The Wonders Of Communism by The LA Times

Look at this piece of trash the LA Times decided to print today, along with Michael Moore’s slobbering film on Cuba now we should all feel good about North Korea:

Pyongyang, North Korea — THERE’S not a lot to do when you’re a closely watched visitor in North Korea except hit the karaoke at day’s end, so we’re at it again.

From the sound of it, most North Korean karaoke falls into two categories. Soupy ballads about national glory, superior leadership, glorious workers. And hard-driving martial tunes urging citizens to think as one and pick up a bayonet. Rounding out the experience are video clips of goose-stepping soldiers and ozone-piercing missiles.

[...]"It’s amazing to see streets without any commerce in Asia," says Peter Tasker, a Tokyo-based private investor on the magical mystery tour. "It’s not always what you see that’s striking, but what you don’t see."

The throwback nature of the entire experience is part of the attraction for many visitors. In a world of look-alike malls and identical Starbucks from Rome to Redondo Beach, there’s a refreshing lack of sameness about it, if you don’t stop to think about the suffering, hunger and deprivation underpinning the system.

One noticeable change from a visit in 2005 is the government’s apparent effort to skim more hard currency from foreign tourists. Most museums and monuments now offer souvenir shops, and a foreigners-only department store in Pyongyang has been expanded.

The problem is, there’s still hardly anything worth buying. A typical stand might feature books on the teachings of Kim Il Sung, some green and pink embroidery of dancing children, bottles of the local firewater known as soju, cans of peas and boxes of hemorrhage restorative herbal medicine. At one point while buying some apples, I try bargaining - de rigueur in most of Asia - to gauge the reaction, an affront that draws looks of shock and embarrassment.

Well, just what I wanted.  A vacation from the world of Starbucks to the world of sameness.  Sounds kinda nice and relaxing huh?  If you can feed yourself and stand the suffering then you will have a grand ole time.

Will the wonders of Communism ever stop?

Geez.