument they placed in the park in Long Island. Are you familiar with it?

 

The Korean Community in New York Disrespected America’s War Veterans

That was a section of the park dedicated to American Korean War Veterans. To me, when they did that, they desecrated the park. They showed disrespect, and it infuriated me. That was basically the spark that lit the fire.

 

I Authenticated Army Documents That Proved the Story Was a Lie

And then there were the documents from the United States Army. Are you familiar with them? I’d seen them before on the Internet, and I didn’t think much because, as you know, the Internet has a lot of forgeries. I didn’t know if they were authentic documents.

When Korea started dragging the United States into this dispute, and desecrating our military veterans, I sent them off to the National Archives to see if they were authentic documents. They authenticated them, and it just blossomed from there.

Plus, a lot of my good friends in Japan were telling me that the story, these Koreans presented, was not entirely true. The people, who were telling me this information, had been people who in the past were thoroughly honest with me, so I had no reason to doubt them or disbelieve them. Besides logic supported what they were saying, and at the same time, the same logic did not support South Korea’s position.

Q: From your experience, what is exactly the definition of a “sex slave”?

A: My definition of a sex slave is someone held in captivity, forced to engage in sex against his or her will.

Q: What exactly were “Comfort Women”?

 

The US Army Documented That the Comfort Women Were Well-Paid, Professional Prostitutes

A: The vast majority of them were well-paid prostitutes according to the reports. I have to defer to the United States’ information as I said in my video about the issue.

Q: Korean people keep insisting that Japanese Army forcefully gathered women, and made them into prostitutes, but it wasn’t actually true. I’m asking your opinion on the Comfort Women because you learned about the facts of the issue from official US Army documents, right?

A: Right. Based upon them, I must say that the majority of the Comfort Women were wealthy prostitutes. That’s not to state that every woman was a wealthy prostitute. There might have been some held against their will. I’m willing to concede that fact because I’m not going to say it was 100% true in every case. What can I say because they’re claiming Japan forced around 200,000 women into sexual slavery?

 

200,000 Korean Men Would Not Have Joined the Japanese Imperial Army Had the Army Actually Abused Korea’s Women

I have to question it. If 200,000 of those women were dragged off the peninsula into sexual slavery, where were the South Korean men when it was happening? I mean, anywhere in the world, if you drag that amount of women out of the country, men are going to have something to say about it.

Also, why did over 200,000 Koreans attempt to join the Japanese Imperial Army if supposedly Japan had taken 200,000 of their women? That doesn’t make sense. President’s Park’s father rose to become a distinguished officer in the Japanese Imperial Army. Why would he have served in an army that was abusing his fellow countrywomen?

 

The Koreans Are Not Being Honest

None of it makes sense to me. When I saw those Army reports, they pretty much sealed it for me that they weren’t being entirely honest with themselves when they tried to sell their ideas on sexual slavery.

To me, it’s basically about their desire to get more money again.

Q: Last week, I met Senator Tony Avella from Nassau County in New York State. He took the initiative to build the monument in Eisenhower Park. I showed the official documents from the US Army to him, and he just thought nothing of them. He said they’re just pieces of paper. What mattered to him were the testimonies of the Korean constituents from his district. He accepted everything these constituents told him because they held the majority position in his district, so he felt that he had to listen to what they had to say. Senator Avella was very sympathetic to their opinions. Although he said there was ample evidence, to me, it didn’t appear that he had done his research. My magazine is a religious magazine, and as a writer for The Liberty, I try to share correct information based on the facts. What are effective ways to prevent this kind of objective reporting from happening in the United States?

A: There’s virtually nothing you can do about what happened. The statue is already there, and it’d be very difficult to remove it.

 

The Koreans in America Have Unlawfully Inserted Themselves Into a Foreign Affairs Dispute

There was a Japanese professor in California, who filed a lawsuit, but the case was defective and the courts will remove it. The way he filed that lawsuit was brilliant, contending that by placing the statue, the Koreans basically inserted themselves unlawfully into a foreign affairs dispute, which is against United States law because the Federal Government is exclusively supposed to handle foreign affairs.

The precedent for it happened in the state of Arizona when it passed its illegal immigration laws. The Federal Government sued them, and said, “Wait a minute, immigration has nothing to do with the states. It’s a federal responsibility.” The courts overturned the state’s laws on that basis. I had hoped, by using that precedent, the Japanese gentleman would succeed with his lawsuit, and the statue would be properly removed.

Another way to prevent the Koreans in the future is basically whenever the Japanese and Americans see it’s going to rear its ugly head to speak with the city council people involved, and let them know the other side of the story.

