Doug Struck:

Opposition to U.S. troops in South Korea that seemed to be boiling over has quieted dramatically in recent weeks, because of new threats from North Korea and a suggestion from Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld that U.S. troops may be cut and repositioned.

Still,

an activist explains, "We don't think of Americans as protectors. We think of them as occupiers."

But one of the reasons the Koreans are worried is

it could mean South Korea would have to spend more on its own defense.

Not to say the Americans are completely opposed to troop reductions.

Jimmy Carter sought to remove all but 14,000 troops, but was effectively blocked by his own aides, who opposed the idea.

Just when I think my opinion of Carter can't drop any lower, it does. But Korean feelings look pretty contradictory.

"I think it was right, and justified, that we stood up with candlelight protests against American offenses," said Lee Young Joo, 29, a high school teacher. "And in the long term, I think the troops should leave. But right now is a very sensitive period, and I think they should stay."