There's a saying called the "middle-income trap."
Initially, economic development progresses rapidly, but growth stagnates after reaching a certain level. Ultimately, if a country fails to leap into the ranks of developed nations, it remains a middle-income country or even declines.
Fortunately, South Korea has succeeded in entering the $30,000 per capita income bracket. At this point, it's fair to say we've sufficiently joined the ranks of developed nations, even though there are still many political, economic, and social issues to resolve.
In any case, this is a tremendously significant achievement.
If you exclude Western countries like the US, Europe, and Australia, or Japan, which was the first in Asia to begin modernization, how many nations with a population of over 50 million exceed $30,000 in per capita income?
Those countries have been developing their economies for much longer, whereas Korea achieved this level of growth in just a few decades.
However, it's still too early to rest easy.
Compared to other developed nations, Korea has a shorter history of capital accumulation, so there's a possibility of a rapid collapse the moment economic growth stalls.
To prevent that from happening, we must continue to grow.
Taekgyu blinked and said, "Since when have you been such a patriot?"
I was dumbfounded and asked, "Then, am I a traitor?"
Charity begins at home. If possible, I naturally wish Korea would do better than other countries.
"At least I should do what I can. Whether anyone acknowledges it or not."
Taekgyu nodded with his arms crossed, "The path of the absolute is inherently lonely."
"...."
***
I headed to the Blue House with Senior Sangyeop.
I've been to the White House, but this is my first time actually visiting the Blue House. As expected, security checks were conducted right from the entrance.
Chairman Im Jin-yong, as well as most of the top 10 conglomerate executives, were present.
Chairman Han Chan-young was absent due to his father's passing, and in his place, President Yoon Su-hwan of Eunsung Motors attended. I sequentially greeted Vice Chairman Jin Dong-min of Rite Group, Vice Chairman Jang Yong-cheol of Shinsegi Group, and others.
When I first revealed my presence in Korea, the gazes of other chaebol groups weren't very welcoming.
They probably saw me as just some young punk who luckily made money through speculation. However, it didn't take long for that perception to completely change.
While chaebol groups were struggling in new industries, companies invested by OTK Company grew rapidly.
Who would have imagined that CarOS would swallow up Eunsung Motors?
Now, the industry and financial sectors alike are keenly focused on OTK Company's movements. And my position has risen accordingly.
Among chaebol families, no matter how much they talk about history and tradition, in the market, the one with the most money is king.
In fact, Seosung Group, which initially partnered with OTK Company, is riding high along with us. However, other groups are experiencing difficulties, and that's reflected in their stock prices.
Surprisingly, Chairman Ryu Cheol-gyun of RCK Bros also attended. I thought he didn't usually attend events like this.
He smiled and said, "I wondered if I came for nothing, but I'm glad to see CEO Kang Jin-hoo is here."
I greeted him with pleasure, "Did you come alone, Chairman?"
"Byeong-doo, that friend of mine, has some business in China. The vice president who was with us back then didn't come either."
"My friend doesn't like his face being known."
After waiting for a while, the President entered.
President Heo Chang-min approached the business leaders and shook hands with each of them. He then extended his hand to me as well.
"Haha, CEO Kang Jin-hoo, you've come too. I'm very pleased to see you."
"Hello."
After the greetings were finished, we sat down again. Staff brought food to the tables.
The menu was bibimbap. The rice and vegetables inside were said to be sourced from all eight provinces of Korea.
President Heo Chang-min said, "Bibimbap creates the best flavor when different ingredients come together. I hope that, like this bibimbap, the government and businesses can unite and overcome the current economic situation."
It was a predictable and cheesy comment.
After the meal, coffee and tea were served, and the full-fledged meeting began.
This wasn't a closed-door meeting; it was an open meeting with media cameras present.
As expected, the chaebol chairmen expressed grand ambitions to invest to the best of their abilities and create jobs. They didn't say anything about future prospects being bleak or the economic situation being bad.
