NorthKorea Archives - Page 5 of 8

Hundreds of millions of counterfeit hundred dollar bills, part 1

I remember reading this 2006 New York Times article, "No Ordinary Counterfeit" when it first printed, about so-called supernotes, counterfeit hundred dollar bills whose inaccuracies sometimes appeared as technical improvements, long before considering visiting. On Oct. 2, 2004, the container ship Ever Unique, sailing under a Panamanian flag from Yantai, China, berthed in the Port of Newark. As cranes unloaded the vessel's shipping containers, which were filled with a variety of commercial goods, dockworkers singled out a container and placed it aboard a flatbed truck, which was driven to a warehouse a few miles away. There, F.B.I. and Secret Service agents, acting as part of a sting operation, gathered around the container and cracked it open. Beneath cardboard boxes containing plastic toys, they found counterfeit…

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January 10, 2012

A kink in the armor: The Wall Street Journal on luxuries entering North Korea

In my series on North Korean strategy I wrote that I saw small-scale trade as one source of effective change. If trade comes from people in the country, as opposed to institutions or government, North Korean decision-makers will have a hard time stopping it. If it comes with information about the outside world, it can change ordinary North Koreans; perspective of it. The Wall Street Journal today reported on large increases in imports of luxury goods into North Korea, mainly from China. The North Korean leadership's appetite for imported luxuries, highlighted by three Lincoln limousines at Kim Jong Il's funeral, has spread to growing numbers of the country's elite, despite U.N. sanctions designed to force Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear-weapons program. An examination of U.N.…

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January 7, 2012

NorthKorea

The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists on North Korea’s nuclear power development

The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists published a story today on North Korea's development of nuclear power. The story, North Korea from 30,000 Feet, begins with aerial photographs of a new nuclear reactor at the Yongbyon complex first publicly available on November 4, 2010. Unlike a site merely showing images, the writers of the Bulletin article, researchers at Stanford, analyze the contents of the images, model the buildings, and speculate on progress and what the reactor can do. The also speculate on the meaning of the progress to North Korea's stability and relations. I thought the article considered things matter-of-factly, not judgmentally, which motivated me to write about it here (also my physics background). Kim Jong-il's apparent attempts to avoid crisis, preserve "stability," and support the…

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January 6, 2012

NorthKorea

Favorite moments in North Korea of my travel group-mates, part 3

Continuing favorite moments from part 2, yesterday Joseph Joseph said he liked the shooting range most. Here he is at the range. Neil Neil said that the mausoleum holding Kim Il Sung's body was his favorite moment for the over-the-top rigmarole they put visitors through, making it unintentionally amazing -- in particular the giant, full-body blow driers. He described it as over-the-top propaganda and I found it hard to see it otherwise. I don't know if words or even pictures could convey the unbelievable unusualness of the place. In any case, they didn't let us bring cameras in. Taking pictures in the courtyard in front, we crossed paths with a group of middle-aged women also taking pictures, so we all took pictures together. Ingrid Ingrid…

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January 5, 2012

NorthKorea

Favorite moments in North Korea of my travel group-mates, part 2

Continuing favorite moments from part 1, yesterday Josh My favorite moment was learning that the sailor who led the tour of the USS Pueblo was a member of the original boarding party of the ship. I felt he had communicated a message to take what we had learned there and use it to help promote peace, a different message than most of the government-promoted messages. Learning his role made the message feel more genuine, which helped me see him and North Koreans in general as human beings first, all the more so for him being in a uniform. Here I am shaking his hand. For comparison, watch the video they showed us to start the tour of the Pueblo, which sounded more typical of the…

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January 4, 2012

NorthKorea

Favorite moments in North Korea of my travel group-mates, part 1

Toward the end of our week in North Korea I asked all my travel group-mates what they considered their favorite moment of our trip and why. Jordan Jordan liked playing Frisbee most for interacting with kids. Here he is with some kids he threw the frisbee with, in a picture by Joseph Ferris. Alex Alex said he liked the Mass Games for the spectacle, emotion, synchronicity. Here he is at the Mass Games. Alex also said he saw and liked a sparkle in the eyes of all the North Koreans he saw. I'm not sure if the best way to put a sparkle in someone's eyes is to dance with a girl... ... or to shoot guns with them ... ... but he seemed to…

