North Korea lobbed artillery shells at a South Korean island near their border, killing two soldiers and setting houses ablaze in the worst attack on its neighbor in at least eight months.

South Korea returned fire with 80 shells and scrambled fighter jets as President Lee Myung Bak vowed to respond “sternly.” Local television channel YTN showed smoke billowing from Yeonpyeong island off South Korea’s northwest coast and said residents took cover in bomb shelters. Stocks and U.S. futures dropped while the dollar and Swiss franc strengthened.

Tensions with Kim Jong Il’s regime have risen in the past year after the sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan in March killed 46 sailors. U.S. President Barack Obama this week dispatched envoy Stephen Bosworth to Asia after reports by a U.S. scientist that North Korea had revealed a “stunning” uranium- enrichment plant.

....

The electrical power is for the elite, look at the capital.


...if you cant figure it out, the capital is that one bright spot.

I really hate how they reinforce their military power and yet they ignore the needs of commoners who are the backbones of their country.

it's a shame that communism promotes equality yet the leaders who supposed to lead this idea are the ones who abuse their people.

TsuKasa ('') said, November 23, 2010, 03:30:12 pm

I really hate how they reinforce their military power and yet they ignore the needs of commoners who are the backbones of their country.

And the U.S. is different because...?

ahahaha china making weapons ahaha can't stop laughing.

The Penultimate Warrior said, November 23, 2010, 06:20:01 pm

No one else is laughing.

queefs in a jar said, November 23, 2010, 07:19:40 pm

this will end like every other incident between the north and south before it. the south will grit their teeth, roll their eyes, and go about their business. the north will hold bi-weekly parades for the next year celebrating victory over the imperial forces of the world. south korea has absolutely nothing to gain from taking over the north, since the cost of rebuilding the north would be astronomical as is.

they could just piss them off, kill kim jong il, and leave them to themselves, but nobody's gonna do that because that would make sense and it's easier said than done

Why can't china just take over north Korea, it would solve these problems.

• If it's not the highest, China has one of the highest foreign oil consumption rates in the world. However this hardly manages to suffice for the entire country, which still uses coal energy to power the majority of it. Now imagine throwing in North Korea, which has barely an electricity at all.
• China is one of the largest manufacturers of goods, and now they're starting to get aware of that fact. Perhaps you missed the showdown about two months ago between it and Japan where China threatened to stop the production of rare-earth materials to Japan. Yup, China can do that. With access to North Korea's resources, it would gain even more influence here.
• Distribution of wealth in China is still extremely lopsided. While you'll find major hubs like Beijing and Shanghai to look like normal American cities, if you go to the south to say, Kunming, it's almost as if you stepped into a Chinese farm duing Mao's reign. And no, it's not like American farmers who can still stay up to date by getting a TV and internet. They do not have the economic means nor the facilities to have either. You think they're going to prioritize updating anything in North Korea that isn't the capital?
  
• Last but not least, China's government is also technically a totalitarian government. Aside from some elements of western capitalism, it's still the same type of government, so situations likely wouldn't improve much.

DUCTRUONG said, November 23, 2010, 03:47:07 pm

And the U.S. is different because...?

wow are you serious

kim jong il is going to die soon anyway, and that wouldn't solve the massive problems in NK. china could step in and raise sanctions, basically forcing the north to behave themselves. but neither china nor south korea want a war, or even a destabilization of the NK government, because the cost would inevitably fall upon them. there's already a power struggle going on in north korea, with this attack believed to be the military heads of NK exerting  their authority because they view kim jong-il's son and successor as weak.

http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/id/221132

* walt likes it

kim jong il is going to die soon anyway....

I was refering to the US government's priorities, not the living conditions of the US. The majority of US legislation seems to favor themselves, the miltary, and big businesses over John Q. Public. It may not be exactly like North Korea, but the US isn't a saint either.

Well, but other than that, it seem usa future president supports the north koreans.

She also thinks that the states are ALSO bound by prudence to south korea.
http://www.boingboing.net/2010/11/24/palin-americas-gotta.html

good times.

I was refering to the US government's priorities, not the living conditions of the US. The majority of US legislation seems to favor themselves, the miltary, and big businesses over John Q. Public. It may not be exactly like North Korea, but the US isn't a saint either.

Except maybe Finland.

Jango said, November 25, 2010, 10:01:17 pm

Except maybe Finland.

THAT'S WHAT YOU ARE


I GOT YOU