[COLUMN] President Moon and apposite centrism

By Seo Hyung-rai Posted : September 11, 2017, 10:47 Updated : September 11, 2017, 10:47

[Courtesy of the Blue House]



(This article was contributed by Seo Hyung-rai, the executive director of the Institute of Traditional Culture.)

As Ahn Cheol-soo, head of the minor opposition People's Party, voiced 'Radical Centrism', even his party members dismissed it as 'bull shit' in English.

Ahn insisted, 'It is not to be carried away by right or left ideologies, but to stick to things that are helpful to the people, and to act with the utmost beliefs in moderation". It's a strange word, but in English, there is a term "radical centrism" and The Economist described itself as 'radical center'.

However, in any notions, their orientation or genealogy is not important and it should be evaluated as to what fruits and outputs they bring in reality. What's the meaning of radical centrism as we are faced with Kim Jong-un's nuclear blackmail, unimaginable pressures from the Trump administration, and the resurging arrogance of China that has pressed down on our chest for 2,000 years?

Faced with a sharp conflict of left and right ideologies, men used to seek a solution in the third way or moderation. However, centrists in the days of liberation 70 years ago and the theory of midway integration under Park Chung-hee's Yushin dictatorship in the 1970s left no mark on history. There is a Confucian word '時中' (Sijung or apposite center) that means 'it's very apposite to the case right here."

What do we do here today and tomorrow for community members? The spirit of Sijung is now needed for President Moon Jae-in. So far, he has won high support from both conservative and somewhat liberal groups which want him to do well. However, as he makes a decision on policies one by one, the president may see the withdrawal of support from both conservative and progressive citizens. The result would become outright if he uses a double-edged sword. He should stick to the spirit of Sijung.


 
기사 이미지 확대 보기
닫기