Looks like smiling is frowned up in all the photos.
How do you photograph one of the most secretive countries in the world?
For Charlie Crane the answer was simple, photograph what they want you to see. If there is no possibility of getting underneath the surface then the answer was to photograph the surface itself. This series is taken from a larger body of work in Pyongyang, the capital city of North Korea.
Although not commonly thought of as a holiday destination all these photographs have been taken at tourist sites throughout the city.
North Korea from its founding was a communist/socialist enterprise, with the Soviet Union backing it. If it is flawed, it is because of the flaws of communism.
Mike, let me fix that for ya: “Its flaws are those of communism.”
#56 I failed to comment on your last point whose analogy is flawed analogy as an atheist would view Christianity, Islam and Mormonism as religion.
Again a straw man, never said these are the same.
Implied in all my statements is the unity seen in a baby to fully grown.
Progressivism is baby socialism, the undesirable aspects of full grown socialism are found in the baby, but in incipient form.
Socialist societies begin free, everyone rejoicing in liberty, but as redistribution of wealth away from those who produce, to those who only consume it, destroys wealth creation, the people begin to grumble…and free speech is the first casualty.
As socialism fails, true believers don’t blame it, they blame themselves (I’m too lenient) and the people (“they are too lazy.”). and that naturally results in Stalinism, or Maoism, where the people die through both failed programs, or Government trying to make them work harder.
Neither can occur where free speech exists.
Progressives manifest the hatred of free speech, note the fallacies they employ to prevent discussion of the results of their policies. Opponents are smeared and the subject changed away from the failure of redistribution to end poverty.
Just today NBC, a member of the Progressive propaganda press, showed its hatred of free speech by accusing Gingrich of racism for calling Obama the “food stamp President.”
Gingrich’s point was Progressive redistribution failed to stimulate the economy, now more people were on food stamps than ever before, in spite of redistributing billions to Government and unionized workers.
Did NBC want to discuss that? Of course not, the failure of socialism would then be exposed. So they misdirect away from the failure, to ad hominem…smear.
And if you google this event, you will see it worked…everyone is talking about the smear, and few about the failure of Obama’s progressive redistributive policies.
That “Spreading the wealth around” will end poverty, is a socialist fantasy, the opposite happens, as anyone with common sense can discern…if you take money away from those who use it to create wealth, and give it to those who only know how to consume it, you have destroyed wealth creation and eventually all wealth is consumed.
That’s why N Korea is as poor as it is, socialism failed as it always does.
Progressive hatred of free speech is evident also in all the rules against free speech they are now proposing, every day is a new assault on free speech either directly, or indirectly through the FCC.
Supreme court Kagen’s idea of “skewed speech” just the tip of the ice berg of progressive hatred of free speech.
#58 Try to think about the mechanism, not motives.
The pilgrims had to repay their debt via a requirement all profits were placed into “the common stock” of the colony and then each would have distributed to them “according to their need.”
The result was few produced profits.
Its human nature, self interest motivates us to action…take away self interest…and we become couch potatoes.
The Pilgrims starved until Bradford divided some of the land to be used for private profit.
Just as in modern day socialist lands, these small plots produced a bounty so great, they were able to invite the Indians to celebrate their bounty.
The founding fathers incorporated that lesson on the failure of socialism, and the success of free market and private property, into our Republic. Its why our nation became wealthy…and the antithesis why N Korea became abysmally poor…they are socialist.
Smearing freedom lovers as profiteers, evil, greedy, ect, is progressive misdirection from the real fact redistribution never works.
The latest example, Obama redistributed billions (“Stimulus”) to workers, both Government and union…yet no wealth was created…only those jobs this money directly created…and continue to sustain, exist today…
None were created int he private sector, because of this redistribution.
So the people who use money to create wealth and therefore jobs, were stripped of money, and those who only know how to consume wealth, and therefore destroy it, were given the cash..
That’s what happened in ALL socialist economies…and they all end up destitute in history…Obama’s progressive socialism is no different, he truly is the “food stamp President” as more today are on food stamps than ever before.
Hey, people? That wheel on your mouse? If you spin it just right, you can skip right past TEAD’s posts. Ooops! I probably shouldn’t have said that. Alfie might change his name again.
Alfie portrays himself as a thinker but is actually little more than a rebroadcast of Limbaugh. On he days he strays from Rush’s line it is only because he’s been listening to Alex Jones!
Spin that wheel…
Animby—you didn’t spin fast enough: “Alfie portrays himself as a thinker……..” //// bbwhaaaaaahhahahahah! That was a good one.
Say Alfie–do as you will but you do have the brains to write a sentence. Are enough people here giving you the feedback you want? If so, then soldier on. If not, then MODIFY your approach unless you only want to HOWL into the darkness that reflects your own soul.
Modify, change, adapt, overcome, WIN! For yourself.
Yea, verily.
#66 I’ll leave the pandering to you.
Don’t care if anyone agrees with me, I admire the lone voice in the wilderness saying, “Make God’s path straight.”
Or in this case, the path of truth.
Common sense is required to understand its unwise to model an economy dependent upon human being acting contrary to their nature…
An exercise in futility.
Regardless how many Stalin or Mao killed, they couldn’t make socialism work as advertised…neither could N Korea’s dictators…
Socialism’s failure is being replicated in both Europe and America…in varying degrees…
Hopefully enough of us having common sense will vote the bastards out in 2012…and the rising tide will even lift your boat…while you cry all the way to the bank…
#3 Dallas “A good photographer would have said…”
I didn’t see any women with much in the breast department in the photos. Since breast tissue is largely fat, I took that as an indication that even the “model citizens” paraded for foreigners are living on a bare subsistance diet. Roots, shoots and leaves aren’t very high in calories. It’s too bad we can’t export body fat- they could use all we have.
# 68 Quantum said,”too bad we can’t export body fat- they could use all we have” Hmmmm. I have some surgeon friends who pay a fortune to dispose of bottles of the stuff. It is, I suppose, hazardous “waist” material. Have to give this some thought.
# 66 bobbo, “you didn’t spin fast enough” Sadly, true. Seems odd, in retrospect, but I seldom look at the poster’s name until I’ve read the entry. A bad habit if I wish to skip such drivelous comments as are most of Alfie’s. (I may trademark that word.) I’m guessing you truly appeciate his humor as you seem to be encouraging his Limbaugh-inspired drivelousness.™ In truth, I sort of enjoyed his biblical drivilosity™ but in politics? Limbaugh Lite. Very light.
Looks like a busmans’ holiday to me
Wonder what else was on the travel itinerary and how the travel guide explained the sites of the town and landscape
I’m sure the poorer, common folk, smile all the time. It’s just the paid government employees, which is everyone who doesn’t work a dirt farm, that’s told never to smile. Get caught smiling, on film, and you lose your job. Especially if you can remember what it was you were smiling about. Was it a joke at the government’s expense? Why can’t you remember what was so funny? Kind of reminds me of my early days in US military boot camp. Anyway, I guess the North Korean government can’t come down on the hundreds of millions of dirt farmers, for smiling. So they just don’t bother.
I know that rifle.
72 fracek – (I know that rifle)
.762 Sniper rifle used for snipe hunts. Snipe are currently a major food source in North Korea.