How the Rich Ate South Korea

Hope you enjoy the video.

One of the most shocking things I saw in Korea when I first went there was the amount of elderly poor people. You literally see old grandmas cleaning bathrooms who should’ve retired like a long time ago.

What I learned from reading Manhwa and Korean Webtoons. Corruption everywhere, normal people are underpaid, rich people are evil af, and school bullying to the point of near death is pretty normal. They're fiction but they do reflect on reality. It's weird how Korea is one of the richest countries despite the rampant corruption that is deeply embedded in the system.

This reminds me of that russian joke from the 90s: "everything Marx taught us about communism was a lie. But, everything he taught us about capitalism was true."

As a person who lived in both south korea and north america I can tell you I find it funny that people here (NA) seem to forget that they live in the same situation. Koreans seem to be more self aware of this issue but in north america people seem to turn a blind eye. Corruption in big companies and them influencing the law and regulation for their own benefit is common here. This is more noticeable in korea since there are large companies that are few in number.

It is fascinating how South Korea was able to develop its economy with such shameless corruption. I believe that a rich country is not a country without corruption but a country where the elites understood that it is more profitable to steal 2% of a billion rather than 50% of a million.

This background really helps give context to the recurring theme I see in many of the manhwa I follow of the fight of a gifted outsider against corruption.

As someone who lived in South Korea for several years I can definitely say that South Koreans are nowhere as well off as someone might think. They have the highest household debt in Asia. The average person is living in debt from what I could tell. Most people owned several credit cards and I often saw people paying off one card with another card. But the biggest problem I could see was the Americanization of their thinking regarding the need to constantly keep up with one's neighbours by buying expensive brand name things of every sort ...... basically buying a lot of expensive crap that no one actually needs......merely for the purposes of showing off. And most of it being bought on credit. So when you see a Korean driving a Mercedes or a Lexus. They don't own it. Their bank owns it.

You definitely need Korean subtitle for this. This kind of things can never air in the main media because chaebols own the media there.

When I look at S Korea and India, I can see how different and similar they are at the same time. While in Korea the government was capitalist and was in cahoots with the rich, but in India, the government was openly "socialist" while allowing select industrialists and conglomerates to control a large portion of the wealth. They stop small companies from expanding by making stupid laws while at the same time bailing out multi-billion dollar companies with tax payer money.

"Top 1% of Koreans claim 12% of the income." US: Rookie numbers! (Our top 1% owns 27%).

The Philippines had the same issue when the government owned companies were sold off. Now electricity is overpriced and monopoly is rampant. Good thing new companies are popping up to fight such monopoly. As someone who grew up in poverty, I can say that a lot of talented and intelligent young individuals have played it safe. Getting a regular 9 to 5 job that pays minimum wage instead of pursuing your dreams and higher education. Family is highly regarded here and as per my personal experience, it's either I pursue my college scholarship and let my siblings die in hunger or I work. Of course I chose the latter. While working I even feel bad if I'll eat at a fastfood, spending at least $2 for myself. I had to break my own mentality to be able to treat myself without out feeling guilty. Growing up poor plus having no support from your own parents is really tough. Although I can confidently say I do not belong to the poor social class now, it is still hard. I'll just have to do whatever it takes to make sure my children won't suffer the same fate.

Thanks a lot! As a Korean i’m kinda dazzled that the 2014 ferry accident wasn’t just a random occasion and was closely tied to corruption. Even though I don’t agree with your ending statement about the latest president, (as a 17 yr old seeing my country’s real estate prices soaring it makes me hella scared) everything was a new, fresh experience. Kudos!

Contrary to popular belief, there are NO countries without corruption.

It's amazing how deep the Korean industries had ties with the government. Great content as always!

Truely great video for understanding my country’s history and current politics! Thanks!

Worked in Korea, and honestly the work culture there is soooo bad. Seriously, feel lucky to live in America. The managers and higher ups are literally crazy, they will lie and gaslight you, and blame you for random problems just to save a little face, or to establish a hierarchy, and make it look like they are teaching you something. Things in Korea are more about presentation, than actual functionality. When I was working there, I asked others if it was like this everywhere, and the theme was that most places will be like this or worse and more rarely you will get a more western place to work for. Now do you don't think I'm bashing a country, they do have wonderful public transportation, and healthcare is cheap and the taxes for it were not expensive at all. I think we could implement that here in America. However, America is a much better country to live in by far. What also made me sad, is that Korean food in America seems to be better than the Korean food in Korea. Idk, am I crazy?

Unfortunately there is no political solution. In Korea, the USA, UK, anywhere you look - no party is on the side of the people. It is all corporate interests.

We need an Asianometry for EVERY Country!! Your upload schedule is AMAZING and we all REALLY Appreciate all that you do ! Subscribed 👍👍👍

Excellent analysis! Keep up the good work.