The economy is psychological, and self-fulfilling prophecies often come true. If you think the economy will worsen and reduce consumption and spending, it truly will worsen. Conversely, if you think it will improve and increase consumption and spending, it will genuinely improve.
Therefore, any government tends to avoid admitting that the economy is struggling unless absolutely necessary, as it might accelerate the recession.
Of course, there's a big difference between acknowledging the issue but not stating it and not even being able to recognize it at all.
I quietly listened to the words of other business leaders.
"Is there anyone else who would like to speak?"
When no one came forward, President Heo Chang-min addressed me, "CEO Kang Jin-hoo, I would like to ask you to say a few words as well."
The microphone was passed to me, and the cameras turned towards me.
I stood up from my seat and said, "First of all, it's an honor to attend such a meeting. Although I'm not an expert in economics, I'd like to share some of my observations from running OTK Company and making investments."
President Heo Chang-min smiled and nodded, and the atmosphere was amicable.
I continued, "The current Korean economy is in a difficult situation, and many companies are lagging behind in new industries. And it wouldn't be fair to say that those present here bear no responsibility for this situation."
Korean chaebols are closely connected to the political sphere. If chaebol groups had been proactive in fostering new industries, the government would have responded to some extent.
However, chaebol groups became complacent, intoxicated by their past successes. The law of inertia, a principle of physics, applies to businesses as well. It's easier to continue doing what you've been doing than to start something new from scratch. And until now, that approach had worked.
If you created and released a more comfortable and luxurious horse-drawn carriage than existing ones, consumers liked it. But in the meantime, somewhere along the line, something called a car was invented.
CL Electronics missed the smartphone market, and distribution groups like Shinsegi and Rite are struggling in the online market.
Past successes have become a shackle, so to speak.
Suddenly, the atmosphere turned cold. Everyone wore uncomfortable expressions. The content of this conversation would be broadcast on the news tonight.
"Above all, there are too many outdated regulations. While regulations are necessary for business activities, Korea's are excessive. Even world-class startups become illegal the moment they enter Korea. Yet, it's not as if we're effectively fostering domestic industries while blocking foreign companies' entry. If this continues, we will lose new industries to foreign countries within a few years."
The aides wore expressions of dismay, and President Heo Chang-min's expression wasn't good either.
He asked, trying his best to hide his discomfort, "Then, what would you suggest we do?"
"We must stop delaying reforms while being mindful of votes from minority interest groups, as we have done until now. If it's the right thing to do and benefits the nation and its people, we must proceed without considering the party's advantages or disadvantages or vote calculations in elections."
My remarks were practically an open criticism of the political establishment.
The atmosphere instantly turned chilly. No one even dared to breathe, and President Heo Chang-min's face flushed slightly.
However, I continued without paying attention to their reactions, "Both the government and businesses must prepare for the future. We don't have much time left."
President Heo Chang-min nodded with a somber expression. "Thank you for your input."
The conversation continued for another two or three hours.
President Heo Chang-min looked around at the business leaders and said, "Today was a very meaningful event. I believe the government's perspective and the perspectives of business leaders on the ground are different. Please continue your efforts, and our government will strive to be of greater help. We will continue to communicate with business leaders regularly through events like this in the future."
***
After the Blue House meeting ended, Kang Jin-hoo's remarks immediately became a hot topic.
[Kang Jin-hoo, Frontally Criticizes Heo Chang-min Government's Economic Policies!]
[Korean Economy Lagging Behind in New Industries]
[Corporate Innovation Index Hits Rock Bottom…]
[Government and National Assembly Failing to Fulfill Their Roles…]
[Blue House, Officially Acknowledging Economic Recession?]
The ruling New Politics Party expressed regret about Kang Jin-hoo's remarks, while the Liberty National Party raised their voices, criticizing both the Blue House and Kang Jin-hoo simultaneously.
A few days later, President Heo Chang-min stood directly in front of reporters and made an announcement.
