Yoon Hee-sook: "Lee Jae-myung brought in Professor Sandel and made a comedy... I burst out laughing"

"Lee Jae-myung and Professor Sandel: A Truly Distant Opponent in Empathy"

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, is having a virtual discussion with Harvard University professor Michael Sandel at the Jeongdong 1928 Art Center Event Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 21st. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Former People Power Party lawmaker Yoon Hee-sook criticized the dialogue between Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, and Michael Sandel, a professor of political science at Harvard University, saying, "I don't know what to say to the Democratic Party and candidate Lee who invited such a distinguished person only to shoot a comedy."

In a post on Facebook on the 21st, former lawmaker Yoon said, "Have you seen the dialogue between Professor Sandel and candidate Lee Jae-myung today? I highly recommend it to those who feel there is nothing to laugh about these days."

Yoon introduced a question that Professor Sandel asked candidate Lee during the dialogue, saying, "Professor Sandel raised the most important question."

Professor Sandel asked, "When I visited Korea, I felt that young people have a great thirst and deep concern about inequality and unfairness. However, not only in Korea but also young people around the world think that politicians do not empathize with their concerns and are turning to other means. What do you think is the reason why there is no comprehensive social and political discussion on this issue, and what should be done about it?"

In response, candidate Lee said, "Professor, you probably don't know me, but I am familiar with you. I have read many of your books and feel like you are a kind teacher. Unfortunately, the time is almost up, and time has flown like an arrow. I will ask you one more question," and instead of answering Professor Sandel's question, he posed a question he had prepared to Professor Sandel.

Regarding this, former lawmaker Yoon said, "This was a question that a politician should have seriously contemplated, but I burst out laughing," and pointed out, "Regardless of the Democratic Party's intention in planning such an event, one thing is clear: they completely fail to understand that candidate Lee Jae-myung and Professor Sandel are very distant and different from each other in terms of empathy."

Former People Power Party lawmaker Yoon Hee-sook. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

He said, "Professor Sandel pointed out the attitude toward success as the reason why the world is becoming unfair. Because of the arrogance of thinking that one's success is solely the result of one's own efforts, people fail to recognize structural unfairness and inequality of starting points. Candidate Lee is a typical example of such arrogance," and criticized, "He boasts that he succeeded not as a 'dirt spoon' but as a 'no spoon,' even dragging down his own family as lowly."

He continued, "However, his father, who dropped out of college in the early 1950s when the university enrollment rate was only 2%, was an extraordinary elite. Money inheritance is not the only factor in family environment. Ignoring the advantage of having educated parents and only elevating oneself by claiming a humble origin is exactly the 'arrogance of the successful' that Professor Sandel pointed out," he sharply criticized.

Meanwhile, Professor Sandel, who had the dialogue with candidate Lee on that day, is a world-renowned scholar widely known domestically and internationally through his books such as 'Justice: What's the Right Thing to Do?' and 'The Tyranny of Merit.'

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.