256 - The Korean Axe Murder Incident

What seemingly harmless backyard activity nearly caused World War 3? Gardening! In 1976, a group of South Korean and US soldiers were ordered to cut down a poplar tree in the Demilitarized Zone separating North and South Korea. The North Korean soldiers watching on were not happy and attacked and killed two US soldiers, leaving the US with the question of how to retaliate. They didn't want to look weak but they also didn't want to kick off a huge war... This is known to history as The Poplar Incident, AKA The Korean Axe Murder Incident.Support the show and get rewards like bonus episodes: patreon.com/DoGoOnPodBuy tickets to our streamed shows (there are 8 available to watch now! All with exclusive extra sections): https://sospresents.com/authors/dogoonCheck out our web series: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL2TuMQ31VXvqqEus9Bo6FZW-dDY5ukEuh Submit a topic idea directly to the hat: dogoonpod.com/Submit-a-TopicTwitter: @DoGoOnPodInstagram: @DoGoOnPodFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/DoGoOnPod/Email us: [email protected] out our other podcasts:Book Cheat: https://play.acast.com/s/book-cheatPrime Mates: https://play.acast.com/s/prime-mates/Listen Now: https://play.acast.com/s/listen-now/Our awesome theme song by Evan Munro-Smith and logo by Peader ThomasREFERENCES AND FURTHER READING:Toby Luckhurst’s BBC article https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-49394758Uri Friedman’s article with The Atlantic https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2018/06/axe-murder-north-korea-1976/562028/https://medium.com/history-of-yesterday/korean-axe-murder-incident-48f3e16e47b6 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.