Korea Thread: Liberal Moon Jae In Elected

[jimmy olsen]

Anyone else wonder if Kim Jong-un isn't some how psychologically broken in a way that his father or grandfather weren't?  He's never known anything but supreme power. I actually wonder if he even understands how much of a laughingstock his country is.

Unlike those two he spent some of his formative years in the West.

[Ed Anger]

Ed Anger has gone to BONERCON 2.

[MadImmortalMan]

Here's what the Senate Intelligence threat assessment says:

North Korea's nuclear weapons and missile programs pose a serious threat to the United States and
to the security environment in East Asia, a region with some of the world's largest populations, militaries,
and economies. North Korea's export of ballistic missiles and associated materials to several countries,
including Iran and Syria, and its assistance to Syria's construction of a nuclear reactor, destroyed in 2007,
illustrate the reach of its proliferation activities. Despite the Six-Party Joint Statements issued in 2005
and 2007, in which North Korea reaffirmed its commitment not to transfer nuclear materials, technology,
or know-how, we remain alert to the possibility that North Korea might again export nuclear technology.

North Korea announced on 12 February that it conducted its third nuclear test. It has also displayed
what appears to be a road-mobile ICBM and in December 2012 placed a satellite in orbit using its Taepo
Dong 2 launch vehicle. These programs demonstrate North Korea's commitment to develop long-range
missile technology that could pose a direct threat to the United States, and its efforts to produce and
market ballistic missiles raise broader regional and global security concerns.
Because of deficiencies in their conventional military forces, North Korean leaders are focused on
deterrence and defense. The Intelligence Community has long assessed that, in Pyongyang's view, its
nuclear capabilities are intended for deterrence, international prestige, and coercive diplomacy. We do
not know Pyongyang's nuclear doctrine or employment concepts. Although we assess with low
confidence that the North would only attempt to use nuclear weapons against US forces or allies to
preserve the Kim regime, we do not know what would constitute, from the North's perspective, crossing
that threshold.
--------------------


North Korea
Kim Jong Un has quickly consolidated power since taking over as leader of North Korea when his
father, Kim Jong Il, died in December 2011. Kim has publicly focused on improving the country's troubled
economy and the livelihood of the North Korean people, but we have yet to see any signs of serious
economic reform.
North Korea maintains a large, conventional military force held in check by the more powerful South
Korean-US military alliance. Nevertheless, the North Korean military is well postured to conduct limited
attacks with little or no warning, such as the 2010 sinking of a South Korean warship and the artillery
bombardment of a South Korean island along the Northern Limit Line. (For information on North Korea's
nuclear weapons program and intentions, see the Proliferation section.)

[Ed Anger]

Chosun llbo reports NK has notified that they will fire over Japan. 


I have a MAJOR BONER

[Queequeg]

What are MREs like?  Will I be able to get bul go gi on occasion? 

[Ed Anger]

What are MREs like?  Will I be able to get bul go gi on occasion?

Prepare for constipation.

[Caliga]

I wanted to eat one the other week (forget why) but Princesca yelled at me.

[Ed Anger]

I wanted to eat one the other week (forget why) but Princesca yelled at me.

Whipped. 

[Sheilbh]

Anyone else wonder if Kim Jong-un isn't some how psychologically broken in a way that his father or grandfather weren't?  He's never known anything but supreme power. I actually wonder if he even understands how much of a laughingstock his country is.

And he was raised in Switzerland. That'd psychologically stunt any man

I really dont' see any substantive difference between his antics and Bed Head's.

The context is different given the range of sanctions and that even China's applying a lot of them. I think Kaesong is also different, his dad didn't ever suspend it because it's a hugely useful source of real money for the North Korean regime.

I'm not sure what those differences mean, but I think they mean something

[Queequeg]

I'm not sure what those differences mean, but I think they mean something

I always got the impression that Kim Jong-Il knew when to ratchet up and ratchet down complaints, and that the entire point of the nuclear program was to get the West and South Korea to pony up cash so that the regime could eek out it's existence for a few more years.  This doesn't seem as methodical.

[derspiess]

What are MREs like?  Will I be able to get bul go gi on occasion?

Some are better than others.  They're loaded with calories that soldiers in the field need, so they're not the thing you want to eat if you're trying to lose weight.  And yeah, they do tend to constipate.  Drinking lots of water may help somewhat with this.

[Ed Anger]

I will spare everybody the pic of the pepperoni sandwich MRE I ate a while back.

[CountDeMoney]

After 4 days, your turd--not turds--will have the atomic weight of uranium.

[Ed Anger]

 

[Syt]

The German MREs we had in the day were decent, though it depended what "main dishes" you had in there. Pasta with tomato sauce was pretty good, pea soup was pretty bad. I recall the cookies (lovingly called "armor plating") burned about as well as the regular fuel for our little cookers. The dark chocolate was pretty awesome, though, and the instant coffee was drinkable.