NBC has commited a gaffe of epic proportion, and in the process a certifiable member of the global elite has revealed the delusions common among his cohort.

Way to go, Trump-haters! NBC’s coverage of the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics has managed to insult the entire Korean nation – North and South – by stepping on their bitterest sensitivity, and has made a humiliating public apology “to the Korean people.” But as of this publication, the apology has been limited to words read on only one of the Network's cable properties.

The Koreans are paying attention, and so should you.

Jun Ming Ho of the Korea Times reports the gaffe:

During the live broadcast of Friday's opening ceremony, Joshua Cooper Ramo, a commentator for The U.S. broadcaster's coverage of the Olympics, said, "Now representing Japan, a country which occupied Korea from 1910 to 1945. But every Korean will tell you that Japan is a cultural and technological and economic example that has been so important to their own transformation

Joshua Cooper Ramo

Chris Chase of MSN:

NBC issued an apology a few hours later. In a statement read live on NBCSN early Saturday morning, anchor Carolyn Manno said:

"During our coverage of the Parade of Nations on Friday we said it was notable that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made the trip to Korea for the Olympics, "representing Japan, a country which occupied Korea from 1910 to 1945 but every Korean will tell you that Japan is a cultural, technological and economic example that has been so important to their own transformation." We understand the Korean people were insulted by these comments and we apologize."

Mr. Ramo managed to rip the Olympic spirit scab off the deepest wound on the soul of the Korean people.

Hatred of Japan is a foundational element[i] of the Korean psyche, and a driving force behind the stunning rise of South Korea from utter poverty and devastation to rich country status. The cruelty of Japan’s occupation of Korea from 1910 to 1945 is almost beyond comprehension. Rape, slave laborers, “comfort women” and other atrocities live on today in the Korean mind as crimes that require vengeance. And the chosen means of vengeance, thankfully, has been to outdo the Japanese in the climb to wealth, technological sophistication, and international prestige.   

The fact that Ramo does not understand this wound tells us a lot about the delusions that are common to the members of the global elite. Goldman Sachs and the Council of Foreign Relations stints adorn his resume, and he currently (for now) sits on the boards of FedEx and Starbucks.  He has lived in Beijing many years and now divides his time between New York and the Chinese capital, speaks Guo Yu (Mandarin) and has done trans-border deals for a living. NBC brought him in as an “expert,” failing to realize thow far the standards have fallen for membership in the elites ever since the left took over the educated classes.  If only NBC had understood the lesson that President Trump is teaching the American public. Professor Glenn Reynolds of Instapundit laid it out:

One of Trump’s major accomplishments has been to reveal the lack of civic virtue and self-control across our elite institutions.

So how on earth could someone like this say something so earth-shatteringly insensitive? This was a gaffe of classic Michael Kinsley character: Inadvertently telling the truth in an offensive way. The Koreans are reacting in horror because of the implication that they admire the Japanese and are inspired to emulate them. They do not want Japan to be seen as a shining examle to anyone, least of all to Koreans.