"We will foster new industries through regulatory reform and create new jobs. New regulations will have sunset clauses, and if deemed unwarranted, they will be immediately abolished. We will also transition regulatory laws from the current positive system to a negative system."
The positive system defines what is allowed, prohibiting everything else. In contrast, the negative system lists what is prohibited, broadly allowing anything not specifically mentioned.
Naturally, the latter system allows for much faster and more flexible responses to industrial changes.
"Additionally, we will accept public petitions regarding unreasonable regulations on the Blue House website. If a petition receives more than 100,000 signatures, the relevant ministry will respond, and we will initiate discussions for repeal or revision."
This approach is not the first time the Blue House has attempted it; it's modeled after the White House's 'We the People' initiative. As soon as the announcement was made, petitions demanding deregulation flooded the website, as if they had been waiting for this moment.
[Let's abolish the game shutdown law first. Seriously, what kind of crazy bastard created such a regulation?]
[Please allow outdoor terrace and rooftop (business operation) for restaurants and cafes.]
[Aren't you going to get rid of the Mobile Device Retail Law?]
[Korea needs ride-sharing services too.]
[Regulations on accommodation sharing must be eased.]
[Allow self-driving and driverless cars!]
[Please allow individual investors to short sell as well.]
[Please lift the limit on star balloons. Do BJs (Broadcast Jockeys) live on air and eat dirt?]
[Let's establish new regulations on overseas trips for National Assembly members.]
[Please ease height restrictions to revitalize reconstruction. I want to build our apartment building up to 80 floors.]
[I hope reasonable regulations are created to revitalize the drone industry.]
[There is a need to introduce telemedicine and AI-based medical services.]
While there were many petitions urging for necessary regulatory reforms, there were also many redundant petitions, unreasonable demands, and frivolous content.
However, one particular petition caught people's attention.
[(Abolish Pornography Regulations) Has the government ever let our citizens dream happy dreams, even once?]
I want to ask the government. Has the government ever allowed our citizens to comfortably watch pornography?
You say pornography is bad? Ethically problematic and causes various issues?
Then why do countries with higher human rights standards than us, like the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, permit it?
Thanks to pornography, I have experienced happy moments I've never had in reality.
Maybe I too can meet a lover like that.
Maybe I too can engage in (censored)!
Just because pornography is illegal now, are our citizens not watching it?
Citizens are not fools. They watch it because they believe pornography watched by healthy adult men and women should be allowed. They don't just watch it indiscriminately; they carefully research production companies, actors, and product codes, wisely choosing only good works at a level that doesn't disrupt their daily lives.
Yet, because of some illegal filming incidents, even those of us who watch normal and legally produced pornography are treated like criminals.
Thorough management of pornography production companies, tax imposition, protection of actors' human rights, and prohibition of underage access – these are systems that should naturally be implemented, and I do not oppose them.
Of course, even now, there is no difficulty in finding pornography online. Nevertheless, the reason for posting this petition is because, in the current trend, pornography is considered a major industry of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
How long must growing adults watch American pornography or Japanese AV, which doesn't even suit the Korean context?
Now is the time for Korea to produce pornography as well.
While developed countries are already investing in the pornography industry and further developing it, only South Korea's economy is declining due to unreasonable regulations.
Please, do not take away our dream of being able to proudly watch Korean pornography in Korea.
This petition, posted by an anonymous netizen, spread to other websites instantly.
– This is a masterpiece I've seen in a long time.
– I almost cried while reading it ㅠㅠ
– When it comes to porn, our country is still no different from a Japanese colony!
– We must stop the Sadaejuui (flunkeyist) behavior of relying on porn from Western powers!
– Just hit 'agree' and leaving.
– Government, ease regulations on the pornography industry!
– Let's foster new industries!
– What's wrong with adults watching adult content?
– Hit 'agree' and let's spread the link!
The petition to abolish pornography regulations successfully garnered 100,000 signatures in just two days after being posted, and within a week, it reached a whopping 1 million signatures.
Across all petitions, it was the fastest and largest number of signatures received.