 

Japanese Americans Prevented the Display of Statue in Cupertino, California

It seems that something similar took place in Cupertino, California. Toward the end of last year, the Koreans came in front of the city council to place a statue in its memorial park. Because the Japanese-Americans in California notified the city councilmen out there, it seems as if the issue has died, but we still have to be vigilant to make sure it stays that way.

 

Concerned Citizens Drafted a White House Petition

There’s also a White House petition, which won’t ever get everything removed, but it has alerted them that there are many people dissatisfied with the statue and they disagree with it.

Q: Are there many Americans who disagree with the statue?

 

The Comfort Women Issue Is Not Big News in America

A: Yes. Americans, that are aware of it, don’t like it. America, on the whole, is not basically aware that that statue is a monument, and it’s not an important issue to most Americans. The reason why it hasn’t made big news here in America is because Japan has a very positive image in this country. Also, when people do become aware of the issue, if they believe the story the Koreans have been telling through their sponsors, they think, “That was so long ago. Forget about it – 68 years ago, 70 years ago.”

In this country, the only people it’s important to are the Koreans, and it bothers me that statues are being placed in our Veterans’ parks.

Q: Now, North Korea is acting up. It launched missiles again last March. Even with these circumstances, the Korean residents in Bay Ridge have continued to denounce Japan and have been using the Comfort Women issue. What are your thoughts?

 

Hatred Has Blinded the Koreans to Their True Enemies to the North, the Communists

A: It goes to show how much pure hatred for Japan motivates these people. They’re not so quick to criticize people in the North because of their relationships. They have the same language, culture, and family ties. They’re blind to where their true enemies and, dangers lie.

Japan poses no problem for the people in the South, whereas the North does. Their actions also serve as a diversion. By focusing their hate toward Japan, and putting the emphasis in that direction, it diverts them from the reality of what’s happening up North.

 

Korea’s Hatred of Japan Is Similar to Terrorists’ Hatred of America

The people of Japan have to accept it, as we in the United States accept the fact that we’re always going to have to deal with terrorism. It seems like you’re always going to have to deal with South Koreans who are constantly hating you. You’re going to have to deal with it for a long time unless the political situation changes in South Korea where its leaders don’t see political bases among people who hate Japan. This current President seems to be nourishing that hate to her political advantage, and that’s pathetic.

 

The President of Korea Wants Better Relationships With North Korea and China

She doesn’t really seem to be concerned with the threat from North Korea, and it really makes no sense. She’s looking to cement closer ties with the North and China than with Japan.

 

North Korea Hasn’t Stopped Killing People in South Korea, and China Has Divided the Peninsula

Let’s just say she’s correct for a minute, and Japan did commit horrible crimes on the Korean peninsula with the Comfort Women as they say. That was 68 – 69 years ago. The North Koreans have kept killing them up until a couple months ago, and the peninsula was divided because of China.

 

The Korean President Is Promoting Hate for Japan to Her Political Gain, And Her Policies Are Nonsense

She’s embracing those people while she’s alienating Japan. She’s nourishing that hate for her political advantage. I’m glad the United States is trying to put an end to this nonsense.

Q: When I met Senator Avella, he didn’t have much concern for foreign affairs, but he’s actually been interfering with foreign affairs because his constituents have deeply influenced him. How can the Japanese and Americans resolve this issue?

 

File Lawsuits to Get Judges to Remove the Statues in America

A: You’re never going to get him to agree with what you have to say. If you file a lawsuit, similar to the one in California, then you might be successful, but other than with a lawsuit, that monument is going to stay in his park until a judge orders its removal.

Whenever you find out about the proposal of new statues, it’s up to the Japanese and Americans to notify the city councils with proper perspectives of the history. Let them know what’s happened in the past. I had hoped if that lawsuit in California went in the favor of its removal, the ruling might have put a stop to any future statues in this country.

 

The Mayor of Sydney Refused to Erect a Statue for the Comfort Women

Are you aware that the Koreans tried to put one in Australia? The Mayor of Sydney issued a letter saying it had no place in the park. Hopefully, US politicians will mirror the letter that the Mayor of Sydney wrote. I’ve got the letter saved so if this issue rears its ugly head again, I can submit that letter with other documentation to the city council.

Q: What basis do the Koreans in America have for their insistences? Do they have any specific documents or materials?

 

The Only Evidence for the Comfort Women’s Claims Are Korean Government Sponsored, Eye-Witness Testimonies

A: The Korean government has had elderly women claiming that they were forced into prostitution. All I’ve heard so far are their testimonies, but my reply has been that we also have elderly Japanese gentlemen, who were in the Japanese Imperial Army, that have said they visited the Comfort Women stations, which employed the women as well-paid prostitutes who were not forced into it.

