George Bush’S Great America [EN]: Chapter 34

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“Why?”

After all the favors and support I’ve given, why are you going to Korea first?

Of course, considering public opinion, I need to release a statement like, ‘I, Koizumi, am disappointed in America!’ But that’s not the main issue. That’s not even a problem. Why Korea first!

‘Is something huge happening in East Asia that I don’t know about?’

Since I can’t come up with a rational answer, all sorts of bizarre thoughts spin around in my head, always ending with ‘Why?’

Why? Why on earth!

“Damn it! Bush! Why!”

Anyone, no matter how steely their nerves, would be taken aback by an entirely unexpected situation. A person who’s always calm no matter what? That’s either someone who’s broken in some way or a fictional character from a movie or novel.

“Damn it. There’s something. Something’s going on.”

Koizumi nervously grabbed a notebook filled with ridiculous guesses and state secrets, crumpled it up, and threw it into the trash can. He was so agitated that he deliberately threw it hard enough to knock the trash can over.

“This is driving me crazy! The most plausible theory is that Bush has a great interest in Korean culture!”

Ironically, he was getting close to the truth, but Koizumi couldn’t be satisfied with such an inaccurate guess. I can’t be satisfied with such a flawed theory!

More than anything, this would heighten right-wing sentiment and anti-Korean feelings, but now is not the time to promote anti-Korean sentiment. Now is the time for close cooperation between Korea and Japan for the sake of future political situations. Call it a dagger hidden in a smile or a facade, I need to stay friendly for now.

Anti-Korean sentiment was already rising due to the failure to host the World Cup. Of course, it was a joint hosting, but since it was originally supposed to be a solo hosting, what else could it be but a failure?

“Not now! Not now!”

If right-wing politics accelerate right now, the big picture Koizumi is drawing will be crumpled up like that notebook. Whether it’s right-wing politics or whatever, it needs to be pushed at the national level, but right-wing politics is not something the state creates.

Right-wing politics progresses because public opinion demands it! Just as you can’t create 1 from 0, right-wing figures enter the government when the people need them, and the right-wing figures who enter create right-wing politics. The people who want the right wing elected right-wing figures, didn’t they? Then the seats gradually fill with right-wing figures, so right-wing politics has no choice but to progress.

Did Hitler create the Fascist or Nazi party? No, the people who remembered the glory of the German Empire demanded Hitler in the beer halls! Hitler appropriately utilized that frenzy and molded it like clay to create Nazi Germany.

Japan is the same. The people demanded war, and the state responded to that expectation. They waged a war they couldn’t handle because they were swayed by public opinion!

It’s often jokingly said that Japanese democracy is like a medieval feudal system, but democracy is still democracy. The people could vote for the candidate they wanted to vote for. And if they get elected, they’ll push right-wing politics hard.

‘Should I rig the election?’

Wouldn’t it be okay if I just slowed down the speed of right-wing politics a little? There’s no way that would work. You can’t create 1 from 0, but there are plenty of 1s in the seats. Even if no one stops it and just pushes it, right-wing politics might end in just 1 or 2 years, and the whole country might become right-wing. Of course, there was some exaggeration, but it’s only been 10 years. It hasn’t even been 20 years since that golden age passed.

In other words, the people currently occupying the National Assembly were right-wing figures who fully experienced that golden age.

‘Oh my god.’

Koizumi’s big picture was to leave all diplomacy to the US-Japan alliance and focus on domestic affairs to strengthen the internal structure. The aftermath of the 80s [Japan’s economic bubble] had to be soft-landed for sure.

If he pushes a policy of appeasement to build friendship with neighboring countries and receives the citizens kidnapped by North Korea in his later years, Koizumi’s reign will surely be highly praised. Desire for fame? It wasn’t such a simple problem. I wish it was just a desire for fame! If he doesn’t do that, Japan’s domestic situation will become too dangerous.

In Koizumi’s opinion, right-wing politics was that dangerous.

It was only yesterday that they waged a war because of domestic public opinion and got hit by two nuclear bombs, but have they already forgotten because it was painted over with the bubble economy and economic boom? The most foolish war is a war created by public opinion! What a great forgetting movement!

Koizumi’s reign had to be packaged with the word peace, at least. He might get some flak domestically, but he could make a bigger noise abroad than other World War II war criminal countries. We’ve done this much! So you guys should give in a little! He could shout as much as he wanted! Of course, it could be said that he was shameless and would flip his hand at the slightest thing, but there was a big difference between having a past record and not having one.

It’s easier to bow down for ‘practical gains’!

“So why the hell are you doing this!”

Isn’t the US shouting for a trilateral alliance between the US, Korea, and Japan as a tool for East Asian power projection? Of course, Japan and Korea had no intention of forming an alliance with each other, but isn’t that what the US wants? Isn’t that what you want! Koizumi completely ruffled his half-gray hair.

‘Bush! That damn bastard ruined everything! He trampled on the US-Korea-Japan alliance that his country was shouting for!’

“No. I can’t let this happen.”

History repeats itself, but I can’t just sit back and watch. Do you think the Prime Minister’s seat is just a scarecrow figurehead? Koizumi rose from his seat with bloodshot eyes.

It was only the stage of pulling the trigger. I don’t know what Bush saw in Korea that made him go to Korea like that, but if I find out, I can bring him here and restore my prestige. It was too familiar to attract key figures with Japanese culture.

“Prepare thoroughly.”

