What's your opinion on this?

[Yamazaki]

So currently, Korea and China are the only countries that call the Sea of Japan the East Sea. Korea has recently been lobbying hard to change this. Well, the Virginia Senate just passed a bill to require new school textbooks to use the name East Sea as well as the Sea of Japan in its curriculum. I was wondering what people here thought about that.

[Odycee]

Seas should not belong to any country names, makes it general name less offensive to neighboring countries to avoid future conflicts which leads to senseless wars.

[decke48]

The east sea has to many variants to it depending on where your from. For example the atlantic, pacific, and the baltic are all referred as the east sea. For all we should say call it the gulf of Russia. Let each country call it what ever they want.

[rkrenicki]

I personally believe that the term "East Sea" is a little ambiguous. While it is indeed east of China, Russia and Korea, it is not to the east of Japan or any other country. I also agree that seas probably should not be named after only one of the countries that it touches.

I think a name of something along the lines of "Oriental Sea" would be more appropriate.

My question is.. who was so offended by the name in the Commonwealth of Virginia that they lobbied and successfully passed a law requiring both names? Seems like an unusual thing for them to get all worked up about.

[Felipe]

Seas should not belong to any country names, makes it general name less offensive to neighboring countries to avoid future conflicts which leads to senseless wars.
Yup I agree on this

[Wiscon_Mark]

My question is.. who was so offended by the name in the Commonwealth of Virginia that they lobbied and successfully passed a law requiring both names? Seems like an unusual thing for them to get all worked up about.

I was wondering this as well.

[Yamazaki]

Seas should not belong to any country names, makes it general name less offensive to neighboring countries to avoid future conflicts which leads to senseless wars.
By this argument, we should change the Gulf of Mexico and the Indian Ocean...

My question is.. who was so offended by the name in the Commonwealth of Virginia that they lobbied and successfully passed a law requiring both names? Seems like an unusual thing for them to get all worked up about.
As I said, Korea has been lobbying US politicians to have the names changed.

I'm a little upset that US politicians are allowing other countries to dictate what is being taught in our schools.

[rkrenicki]

Oh, the lobbying is being done here, I didn't catch that. That makes it even more confusing to be honest.

[Wiscon_Mark]

Well, they probably feel that if the US acknowledges something then it's a forgone conclusion that it will be renamed.

[Dead91silvia]

Seas should not belong to any country names, makes it general name less offensive to neighboring countries to avoid future conflicts which leads to senseless wars.
By this argument, we should change the Gulf of Mexico and the Indian Ocean...

My question is.. who was so offended by the name in the Commonwealth of Virginia that they lobbied and successfully passed a law requiring both names? Seems like an unusual thing for them to get all worked up about.
As I said, Korea has been lobbying US politicians to have the names changed.

I'm a little upset that US politicians are allowing other countries to dictate what is being taught in our schools.

I agree...

If everyone decided to get so ridiculously politically correct, we will have car's name with numbers and letter, not real people name of real locations.

The fact that they have spent time and money as voted in leaders of a subject such as this really pisses me off. I'm sure that next will be re-naming the Golf of Mexico because Texas, Louisianan, Florida, and Missouri will all have something to say now.

I also see this as political relations for the benefit of political gains, not for the gains of humanity.

[Wiscon_Mark]

Why would Missouri care?

[rkrenicki]

I think he meant Mississippi.

[Dead91silvia]

My bad... I get all those M states mixed up. LOL

[Thomistopheles]

I fully support the renaming of the Gulf of Mexico. It should be the Gulf of Maryland and/or Massachusetts.

[rkrenicki]

Gulf of North Dakota.

[Muse]

I fully support the renaming of the Gulf of Mexico. It should be the Gulf of Maryland and/or Massachusetts.
Gulf of America.

Aaaand, since technically Mexico is part of the continent of North America, they can't complain. And Canada can get in on the action, too. But we'll all know what we mean when we say it.

[Wiscon_Mark]

Gulf of 'Murica.

And rknecki, I knew what he meant, I was just prodding. :smt064

[Yamazaki]

So this issue is really starting to heat up. It was even on NPR this morning. I agree with what was written in a recent editorial:

We understand that public education systems ultimately need to be responsive to the taxpayers who pay for
them, and the legislators in Richmond are representing those taxpayers. But the history they
teach should be based on the best judgment of historians, not on such considerations as, to quote Sen. J.
Chapman “Chap” Petersen (D-Fairfax), the fact that “in Virginia, there are a lot of Koreans. There are very few
Japanese.”

I hope it doesn't pass. I don't want to set the dangerous precedent of other countries dictating what we teach in our schools.