Divided nation

Why is peace such a far away concept? Why must there be hatred between man?

It's human nature to want differently from your fellow man. No matter how civil we may get, war will always be the solution for man. There is no such thing as world peace, and there never will be in my life time.

These flags are the banners of the two Koreas.

The top belongs to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), led by the Communist leader Kim Jong-il.

The bottom is the Republic of Korea (South Korea), led by current President Lee Myung-bak.

Sixty one years ago, the army of the North invaded South Korea in a conflict known as The Korean War. Despite there being no open hostilities (except for a few skirmishes that happen every so often), the war is still techinically going on to this day.

The Koreas share the same culture, language, blood and yet they're divided by differing ideology.

The Cold War was the cause of this, with Soviet influence spreading to the North, and American influence spreading to the South.

There have been hopes for reunification, but all those hopes have always been dashed by some sort of armed conflict that happens.

I write this now because the rising power of the chosen North Korean successor to Kim Jong-il, his son: Kim Jong-un.

I have Korean in my blood, despite growing up American. My mother is Korean and my father is American. I truly hope that these two nation unite in eternal friendship.