I’ll have to turn a pro-Korean figure into a pro-Japanese figure.

* * *

The Osan Air Base was boasting an unusual crowd. It’s not that there were no crowds usually, but at most, it was a place where American soldiers and their families wandered around.

Basically, overseas US military bases were extraterritorial, so everything was American-style, such as stores being American companies or calculating goods in dollars. However, since it was a base in Korean territory, there were also Korean military facilities. For example, the Air Force’s BX [Base Exchange, a retail store on a military base] or a branch of Kookmin Bank.

The crowd included the Air Force, but also civilians such as reporters. However, the races were truly diverse, for the following reason.

“The President of the United States is flying a fighter jet to Korea to this base. It’s true, I’m telling you! Ah, what am I saying! I’m hanging up!”

“Prepare quickly! There’s not much time left! Get into position!”

The reporters were struggling to take pictures of Air Force One landing beyond the control line in the distance. It’s unusual for reporters who would normally flock to take pictures of the president to be so crazy about taking pictures of a fighter jet that isn’t even the latest model. Well, F-18 is old, but the F-18F itself is still being produced to replace the F-14 Tomcat.

Anyway, aren’t newspapers and news more about the response from subscribers and viewers than the content? The scene that can maximize that is, no matter what anyone says, the moment the landing gear of the F-18F touches the runway of Osan Air Base and the moment George W. Bush opens the canopy and comes out.

In severe cases, some reporter teams took positions to take good pictures and even set up tents and stayed up all night like Black Friday to try to get an interview.

“Get out of the way!”

“There, it’s coming!”

Of course, when the time came, there was no such thing as childish ‘spot reservation!’ and all the reporters were pushed around. There was an excellent common language called English, but everyone pretended not to know and pushed each other while swearing only in their native languages, starting a small world war.

In this situation, the reporters who had taken a position at a suitably distant location rather than the best position were laughing at the sight. If there was no control line from the military side, they were about to hold cameras and wait in front of the runway where the fighter jet was approaching. Since risking their lives for an exclusive is the birth and duty of a reporter, it was truly laughable and bitter that they might actually do that.

George Bush entered the country in such a mess.

The problem was that the reporters, who couldn’t even say a word to him because he got into a helicopter waiting right next to him, looked quite ridiculous.

* * *

“What did you just say? Say it again.”

It was a deja vu-like line, but what can I do? Something happened again that was likely to bring out this line.

“The old madman of America has arrived in South Joseon [South Korea] on a fighter jet.”

There was anxiety in the voice of the man delivering this news because there was a friend who delivered the same news yesterday and was purged.

“You. Have you forgotten what happened to that bastard yesterday?”

“It’s true! Please take a look at this, General!”

It was overseas newspapers and news collected by the Intelligence Department’s Reconnaissance General Bureau. There, a picture of George W. Bush confidently getting out of the fighter jet’s canopy was clearly taken.

‘Isn’t this guy completely crazy?’

Kim Jong-il was momentarily stunned because his absurdity was jumping so high that it was about to reach the ceiling.

He considered whether it was manipulation or synthesis, but there was no need to commit fraud on a global scale anyway.

“I’m going completely crazy, Gire [aide].”

Kim Jong-il himself did all sorts of things to strengthen his rule, but he had never even thought of or tried to go to another country on a fighter jet. Of course, it wasn’t because Kim Jong-il had a fear of heights.

Kim Jong-il, who was monopolizing the world’s finger-pointing and being treated like a madman in the international community, at least had common sense in his skull. Knowledge, understanding, and judgment that people can generally have to be human.

Kim Jong-il himself often chuckled alone, saying that he was half-crazy, but it seemed that the old American’s brain didn’t have that ‘common sense’.

‘Is this a dream or reality?’

Kim Jong-il slowly looked back on himself, wondering if he was doing something like drugs right now. Soon, he faced reality.

Then why did he come on a fighter jet? Is it really because there is no common sense in his brain? There’s no way! No matter how reckless he is, there’s no way he’d ride a fighter jet for no reason. There must be at least a small, very small and trivial reason.

China? No. At this point, there’s no way he can do anything to China with just a fighter jet visit. Then Japan. No. Why would he touch Japan, an ally? Then the last thing left is….

“Our Joseon [North Korea]?”

“Yes?”

“Shut your mouth!”

The man who unconsciously retorted turned pale. Kim Jong-il basically had bipolar disorder, so he would do anything when he was in a good mood, but when he was in a bad mood, he had the talent to make people say goodbye to this world with mortars or field guns.

Those American bastards are invading our Joseon!

“No!”

Kim Jong-il instantly threw away the hypothesis he had established. Yes, no. It won’t be an invasion right away. If that were the case, why would the US president come to South Joseon?

At this moment, Kim Jong-il was dominated only by the emotion of anxiety.

North Joseon was creating all sorts of posters such as Let’s sweep away the American invaders forever! Let’s knock down the Americans with one blow! Ruthless punishment for the Americans! But in reality, if they were to confront the US, the end was obvious. The war wouldn’t start with a nuclear bomb right away, but the conventional forces were also inferior in quality and quantity.

First, they had to stop the American bastards’ forces, or at least be able to talk.

“Nuclear!”

I need a fucking big nuke!

“I’ll squeeze out all the funds I have, no matter what, and pour them in, so succeed in the hydrogen bomb experiment right away!”

Yes, this is the only answer!

“Right now!!!”