WHAT'S IN A NAME?

The DPRK has recently designated "Rason" as a special city. Not familiar with the name "Rason," I had to read a bit of the article to discover that it is simply an abbreviated mix of Rajin and Sônbong, the site of a long-lasting but not terribly successful FTZ. Sounds a bit like old wine in new bottles.


More pics of "Rason" here.

TRAFFIC WOES

Anyone who has driven regularly on I-95 can attest that folks in many other parts of the country don't have much to complain about when it comes to traffic. But, as always, there is something worse, far worse, out there. In this case, it is the traffic in Delhi, India, which by virtue of being so unmanageable, has given rise to some interesting, individual-based solutions.

REALITY MIRRORS FICTION

Anyone who has watched the film, Joint Security Area (JSA) will remember the Choco Pie scene. When the ROK soldier Sgt. Lee tries to entice his DPRK counterpart Sgt. Oh south, he dangles the prospect of all the Choco Pies one could eat. Sgt. Oh was in the middle of eating and enjoying a Choco Pie (brought surreptitiously from the South) when the offer was made. He promptly spit the half-eaten pie out and declared that he looked forward to the day when his beloved DPRK would make the world's best Choco Pies. After making this patriotic declaration, he proceeded to put the half-eaten mess back into his mouth and swallow it.

Now, apparently, Choco Pies are flooding into North Korea via the Kaesông Industrial Zone.

“Choco Pie collectors have popped up [across North Korea],” said an official at the Unification Ministry in Seoul. “In Sinuiju, a northern city near the Chinese border, there is even a retail market.”

Perhaps this tantalizing confection will be more influential than the visits of orchestras or the dropping of propaganda leaflets. Perhaps not.

SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE?

Noko jeans, on sale now!

JAPANESE AMBSASSADOR SPEAKS

Japan's Ambassador to the U.S., Ichiro Fujisaki addressed a packed conference hall at lunchtime today. He displayed some impressive public diplomacy skills, skills that are amazingly in all too short of supply among the ranks of the diplomatic corps. He was quick to insert comments about BYU beating Air Force (complete with a rueful worry that perhaps Japan's trust in the USAF is misplaced), Real Salt Lake's soccer victory, BYU's religious climate, Mormon missionaries, and on and on.

He also did an impressive job of conveying a much needed reminder of the benefits of a close U.S.-Japan relationship, for reasons both old and new. He also was deft and diplomatic (as well he should be given his choice of profession) about sticky issues such as U.S. military bases in Okinawa.

BYU students, all in all, acquitted themselves well, asking well-informed questions and even managing to sneak in a joke or two.

SAD AND DISTURBING

photos of pollution in China.

FOLLOW NORTH KOREA ON TWITTER

really. Well, not exactly. This appears to be run by an Austrian fan (?) of P'yôngyang. Still, if you can't get enough of KCNA headlines, this twitter feed is for you.

Example: Rodong Sinmun on U.S. Policy of Hegemony on Verge of Bankruptcy