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My name is Jeff, and I write this blog. I work as an interface designer in Denver, CO. I am also an amateur musician and an atheist.
Tag Archives: north korea
The awful absurdity of North Korea
In North Korea, government enterprises cannot pay their employees, so the employees pay the enterprises to let them skip work so they can make money on the black market. In response to this growing non-socialism, the government recently devalued its currency, wiping out people’s life savings.
This and more in a New York Times article about life in North Korea.
Those North Koreans who have never crossed the border have no way to make sense of their tribulations. There is no Internet. Television and radio receivers are soldered to government channels. Even the party official’s wife lacks a telephone and mourns her lack of contact with the outside world. Her first question to a foreigner was “Am I pretty?”
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South Korea has turned its giant speakers back on
South Korea has giant speakers at the border between it and North Korea. They’re basically a collective, national middle finger. In 2004, they were shut down because of improving relations. But now that the North has sunk a battleship….
Also tagged music, noise, south korea Leave a comment
North Korea Has a New Leader, and You Should Change Your Name
North Korea is rolling out Kim Jong-il’s successor. They haven’t released a photo of him yet, but it’s safe to assume that he doesn’t look as ridiculous as his father. (Still, I will hold out hope.)
We do know his name though! It is Kim Jong-un, and all other North Koreans named Jong-un must change their names.
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The Non-Starving Citizens of North Korea Get Pizza!
Congratulations, North Koreans. You now can have pizza. …Well, not most of you. Those who are already dying from famine and poverty probably won’t get to enjoy any pizza. Sorry about that.
Chefs were sent to Italy for training by leader Kim Jong-il, who said North Koreans should be able to try the world’s best foods, said Choson Sinbo.
Many people in the secretive communist state live in poverty and rely on food aid, but a wealthy elite can afford a more luxurious lifestyle.
An estimated two million North Koreans have died in famines since the 1990s.
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