 

During WWII in France, French Prostitutes, Who Served the Nazis, Were Ostracized After the War

Are you familiar with what happened in France after World War II with the women who collaborated with the Germans? During the German occupation of France, a lot of women acted as prostitutes or girlfriends for their German occupiers. When the war was over, and France won, these women were dragged into the streets with their heads shaved where they were ridiculed and ostracized. It happened all throughout France.

 

Korean Comfort Women Might Have Said the Japanese Forced Them Because They Did Not Want the US Soldiers to Put Them in Prison for Helping the Japanese War Effort

Say you were a Comfort Woman, and you had been with the Japanese Imperial Army and had enjoyed being a prostitute. Once the war had ended, and you knew that the Americans were coming, why wouldn’t you decide that it was better not tell the Americans that you helped the Japanese? Wouldn’t they have wanted to jail you? Wouldn’t you have said that you were forced? Who’s to say that didn’t happen?

 

The Comfort Women Are Asking for Second Apologies After They Received Their First Apologies Based on Purely False Testimonies

Also, this issue didn’t even come up until between 1989, a relatively a short while ago, for money. Because the Japanese government paid money already, the issue came around again in 1989. The Koreans wanted more money, so they’ve been claiming, “We want a sincere apology,” even though they received a previous apology. It’s just a masquerade for their true intention to collect more money.

Q: How many signatures have you gathered so far against the issue of the statues for the Comfort Women?

 

Using Social Media, 128,000 People Signed Petitions Against the Comfort Women Memorial Statues

A: 128,000, but I just started the petition. I didn’t get the signatures moving. I basically had nothing to do with it. The people of Japan, Europe, and the United States went through social media.

Q: What kind of responses have you received?

A: There were positive responses. Even people, who claimed to be liberal, when they wrote to me about the statues, their basic statements were, “Whether it’s true or not that it happened, it was a long time ago, forget about it.”

I tell people, “Look at the horrible history between the United States and Japan. Japan gave us Pearl Harbor and the Bataan Death March. We gave Japan Hiroshima and Nagasaki. We don’t throw it in each other’s faces. We’re not asking each other for apologies and money. And we’re the best of friends today.” The Koreans should be able to do the same thing, other than the fact that they want money and that the Korean President is exploiting hate for Japan to her political advantage.

 

Korean High School Students Sent Death Threats to My Address, After Their Teachers Encouraged Them to Write Me

There were also death threats. I received a couple hundred death threats and close to 2,000 messages saying “F-You” and all kinds of other curses, which were very vulgar and nasty. A lot of them came from high school students, whose teachers urged them to write me, and they told me. That was the sad part for me. I can understand teenagers doing it. I was probably silly as a teenager, too. But for teachers to induce that kind of behavior, to me, there was something definitely wrong with it.

Q: What do you think about Korean historians that try to incorporate incorrect information about Japanese history in their high school textbooks?

 

The Education System in Korea Fosters Hatred Among Students for Japan

A: It’s hard for me to pick up a Korean textbook and actually read it, so it’s hard for me to get involved with the issue. For a long time, I’ve heard about Korean textbooks that were heavily weighed against Japan and critical to the point of fostering the hate.

When I got those messages from Korean high school students, telling me their teachers urged them to write, it put validity into those claims about their text books, even though I haven’t been able to read them myself. Since those Korean teachers were telling their students to send nasty messages to me, it’s quite reasonable to gather that they also have textbooks that hate Japan.

I went through school and read many history books. I don’t recall any history books in this country that promoted hate. It’s hard for me to imagine that somebody would do it.

Q: Did your father serve in the Navy?

 

My Father Was a Marine Who Fought the Japanese in WWII

A: No, he was a United States Marine in the Second World War in the South Pacific. You can say he was in the Navy, because the Marines are a part of the Navy, but he was a Marine.

Q: Did he ever talk about Japanese military discipline or morale at the time?

 

My Father Returned From the War With Respect for the Japanese Military

A: I have no context to know what the morale of the Japanese forces was, but he did come back with respect for the Japanese military. He never told us anything bad about Japan, which was remarkable to me, because he was stationed in the jungles and his enemy was Japan. When he came back from the war, his concern was, “The war’s over, let’s leave it in the past.” That was in the 1950s, and the war had already been over for about five to ten years.

As a child, my father didn’t teach me to hate Japan even after he fought a war against the country. Maybe during the war, my father hated Japan, which was why he joined the Marines, but I never heard him make any hateful references to Japan. He was a good military soldier, and he enjoyed being a Marine.

