One of the best parts of Korea is that it (amazingly!) has virtually no crime, at least compared to the U.S. Since possessing a gun is illegal, theft is rare, and muggings are as unreal as my friend's boobs, I can strut home at night through dark alleys in a short skirt and heels without looking over my shoulder. Even at Purdue, one of the safest universities in America, I would only walk on well-lit streets for fear the ATM Killer from two years ago would beat me from behind with a baseball bat.
However, despite their lack of actual crime, my elementary school students are obsessed with guns, murder, bombings, death, blood, and gore. They draw images of killing their teachers, blowing up the school, and shooting other classmates on their papers.
I spoke to another teacher about this horrifying phenomenon but he reminded me that shooting up a school is not even a reality in Korea and that's why the administration doesn't ban such talk and drawings at school.
Why is it that a country where boys (all of whom are forced to join the military and learn how to fire guns) are enthralled by violence is completely safe, whereas America, where even mentioning "gun" in school can get you suspended, has turned into a place where I fear walking home alone at night?
The title of this post comes from Veronica Mars Season 1, Episode 18.
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You may have some misconceptions about crime in South Korea. For one thing, them walking around without a worry in the world has nothing to do with how bad the crime is there. It's just how their culture handles it. Right now in the US, people obsess about crime and it's all you see on TV. People in S. Korea probably have a much more naive approach, like how people were in the US in the 1950's. When my mom was a kid, no one locked their doors, and parents never kept track of where there kids were all day, just that they were home in time for supper. Crime was just as bad back then, and even worse in many ways. It just wasn't mass broadcasted and hyped up.
If you look up actual S. Korea crime stats, you'll see they're ranked relatively high. As far as gun control is concerned, I've never been a fan of guns, but guns are not the problem. In England, they have very strict gun control, and very high murder rates. Comparitavely, Switzerland has very liberal gun laws, and yet they have one of the lowest murder rates in the world. Look at this article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_politics_in_Switzerland
The guy in the picture there has an assualt rifle slung over his shoulder in a grocery store, and no one even cares.
It's all about the culture.
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