Since the mid-20th century, North Korea’s domestic politics have centered on the idea that the whole world is out to get them, and therefore they must be fiercely independent from outside influence. Openly asking for international aid would be like admitting defeat against all their political enemies, real and imagined. Nobody in power is going to do that.
This. Their entire system of authoritarian control depends on it. The people are brainwashed into believing it’s true and if cracks start to appear in the facade, the government could (and definitely would for NK) quickly lose control of the people. The regime would be toppled.
Are civilians really brainwashed and think it’s true though? Or are they just like regular people and deal with it while getting through the daily grind?
There is a large amount of state propaganda using the conflict as justification for the state’s existence. I would imagine whether people believe to be true or not to be on a spectrum line other countries.
The authoritarian ruler maintains control when enough people are brainwashed. See the current situation in the USA as an example. It’s not necessarily even the majority, but enough to maintain and enforce power.
Out of sight out of mind. It’s why authoritarian governments police speech and media. If you control what they see and hear. Then the worst that could happen is they might just feel that something is off. But have no evidence to necessarily back that up. Basically an echo chamber of the size of the nation.
Not that I support the DPRK, but considering the massive rise of fascism, I don’t think it’s anywhere near ‘wrong’ to consider capitalism a danger.
I criticise the DPRK for its horrific repression, but considering what capitalism in the US has brought, it is naïve to assume the US is all benevolent.
Who said the US is benevolent ever? It’s always a quod pro quo and the US always takes the more than gives.
I suppose they meant the fascists or liberals who think the US at some point ever really was benevolent.
IMHO, the closest it came was during Teddy Roosenvelt’s trust busting campaign, but still. The US is a capitalist project through and through. Being well-off I refuse to finance such a project. We shall crush capitalism through itself.
Maybe, but the DPRK government is on its third generation hereditary leader with a senior leadership consisting of children of previous senior leadership. It is functionally an absolute monarchy.
But they could do it and not tell the people.
It might not be that easy to keep it a secret
A handful of ultra-rich people would lose a little bit of power and their entire social structure would collapse. That country won’t open back up without tremendous suffering, especially as long as the rich people in power stay rich and powerful by keeping things the way they are.
Similar to everywhere else.
Yup. If red, brown, and cash fascism are all focused on extorting the many while benefiting the elite through corruption and repression, then is capitalism really a way to improvement?
Because that would result in regime change. The interests of the rulers and the interests of the country are not aligned.
NK is run by A Supreme Leader Kim Jung Un.
Kim’s title is Supreme Leader and he is a brutal dictator who was raised and educated in Switzerland. He is at least 100 pounds overweight and has everything he could ever want. The only help he wants is figuring out who in his government is a threat to his power. Kim once had a political opponent killed by having him shot with an anti-aircraft gun.
Kim has 30 millions slaves who provide Kim and the ruling class with everything they want.
They got a bunch of aid back in the 90s fwiw https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1990s_North_Korean_famine
The leadership would not stay in power if they did that.
It’s been a while, but there used to be a joke that whenever NK needed an aid package, they would fire off a missile. This was in the years before the world went bugfuck right wing crazy
Juche. That’s why. A fucked, corrupt and nihilistic interpretation of Juche.
It’d open the floodgates for “”“aid”“” that actually aims to put up a far-right capitalist dictatorship.
Socialist states only take aid from other socialist states and stateless communist societies.