Q: Have you found any difference between the national character of Japan and Korea?

 
I Can’t Compare the Japanese to the Koreans After Having Received Thousands of Pieces of Hate Mail from Young People in Korea

A: I’ve had a lot of contact with people from Japan, and it’s all been wonderful and full of good examples of their culture. What exemplified Japanese culture to me and the whole world was the way the Japanese handled the earthquake and tsunami in 2011. I was astounded that there was no looting. I can’t compare my impressions of the Japanese with those messages that I received from the South Koreans.

 

Koreans, Who Disagreed with the Handling of Comfort Women Issue, Have Been Afraid to Speak the Truth Because of Threats from Members of Their Communities

What has aggravated me about the South Koreans has been a little different. I heard from a few South Koreans that they disagreed with the handling of Comfort Women issue, but they were afraid to say so because of threats to themselves or to their families. To me, it was sad that they were afraid to speak what they felt was the truth in their own country.

In Japan, there are many political people that disagree with one another, but they don’t fear speaking of those disagreements. It’s the same in the United States. We may disagree with each other politically, but we’re not afraid to talk about it, whereas in Korea, there’s fear. It tells a lot about its society and culture.

 

Korea’s National Hero Is an Assassin

What especially shocked me was that Korea’s national hero is an assassin! I’ve never heard of that happening in another country. Ahn Jung-geun, who shot Hirobumi Ito, the Japanese Prime Minister, became a hero in South Korea. I never heard of making an assassin into a hero.

For example John Wilkes Booth shot Abraham Lincoln on behalf of the Confederacy (the southern states), which lost the Civil War. If you go into the southern United States now, John Wilkes Booth is not a hero there or anywhere else in the country because he was an assassin. Ahn Jung-Geun is a South Korean hero. You have to ask yourself, what’s going on? How do you make an assassin into a national hero?

Q: China’s President Xi Jinping has been cooperating with President Park, who wished to establish an Ahn Jung-Geun Memorial at Harbin Station. What are your thoughts?

 

The Chinese Communist Party Supports the Memorial at Harbin Station Because It Fuels Disagreement Between South Korea and Japan

A: It’s to China’s advantage to keep the disagreement alive between South Korea and Japan. Whatever keeps those flames of hate burning, China will support, not because it agrees with what the Korean assassin did, but because it’s going to maintain the point of contention between the two allied nations.

 

The Communists Are Using the President of South Korea

That President of South Korea doesn’t see it. Hate drives her. She doesn’t care how the Communists are using her to create divisions between allies. It’s absurd. She’s really an ignorant person.

 

Japan Is Korea’s Second Line of Defense If the North Korea Attacks

There are 48,000 American troops in South Korea. If the North Koreans were to roll south, the logistical support, going to those Americans, would come out of Japan. Japan is basically South Korea’s second line of defense, and the president shouldn’t behave so poorly. It’s lunacy that the South Korean President keeps slapping the face of the country that’s her second line of defense.

Q: Even the United States government sometimes sides with China and South Korea, such as when Prime Minister Abe visited Yasukuni Shrine.

 

The US Was Wrong to Criticize PM Abe’s Visit to His Family’s Shrine, Yasukuni

A: The United States was wrong to insert itself into the Prime Minister’s personal affairs, because he should feel free to travel anywhere in his country that he pleases. It’s nobody’s business. When I go to Tokyo, I also like to visit Yasukuni Shrine.

Q: It sometimes appears to the Japanese public that it’s convenient for the United States government to side with China and South Korea because the US government doesn’t want to re-examine the lies that it told to cover up its historical wrong doings in Japan like the dropping of the atomic bombs and the conducting of the air-raids on Japanese cities full of civilians. Do you have an opinion of this position?

 

America and Japan Should Continue Its Good Friendship

A: When you bring up past wrong doings that the United States committed in Japan, you are basically doing what the Koreans have recently been doing to the Japanese even though what the Koreans have been bringing up, you can dispute it, and what you bring up wrong about the United States is indisputable. However, America can also point the finger back at Japan.

It was a horrible war. America committed many bad acts against Japan, and Japan committed many bad acts against America. We’ve put that history behind us, and we’ve created a good friendship. So, let’s forget about it. Let’s keep it in the past, and let’s continue this good friendship that we’ve been enjoying.

Q: What’s an effective way to deepen the relationship between the US and Japan?

 

Japan Has a Very Positive Image in America

A: Well, I don’t know of any servicemen who’ve been stationed in Japan that did not come back and say they loved it. Japan has a very positive image. When people bring up this ugly stuff from the past, a lot of Americans don’t want to hear it because they only see Japan’s good image of today.