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January 3, 2012

Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

Understanding North Korea featured on Amazon

Amazon featured Understanding North Korea: Demystifying the World's Most Misunderstood Country in the sidebar over the weekend. It was a "Hot New Release" in Korean History It was also a "Hot New Release" in Military Strategy History (although I wrote it on general strategy, not specifically military strategy). Here are the full pages those screenshots came from. I know it's coincidence, by I'm honored for Amazon to show my book with Sun Tzu's Art of War and Barbara Demick's Nothing to Envy. --- EDIT: Here's the ebook, Understanding North Korea: Demystifying the World's Most Misunderstood Country. I wrote it to help increase understanding, communication, and freedom.

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January 2, 2012

Entrepreneurship / Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

A brief history of Understanding North Korea: Demystifying the World’s Most Misunderstood Country

I wrote the following on Hacker News and thought it fit here. Last week I self-published my first book. My visit to North Korea last year amazed me at how much we base our impressions of North Korea on pre-conceived notions. I already blogged daily, but the experience affected me so much I started posting twice daily, one post on North Korea. Then Kim Jong Il died and tons of articles came out on North Korea, many or most had the same pre-conceived notions or assigned credit to the leaders that I thought were properties of the system, making understanding or achieving change difficult. Reading all those articles, I felt compelled to put my perspective out there. My posts on HN got high karma. I…

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January 1, 2012

The best book for understanding North Korea

The best book to understand North Korea

Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

The best book for understanding North Korea

North Korea fascinates us. Its leaders, their posturing and militarism, their economics, and more all fascinate us. Their belligerence puts them in the news often. Yet we know little about them. More than fascinating, they are globally important. They are a nuclear power with the world's fourth largest military and most militarized border. Yet the media, mainstream and otherwise, mystifies them more. No one explains how or why anyone could act like its leaders and population do. Until now. I wrote Understanding North Korea: Demystifying the World's Most Misunderstood Country to explain the situation there. Many books and articles cover border skirmishes, human interest stories, the apparent oddness of their leaders, breaking news, and the like. None before gave the big picture. Understanding North Korea…

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December 31, 2011

Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

Leadership opportunities in North Korea for U.S. Presidents

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hH6nQhss4Yc[/youtube] [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtYdjbpBk6A[/youtube] Memorable, effective words: Ich bin ein Berliner! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall! Two American Presidents were able to strike public relations coups with speeches in Berlin. In both cases they had limited ability to influence the Soviets, though they had great ability to speak to the people on the front lines of the Cold War. I understand their words resonated strongly with them. Few wanted the division through Europe, particularly separating Berlin from West Germany. Probably everyone questions the motives of those who did. The wall's existence -- barring millions of people from something so basic as walking from one place to another -- leads you to question what civilization means if it could lead to that. The Korean Demilitarized Zone cries…

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December 30, 2011

NorthKorea

Celebrations on a North Korea scale

When North Korea holds an event, they do it on scales few others match, though they are announcing only their third leader since 1948, so you can understand their enthusiasm. Here is the site of the rally declaring Kim Jong-un's succession to Supreme Leader when we visited.The New York Times published this picture of the rally today Wow, that's a lot of people. Very tightly ordered too. The first thing I think of when I see this many people at a state capital is Martin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech (with the Washington Monument foreshadowing the Juche tower). I wonder if (when?) North Korea will ever host a comparable grass-roots rally where people come because they want to, expecting to create more freedom.…

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December 29, 2011

NorthKorea

More mass crying at Kim Jong Il’s funeral

Watching the funeral of Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang streaming over the internet, I see the main propaganda techniques they seem to prefer: Many images of Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung Rousing music Large crowds, or the appearance of them Rousing oratory The music and oratory appear designed to rouse, I should say. To my ears they sound like the Andrews Sisters music sounds to our ears today -- so over the top and one-sided that they sound inauthentic. They, presumably the government-run media, layer sounds of people crying uncontrollably over the music and video, as if the people are crying loudly non-stop. The video of the parade I just watched showed crowds in the snow, but standing or milling about, not crying.…

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December 28, 2011

NorthKorea

The Vice Guide to North Korea teaches little and perpetuates pre-conceived notions

