I learned this phrase at work yesterday. I guess it’s kind of an aphorism, but it’s a slang-based, very modern one.
김정은이 중이 때문에 못 처들어오다
kim.jeong.eun.i jung.i ttae.mun.e mot cheo.deul.eo.o.da
Kim Jeong-eun-SUBJ 8th-grade because-of cannot invade-come-INF
Because of 8th graders, Kim Jeong-eun cannot invade.
Basically, the idea is that “kids these days” are so narcissistic, disrespectful, etc., that the dictator to the north doesn’t dare invade the South. It’s just not worth the hassle of dealing with the kids. The Korean expression 중이 (8th grade / 8th grader) is a kind of shorthand for referring to the the typical disaffected, disrespectful and self-centered nature of early teens, including the slang 중이병, meaning “8th grader disease,” as a kind of stand-in term for the characteristic mental health issues of puberty and adolescence.
Thus all the international panic about the North’s belligerence is overblown. It just can’t happen, see? We’ve got the kids to protect us.
[daily log: walking, 5km]