Your comics and cartoons are very popular here. Cosplay is also well-liked. Japanese electronics are renown in this country. About a year ago, the United States military complained to China that the electronic parts it’s been buying, to put into America’s military hardware, have been defective and not of good quality. Chinese officials told the Americans, “Look, if you want cheap, buy from China; if you want quality, buy from Japan.”

 

Americans Recognize That the Communist Chinese Are Belligerent Bullies

Don’t get upset over what the Communist Chinese have been doing in America. First of all, Americans have recognized that the Chinese have been acting like belligerent bullies. As a result, China’s influence on the American public has been extremely small.

As far as the South Koreans go, when they bash the Japanese, Americans say, “Forget about it.” The actions of their citizens are weighed against the extremely positive image that Japan enjoys here.

For example, a lot of popular movies have had references to Japanese culture in this country, and I can’t recall many recently that have had positive cultural images of China and Korea.

Q: When I visited the United States last week, one of the Jewish pundits and Senator Avella insisted that Japan should apologize as Germany has done in the past. Do you agree?

 

Americans Think That Actions Speak Louder Than Words, Japan Shouldn’t Apologize for WWII Anymore

A: Just ignore them. They don’t represent popular thought in this country. I know apologies are very big in Asia, but they’re not very important here in the United States.
A lot of us feel that if people want to apologize, they should apologize with their actions. If they say, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” we say, “Never mind, just improve your actions and behavior.” To a lot of Americans, actions speak louder than words.

 

Don’t Study the Past to Promote Hate

Japan and the United States have improved themselves tremendously since the Second World War. What’s happened in the past has stayed in the past. We’ve studied our histories, and we’ve learned from them in order to make sure that both of our countries don’t repeat the same mistakes again. It has worked well as a vehicle to prevent history from repeating itself, and it hasn’t been done to promote hate.

Q: What do you think would be an effective way for the Japanese government to create relationships with the conservatives in the United States?

 

Japan Is America’s Strongest Ally in Asia, the Only Country Not Afraid to Oppose Communist Chinese Policies

A: Many conservatives realize the value of a good relationship with Japan. They see China’s belligerent behavior, and it improves the status of Japan for people in the United States because Japan is the only country in Asia that will not stand for the situation.

Do you remember what China did to the Philippines? It stole some islands from the Philippines, and they rolled over and played dead. China’s now trying to take over Vietnam’s territorial waters.

I see Japan as being a trusted and good ally in Asia, which can help deter China’s aggression. America has a very beneficial relationship with Japan.

Q: Newspapers, like The New York Times, have been creating articles on issues like the Comfort Women to denounce Japan. What kind of measures should Japan take in order to combat this form of bashing in the media?

 

The NYT and CNN Produce Liberal Garbage

A: The New York Times is a liberal newspaper in the United States. It’s even losing its readership. Its numbers are in decline. CNN is also very liberal. Its viewers in this country have been tremendously decreasing in number as well because of CNN’s extreme liberal positions. That’s the good part. However, The New York Times is influential among people who make policy in the United States, and that’s the bad part.

 

The American Enterprise Institute Counters Liberal Media Outlets

On the other hand, there is The American Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C. It’s conservative and very influential. It doesn’t issue newspapers, but it generates policy statements that target people who make the decisions, which helps to counter the garbage in The New York Times.

 

The Conservatives Are Winning Over American Public Opinion

There will always be democrats who promote extreme liberal ideas. I find it remarkable that President Obama sees Japan as a pivotal and important ally in Asia to deter Communist aggression. I’m shocked that he has this belief, but I’m happy that he does because the conservative camp’s ability to win over an extreme liberal like President Obama indicates the prevalence of its influence in this country. I wouldn’t let something like The New York Times bother you.

America has a good relationship, and our government officials don’t need The New York Times to know about Japan.

 

American Military Want to Work in Japan

America also has a lot of military personnel, who come back to the United States after having served in Japan, and they’ve been having nothing but good things to say about the country. They often tell other people about their experiences.

I know people who have served in the US military in Korea. When they talk, they usually say that they didn’t like it. The same is true for many other countries.

I have a friend of mine, whose daughter is serving in the United States Navy, and she’s stationed in Greece. This June, she’s transferring to Japan. She’s happy to get out of Greece, but she’s looking forward to going to Japan. I guess she didn’t like Greece, however, she’s heard a lot of good things about Japan. It’s hard for her to pinpoint something negative about military service in Japan as opposed to the same work in other countries.

 

The Japanese Should Admire Their Cultural Traditions

I often tell Japanese people to be very proud of the culture they have. Since it’s a part of their lives, they don’t see it as an outsider does. What I see is something to be admired.