I used to love Vice Magazine. I still like it a lot. Ten years ago or so I would scour the East Village for copies when it came out, back when no one knew to associate its back-cover American Apparel ads with harassment lawsuits. I saved copies for years to reread articles I enjoyed. I think I went to some of their parties, but I forget. I appreciate that it's gone more mainstream, though it doesn't seem to have the edge it once did. I just read a bunch of dos and don'ts, so, as I said, I still like it. People often comment about having seen its video guide to North Korea. 391,000 people watched the first part of the Vice Guide to North…

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December 27, 2011

Leadership / NorthKorea

The media keeps misinterpreting North Korea

The media continue with their "great man" model of leadership with regard to Kim Jong Un's succession. They imply if things are happening, the person in the leadership position must be making them happen. I think a systems perspective more accurately describes the situation. For example, today's New York Times describes him becoming "supreme commander" of the military, signaling that his succession is moving forward unimpeded. They imply some chance of someone impeding his succession. I expect anyone with influence would, if anything, help him, for stability and their own safety. More odd implication, that he is consolidating control: The military's support is considered crucial to his consolidating control after the death of his father If anything, I expect everyone is helping him. Everyone with…

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December 24, 2011

Freedom / Nature / NorthKorea

Mass crying over Kim Jong Il’s death: Learning about others teaches you about yourself

Many people have commented on the video of North Koreans crying over the death of Kim Jong Il. You've probably seen it but, if not, here it is. I'll have you compare it with videos more familiar to our culture, then ask a few questions hopefully to increase your self-awareness, authenticity, and freedom. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSWN6Qj98Iw[/youtube] It's been viewed almost seven million times in less than a week. Typical reactions point out how crazy or weird they are. The crazy "they" could be the people in the video, whom they accuse of inauthentically crying or the leaders who somehow force the people to cry. I'd like to look at these assumptions of inauthenticity and forcing. A common theme of my writing about North Korea is to point…

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December 22, 2011

Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

Vaclav Havel and freedom; perhaps I was wrong

Since Vaclav Havel died the day Kim Jong Il's death was announced, and that the two of them sat on different sides of totalitarian rule, many articles mention them together. Havel played a significant role in dismantling one regime. Kim maintained his. My series on North Korean strategy concluded with limited methods to change North Korea. My limited number of ideas in North Korea makes me wonder if I might also not have found many ideas in Czechoslovakia too. I haven't studied Czechoslovakia or his activity so I can't speak knowledgeably about them, but something worked if they brought about a bloodless revolution. If something worked there, it might work again in some form in North Korea. I would hope to be shown wrong or…

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December 21, 2011

Education / Entrepreneurship / Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

Understanding Kim Jong Il from a systems perspective, and what to do now

Reading the spate of articles on Kim Jong Il and North Korea, I've seen what look from my perspective misinterpretations. Reporters repeatedly succumb to ascribing to the leader what I consider properties of the system. I think they adopt a great-man model that says if something is working, someone must be making it happen. With only Kim Jong Il or Kim Il Sung around, it must be them. Misallocating causes to events leads to ineffective or counterproductive strategies to act on them. I'll illustrate with two New Yorker articles, not because they misallocate most, but because they do least. In an otherwise excellent article, Evan Osnos wrote, commenting on Vaclav Havel's observation that totalitarian lies must be universal, Nobody has engineered the apparatus of universal…

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December 20, 2011

Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

What comes next for North Korea?

Niels Bohr aptly said "prediction is very difficult, especially of the future." The main question now is what will happen next. As expected, state media named Kim Jung Il's son, Kim Jong-un, as his successor. I've read speculation that unrest or power struggles may follow. I predict not. My series on North Korea strategy concluded that its power structure relies on stability and loyalty. Not only does its top leader depend on it, the whole power structure does too. I wouldn't expect systemic change despite the opportunity. I don't know details of who might stand to gain or lose, but I would expect all decision-makers to realize they have more to gain from maintaining things as they are to improving their personal situation. A power…

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December 19, 2011

Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

On the death of an unpopular leader

I have read some people pleased with the death of someone they consider responsible for bad things, though muted relative to the rejoicing I saw at the death of Osama Bin Laden in the United States. Perhaps desired change will come, but I don't see what one could call good, even if you don't like him. To those who wanted him punished, he isn't being punished. Everybody dies. And as for what happens next, change can happen in many directions, not just ones you hope for. J.R.R. Tolkein's words on death of someone disliked seem relevant when I hear someone wanting or liking someone else's death. Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do…

