2021-02-01 Random News: Elite defections and rappers

In my favorite newspaper in the world...

"Defections of high-level North Korean officials are telltale symptoms of internal difficulties

I don't deny the reasons stated in the article, but my questions:

1) If you were standing in line, and saw people at the front of the line getting shot, would you continue waiting in line?

I am not sure why it might seem confusing that high-level North Korean diplomats who heard about Kim Jong-Un's uncle and half-brother being eliminated would feel less secure about themselves. Some North Korea watchers debated if the uncle was really machine-gunned or fed to dogs and if the half-brother was truly assassinated by the regime. In a country and society where that seems possible, do you want to wait around to see what might happen to you? If you saw people above your party status and pay grade getting executed, would you keep standing in what may be an execution line, or make a run for it?

Reporters sometimes forget that North Koreans are humans. There are not always big policy questions about why someone even in the elite might make a run for it.

2) The "Privilege" of getting assassinated

Over the years, I have noticed that South Korean reporters and intellectuals discussing North Korean refugees and defectors will refer to the "privileges" that the North Korean elite had in North Korea. For a long time, it felt like South Korea itself must be a John Milton type of "it is better to rule in hell rather than serve in heaven" kind of country. And it seemed that mindset was being applied to North Korea.

So my question about the elite leaving their privileges behind:

Is it a privilege to have your head put in a lion's mouth?

North Korea's elite may have special status in the country, but that apparently can change at any moment. Some North Korean refugees who escaped from the lion's mouth have reported some trivial reasons for escaping, such as: Not smiling and cheering wildly enough at a military parade, losing a book they had been allowed access to, not having a portrait of a dictator appropriately displayed in their homes, or leaving a job at a government villa.

Many North Koreans have told stories that they were doing well, then oops! Someone in the family did something wrong, and suddenly they were all under arrest, doing hard labor, and/or escaping. The "elite" may have "privileges," but those privileges are not permanent. The dictator changes policy and some of the elite could get sent to concentration camps.

3) Why did you leave your family behind?

Back during my first sojourn to South Korean during the 1990s, I didn't know much about North Korean refugees, but I remember South Koreans were abuzz about an elite North Korean who had escaped to South Korea. There were actually some South Koreans are arguing that the defector had betrayed his family.

Fresh out of Harvard, my point then was: Leaving family behind is an ethical question that needs to be addressed to the butchers of Pyongyang or debated by college sophomores. North Korea puts families in do-or-die situations: stay and possibly get executed along with your family if you make a wrong move, or leave and your family possibly gets tortured and/or executed. Yes, I used to say, that is exactly the kind of question that families overpay for their children to discuss with Prof. Michael Sandel at Harvard.

I used to say college sophomores, but now it seems to be a question that is better suited for high school sophomores and YouTubers.

* * *

Speaking of YouTubers, that leads me to my next favorite story of the day.

My favorite newspaper in the world reports: Rapper apologizes over delayed refund of lesson fees.

1) My first thought was: Is this really news? A rapper apologized on Instagram after a fan complained about not receiving a refund for lessons? It must be news because I clicked on it and have now shared it with you.

2) My second thought was: What else should be in the news that isn't really news. Such as, did any kids apologize today for not tying their shoes? Did any YouTubers apologize for not uploading on time today?

3) Then my third thought was: If it is news about a rapper apologizing for not refunding money for lessons, would it be news if I predicted such things happening and then they happened?

In connecting these two stories: Would that rapper have had to escape from North Korea if it was found that he hadn't refunded lesson fees to a member of the elite?

Common Sense on North Korea (Korea Times, April 2, 2012)

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. As interesting as Kookmin University professor Andrei Lankov’s writings are, there is nothing quite like attending one of his lectures. He can barely restrain himself behind the podium, often pointing and waving his arms. I also enjoy his unscripted speeches, but his answers in Q&A sessions are like the difference between watching Michael Jordan shoot baskets in warm-ups and an actual game. I have finally discovered the secret behind Lankov’s consistently solid analysis about North Korea: Use common sense. At an Asan Institute conference last summer, he argued that North Korea watchers should try to understand North Korea from its perspective. Don’t most people know that you must understand the mindset of others you are dealing with? Yet, common sense in theory gets ignored politically. From the North Korean perspective, nuclear weapons are the best thing they’ve got going. They will NOT give them up easily, even if President Obama ...

Rich talking back

The rich are talked about very often in negative terms, but how often do the rich respond in kind? Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart, who inherited most of her money but apparently has also done very well with it, recently railed against class warfare and had some advice for the non-rich : "There is no monopoly on becoming a millionaire," she writes. "If you're jealous of those with more money, don't just sit there and complain. Do something to make more money yourself - spend less time drinking, or smoking and socializing and more time working." She complained about politicians raising taxes, regulations that slow investment, and other anti-business policies that harm the poor. "If you want to help the poor and our next generation, make investment, reinvenstment and businesses welcome."

Random photos from today

I went walking around today. Whereas some people like to go walking in the mountains, I enjoy walking around in the city. Well, not D.C. or other cities with many homeless, crazy and/or armed people walking around... * * * Here's where I had lunch today. About $1.90 for a hamburger hamberger. * * * Ha-ha! Bet you never would have guessed that Batman is a drinking place in Korea! * * * Man Clinic? The Koreans walking by seemed to be very curious about why I was taking a photo of a "Man Clinic." They may know something I don't know...Actually, I wasn't curious enough to go in and find out what it was... * * * Right down the street from the Man Clinic...there's a Love Shop! I love the euphemism. "Love Shop" sounds much better than Sex Shop. I'm guessing that if you don't go to the "Love Shop" to buy condoms that you may need to visit the Man Clinic a short time later? * * * Nobo...

To be a good volunteer, use your brain (Korea Times, December 5, 2012)

By Casey Lartigue, Jr. There is probably an unwritten rule that a celebrity offering to do volunteer work for a good cause should immediately be embraced. Well, that’s not what happened to Jeong So-dam, the glamorous Korean cable TV announcer when our paths crossed on Nov. 29. Ms. Jeong was the MC of an event about American political philosophy hosted by the Association for Economic Evolution. During my speech about American libertarianism since 1940, I discussed my volunteer work for North Korean refugees. After the speech, Jeong approached me, asking how she could help. I gave her the same tough love I give to potential volunteers by asking: “Who are you?” After all, if you are Bill Gates, then open your wallet. If you speak four languages, then help with translation work. So I first stress to potential volunteers: Use your brain. Tell us about your skills and interests so together we can figure out your initial role. Jeong was good-natured about it, rather than c...

Last weekend: Suicide, Kim Young Ha, NK

Credit: Joanne Cho Event 1: Friday night I went to a talk given by Fulbright junior researcher Joanne Cho. She did a great job putting together statistics about some of the most commonly cited reasons that so many Koreans commit suicide. Probably the most provocative tidbit: Cho watched 86 dramas from the spring of 2012 to now, she says that 63 had "scenes depicting or discussing suicide" in a favorable light (as a way to solve problems, that troubled people can be forgiven for their sins and are even seen as sympathetic). Another interesting tidbit: While it is often cited that Korea is number one in the world in suicide (among countries reporting reliable statistics), what I had not realized or had forgotten is that Korean men are number 8 in the world compared to men in other countries with reliable statistics, Korean women are #1 in the world when compared to women in other countries. My questions for the speaker: 1) What was a finding in your research th...

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