The More You Tighten Your Grip…
It’s hard to get solid news out of North Korea. About the only news we get is when the Ministry of This r That makes some threatening pronouncement of impending world conquership under the unyielding hand of Dear Leader — which is hardly solid news. But StrategyPage has this item, which you might find interesting:
Since June, at least two additional combat divisions have been camped outside the North Korean capital. No official explanation was given for this troop movement (which required using a lot of scarce fuel.) All is speculation in the north, because intel agencies in South Korea, the United States and China are reluctant to release any solid information, lest they risk exposing the few good sources they have up there. But the current rumors indicate that most of what’s going on up north these days is driven by efforts to keep the government going. This is difficult, because supreme leader Kim Jong Il is apparently dying, or at least believes he is. The big problem is that his chosen successor is his youngest son, an able enough young man in his 20s. That’s too young for a place like Korea, where people like their leaders elderly. Kim Jong Il is trying to convince his elderly associates to honor his choice of successor, and apparently not everyone is convinced.
And so… the People’s Democratic Republic descends further into unvarnished military dictatorship, as People’s Democratic Republics must.
Ah, nothing like a coup in a nuclear power to liven up things …
At least Absolutist Monarchy meant you allowed trade in.
Spent a looooong time in South Korea a while back.
When things get really, really tough economically, people in Korea eat grass for sustenance. Since humans can’t digest grass, it’s a very miserable experience. In fact, the Korean words “Ko” (grass) “Seng” (life) together are KoSeng, meaning to suffer. Why did I waste your time with this? Because it’s what North Koreans have been _living_ for the last few decades, every drought.
North Korean television regularly has documentaries on how to prepare grass for eating. Seriously.
The place is truly hell, and it’s completely the fault of Kim Il Sung who started the Korean war, and his son Kim Jung Il, who is one of the worst bastards to ever defile the soil of Earth.
“Team America” was NOT a documentary, except at the very, very end where it was revealed that Kim Jung Il is actually a roach.
North and south Korea are the living example of the difference between the ultimate socialist dream state and a run of the mill free economy with only a little more corruption that the US has to deal with.
If your leftist friends refuse to believe this, direct them here:
http://www.google.com/images?q=Korea%20light%20satellite&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi&biw=1337&bih=842
Satellite night views of North and South Korea. At first the pictures are amusing, then, after a very short while, it is deeply disturbing. After that, you’ll just settle into a depressed funk of pity for the poor North Koreans. If you choose not to follow the link, I’ll summarize:
North Korea’s Capital Pyongyang is a small light at night. The rest of the country is dark.
The Korean War Cease Fire is 50+ years old, and they’re still, literally, in the dark.