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December 19, 2011

Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

Kim Jung Il died today

North Korean television reported Kim Jung Il died. As the BBC reports The announcer, wearing black, made the emotional announcement on state-run television North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has died at the age of 69, state-run television has announced. Mr Kim, who has led the communist nation since the death of his father in 1994, died on a train while visiting an area outside the capital, the announcement said. He suffered a stroke in 2008 and was absent from public view for months. His designated successor is believed to be his third son, Kim Jong-un, who is thought to be in his late 20s. North Korea's state-run news agency, KCNA, urged people to unite behind the younger Kim. "All party members, military men and the…

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December 18, 2011

Freedom / NorthKorea

Rules: what we could and couldn’t do in North Korea

People often ask what the government let us do or not. Koryo prepares you for what to expect so we knew all these things before leaving Beijing. Here is a small selection of the rules. No pictures without permission North Koreans seem to resent having their pictures taken when they aren't performing. I once forgot this rule and took a picture of some people on the street. They got annoyed. One of our guides noticed and chastised me. We weren't supposed to take pictures of military anytime, but we ended up taking a bunch. The Demilitarized Zone had several picture-taking opportunities designed for tourists. Come to think of it, I don't remember having trouble taking pictures of military people. You can only visit sites they…

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December 11, 2011

NorthKorea

Our North Korea itinerary

Today I'll finally cover where we went on each day. Most people who have visited North Korea will recognize at least some of the places since the list of places the government lets you see is so short. For people who have never been there, I'll cover some later and hope to get to more. Day 0 Orientation in Beijing Search for duck restaurant, exploring Beijing on foot D Lounge at night Day 1 Meet at Koryo, Beijing Flight to Pyongyang I missed bus buying fruit Plane didn't have as many seats as they gave us tickets for Bought lots of duty-free alcohol, tobacco, and chocolate Check in to hotel, same hotel everyone checks into. Forgot to look for bugs. Only night the air conditioner…

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December 10, 2011

Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

North Korea strategy: a toy proposal to promote thought

North Korea's uniquely extreme isolation and disparity of power and wealth means you have to think of it differently than most other countries. Today I'll present a toy idea not for serious consideration as is, but to provoke thought and promote new, potentially effective ideas or improve other plans. I call it a toy idea so no one accidentally takes it seriously on its own, but plays with it to help generate other ideas. Here are the main ideas leading to it North Korean power is concentrated to probably a few dozen people. However much others may dislike their decisions, from their perspective, decision-makers choose rationally. The toy idea My toy idea, again not for serious consideration as is, but for promoting thought and other…

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December 9, 2011

Art / Freedom / Leadership / NorthKorea

Pictures of North Korea, part 9: the Grand People’s Study House

Today's pictures were from the Grand People's Study House, a giant library overlooking the Taedong River, with the Juche Tower on the other side. Sorry for how long some captions are. I formatted them to be more readable but Wordpress seems to ignore the formatting. I hope you can read them okay anyway. Nearly all big public buildings we visited had big statues of Kim Il Sung, Kim Jung Il, or both. The statues nearly always represent them as paternal, optimistic, smiling, or displaying some emotion conducive to leadership. Some looked magnificent. After a few you got bored with them but wondered what the deal was with so many of them. Who decided to put so many up? How many would they consider too many?…

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December 8, 2011

Awareness / Freedom / NorthKorea

Reasons to visit North Korea

Most people can think of reasons not to visit North Korea. Most people consider the place dangerous. They have imprisoned foreigners for life for things that we wouldn't consider illegal here, and you have no right to due process. For starters. What do you get from visiting? If you travel to explore new places, North Korea is one of the few frontiers left that tourists haven't overrun. Tourists are even overrunning Mount Everest. It has a lot to offer that other frontier places don't. By the way, if you want relaxing white sandy beaches, snow-capped mountains, spas, and that sort of vacation, I don't think you'll like North Korea. Everest is a physical challenge. You'll get something out of climbing it, but if your goal…

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December 7, 2011