Comments on: Make Benefit Glorious Nation of North Korea

Make Benefit Glorious Nation of North Korea

oneirodynia — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 09:56:26 -0800

Feeling nostalgic for those old school Soviet shindigs? Westerners are welcome to North Korea's Arirang Mass Games. Tickets are on sale now. Will tourist dollars/euros be the undoing of North Korea?

By: the dief

the dief — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 10:18:02 -0800

Here's a pretty good travelogue of one American's trip to NK where he takes in the Arirang Festival amongst other things. Sounds fascinating, but no way would I go.

By: Scoo

Scoo — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 10:23:52 -0800

Flag wave at 3:36 or so is awesome! NK is the last remaining stronghold of the Soviet Realist Style, let's enjoy it while it lasts.

By: StickyCarpet

StickyCarpet — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 10:29:03 -0800

Six years later you get a phone call consisting of a whispered code word, and you kill the president.

By: mosk

mosk — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 10:45:00 -0800

I was amazed to read that, until fairly recently, you (meaning "non-North Korean with valued foreign currency") could also visit a North Korean casino, although the current status of these seems to be unclear. Apparently, Chinese gov't officials became mighty displeased after some local pols gambled away their province's municipal funds, and some hash penalties were instituted to prevent others from doing same. But the mind boggles at the thought of a gambling junket to North Korea...

By: thinman

thinman — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 10:53:18 -0800

A State of Mind, mentioned in the second link, is a very interesting documentary about a couple of young girls training for the Mass Games. I recommend it.

By: oneirodynia

oneirodynia — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 10:58:39 -0800

I admit to the lure of grand scale Communist spectacle. It makes it a little easier to understand why so many people in Russia feel as if there is no guiding principle in their lives anymore. It's pretty exciting to get to wear a uniform and wave a big flag and feel you are part of something vast and important and unfathomable. Parades are the opiate of the masses. [NOT COMMUNIST]

By: Artw

Artw — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 10:59:27 -0800

They take requests. Shout "Do donkey kong!".

By: drezdn

drezdn — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 11:12:49 -0800

Pyongyang is a great graphic novel offering a view of the cloistered nation.

By: Burhanistan

Burhanistan — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 11:53:10 -0800

I wonder how conscious the junta in DPRK is of the way this mass choreography keeps the totalitarian system in order down to the flesh of the subjects. It's an interesting question. Do Kim Jung Il and company really believe all the hype, or are they coldly detached and skilled in manipulating the people for their own selfish ends? Probably some combination thereof.

By: fandango_matt

fandango_matt — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 11:54:26 -0800

Woo-hoo! MetaFilter meetup on the Korean peninsula! Stavros, can we crash on your couch?

By: jason's_planet

jason's_planet — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 12:10:14 -0800

Of course, most encounters were necessarily short, but dress and looks speak volumes and sometimes a few casual words are enough to change a North Korean's world view dramatically. It is easy to imagine a South Korean woman in her 50s, whose husband is a skilled worker, complaining that her family has been unable to change a car for more than six years - and even easier to imagine the impact such a matter-of-fact remark would have on a North Korean to whom private cars are a symbol of ultimate luxury, something akin to the role of private jets in Americans. Very interesting.

By: saysthis

saysthis — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 12:38:11 -0800

I'm so there.

By: MiltonRandKalman

MiltonRandKalman — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 12:38:58 -0800

From Koryo tours: "North Korea has declared that the Arirang Mass Games will run this year between April 15th to May 15th and August 15th to October 15th." They don't announce the dates, they declare them. PERFECT! US Tour 2 Sat (plane) – Tues (plane) Price: 1590 Euros + Mass Games ticket Does that price include your government minder?

By: 2shay

2shay — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 13:21:45 -0800

That is frightening. Looks computer generated almost.

By: Gnostic Novelist

Gnostic Novelist — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 13:43:31 -0800

I would feel guilty as hell if I went. I don't see how people could keep silent about what is going on in that country.

By: Brittanie

Brittanie — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 15:56:57 -0800

Seconding "A State of Mind." Some of the video in the third link comes from that doc.

By: amyms

amyms — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 17:03:40 -0800

The DPRK was going to have a "Rock For Peace" festival this year (the western news media were calling it "Koreapalooza")... But it looks like it got cancelled. From the original article: Though not a place historically associated with free love and hippy wig-outs, all that is about to change, with organisers embracing "capitalist popular music" for the first time. And, in keeping with the laissez-faire spirit of rock festivals, there are few restrictions: "Lyrics should not contain admirations on war, sex, violence, murder, drug, rape, non-governmental society, imperialism, colonialism, racism, anti-DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea), and anti-socialism." Sounds like it would have been FUN! /snark

By: kosem

kosem — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 17:07:38 -0800

I want mass gymnastics and freedom. Can somebody hook me up?

By: Burhanistan

Burhanistan — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 17:42:10 -0800

I want mass gymnastics and freedom. Can somebody hook me up? You'll have to wait for the robots/androids/clones, sorry. Totalitarianism is a cellular disease.

By: frogan

frogan — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 17:52:11 -0800

Creepy and disturbing. Still, I wouldn't mind a ticket.

By: rob511

rob511 — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 18:34:17 -0800

Kimbots.

By: rob511

rob511 — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 18:36:58 -0800

And they call us the hive mind?!

By: sebastienbailard

sebastienbailard — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 19:43:15 -0800

What's the frame rate? I could see myself playing tetris on that.

By: etoile

etoile — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 13:39:01 -0800

I also recommend A State of Mind to anyone interested in the Arirang Mass Games. The western filmmakers were given unprecedented access to film in North Korea, and it's really eye-opening. I found out about the tours there shortly after I saw (and then subsequently bought) the movie, and everybody I told thought I was nuts for wanting to go and see the games and the country.