The brave Korean-Americans that guarded their livelihoods during the 1992 Los Angeles riots have become something of legendary figures in our culture. When the chips were down and society in the city of Los Angeles was crumbling, they successfully deterred rioters from destroying their businesses. Their story sticks in our cultural subconscious, maybe not as strong as our founding fathers or the young men who stormed the beaches of Normandy, but nearly thirty years later we are still talking about them. Using their image as a rallying cry for bravery and grit.
The first lesson that should be taken from their story is that the government will not always be able to protect you. We have become fat and complacent in our lives and the Rooftop Koreans are a stark reminder that we are constantly walking a razors edge between order and chaos. Our system only runs effectively because 99.9% of people act in accordance with most societal norms. If enough people decide to act out, the police can quickly be over run. Couple this with politicians grandstanding about “peaceful” protestors and telling police to stand down while their cities burn, and police usually only showing up after a crime has been committed and you are left with one stark truth: You are your own first responder. You must protect yourself and your property.
The second message we should take from the Rooftop Koreans is that a little bit of backbone goes a long way. The men who patrolled their businesses didn’t have to kill anybody. The threat of violence was enough to deter the rioters. This is the best-case scenario when rioters and looters come to your door, but that outcome will only happen if you show them that you aren’t an easy target. But we must remember that a line in the sand shouldn’t be drawn lightly. You must be willing to stand up if someone crosses the line. If someone breaks into your property with intent to hurt you, your family, or your property as far as I’m concerned, they have forfeited their life.
I can already hear some of you balking at the idea of killing someone over attempting to break or steal “objects.” I plan to further explain my beliefs on private property and how your property is intrinsically a part of you in a later blog, but for now I wanted to talk about some of my personal heroes. We call them the Rooftop Koreans, but in all sincerity when they protected their property from vandals and looters, they were embodying the very spirit of America and for that reason I’m proud of them.
P.S. There is a weird discussion about race when it comes to the topic of the Rooftop Koreans Americans, but this is silly so don’t bring your weird racist thoughts to my door. I don’t care who is doing the looting or rioting, I don’t care about a person’s skin when they are coming to harm somebody else, immoral behavior is immoral behavior no matter what region of the world your ancestors hail from. And to that end, a person who seeks to harm another person can catch a slug or two, I won’t lose sleep over it.
Wyrd Publishing 