You know, it’s as if Michael Gerson reads this blog or something: There are limits to the policy of isolation. Given that North Koreans did not revolt when millions were dying of starvation in the mid-1990s, it is difficult to imagine that economic pressure alone will bring down a committed, completely ruthless regime that cares nothing for the opinion of the world or the lives of its own people. The most fragile thing about the North Korean regime is the...

Here’s more on that report of a ration cut in North Korea, which is sourced to Good Friends: The chairman of the Good Friends organization, based in South Korea, Pomnyun Sunim, says this is taking place because the North Korean government can no longer keep its citizens from starving. The Buddhist monk says the ruling communist party issued a directive May 26th that work units and individuals should fend for themselves. He says this can be understood as either a...

So, did you hear about Lee Myung Bak’s plot to kill Kim Jong Il? ___________________________ Sure, the idea that we can punish North Korea for sinking the Cheonan by staging some event at the World Cup is absurd in itself, but hey, it’s still not as dumb as blaring K-pop over loudspeakers at the DMZ. It might have some merit in the context of a broader campaign of subversion, which doesn’t appear to be taking shape. ___________________________ There aren’t many...