Monthly Archive: June, 2005

Update: My initial estimate appears to have been a bit on the low side: Inter-Korean talks are pricey, with the current four-day session costing South Korea 400 million won ($395,804). Seoul would like to do it cheaper, officials say. That comes to $68.72 per minute, not including any bribes or fertilizer shipments. _____________________ Original Post: I was invited to go to hear Paula Dobriansky, the Undersecretary of State for Global Affairs, speak at the Hudson Institute on Monday, but I...

Another act by a lone nut? Not quite, if the report is to be believed. The man who torched the office of this newspaper appears to have had plenty of encouragement after-the-fact, if not before.

The contagion of morally and historically moronic “concentration camp” analogies has spread to Korea. This time, shouts the Chosun Ilbo, Army barracks are concentration camps. Consider the trajectory of this discussion: from the tragic actions of a lone nut, we have arrived directly at this bewildering hyperbole. I’d be the last to dispute that the treatment of Korean soldiers deserves some sober inquiry and intelligent public debate. Comparing conditions there to places that were specifically designed to kill millions (rather...

Update: My initial estimate appears to have been a bit on the low side: Inter-Korean talks are pricey, with the current four-day session costing South Korea 400 million won ($395,804). Seoul would like to do it cheaper, officials say. That comes to $68.72 per minute, not including any bribes or fertilizer shipments. _____________________ Original Post: I was invited to go to hear Paula Dobriansky, the Undersecretary of State for Global Affairs, speak at the Hudson Institute on Monday, but I...

Another act by a lone nut? Not quite, if the report is to be believed. The man who torched the office of this newspaper appears to have had plenty of encouragement after-the-fact, if not before.

The contagion of morally and historically moronic “concentration camp” analogies has spread to Korea. This time, shouts the Chosun Ilbo, Army barracks are concentration camps. Consider the trajectory of this discussion: from the tragic actions of a lone nut, we have arrived directly at this bewildering hyperbole. I’d be the last to dispute that the treatment of Korean soldiers deserves some sober inquiry and intelligent public debate. Comparing conditions there to places that were specifically designed to kill millions (rather...

The contagion of morally and historically moronic “concentration camp” analogies has spread to Korea. This time, shouts the Chosun Ilbo, Army barracks are concentration camps. Consider the trajectory of this discussion: from the tragic actions of a lone nut, we have arrived directly at this bewildering hyperbole. I’d be the last to dispute that the treatment of Korean soldiers deserves some sober inquiry and intelligent public debate. Comparing conditions there to places that were specifically designed to kill millions (rather...

I’m rooting for the Iraqi terrorists . . . as long as they’re killing each other.

Why is Kofi Annan, of all people, publishing an editorial in the Washington Post praising the “progress” toward a new constitution and reconstruction in Iraq? 1. To persuade us that his organization’s competence extends beyond the field of embezzlement; 2. To ingratiate himself with U.S. officials, who are deciding whether to ask for his resignation in the wake of the Wilson memos; 3. They’re secretly optimistic, and want to be on the ground in time to claim some credit; 4....

I’m shocked, shocked. DailyNK, which has just published another of my pieces, claims that there is video of Japanese food aid for sale in the markets. It’s not the first time we’ve heard reports of this kind, accompanied by video. Update: No link to the video yet, but here’s a still: It certainly must have taken some cojones to spend a month inside North Korea with a camera, acting as an agent of a dissent or anti-regime group. Photo credit...

I’m rooting for the Iraqi terrorists . . . as long as they’re killing each other.

Why is Kofi Annan, of all people, publishing an editorial in the Washington Post praising the “progress” toward a new constitution and reconstruction in Iraq? 1. To persuade us that his organization’s competence extends beyond the field of embezzlement; 2. To ingratiate himself with U.S. officials, who are deciding whether to ask for his resignation in the wake of the Wilson memos; 3. They’re secretly optimistic, and want to be on the ground in time to claim some credit; 4....

I’m shocked, shocked. DailyNK, which has just published another of my pieces, claims that there is video of Japanese food aid for sale in the markets. It’s not the first time we’ve heard reports of this kind, accompanied by video. Update: No link to the video yet, but here’s a still: It certainly must have taken some cojones to spend a month inside North Korea with a camera, acting as an agent of a dissent or anti-regime group. Photo credit...

How do you tell the extreme left and the extreme right apart in these warped times? Just examine the similarities and the differences, in that order: contempt for the soldiers, an ability to see “good” side of 9/11, and a hatred for government policy / policy-makers that exceeds their love of this country and its guiding principles. The chief difference appears to be spiritual: the choice of gods and the choice of devils (necons or fags–take your pick). When your...