i am so upset by north korea. there's just too much to talk about but what it basically comes down to is human rights and the huge lack thereof in that country. lately i've been reviving my interest in learning what i can about the dprk by watching more documentaries and reading a couple things online. perhaps it's not the best way to inform myself but since it's such a secretive place, this is all i've got to go on. i believe what can bring about change in a country is the people themselves doing something about it. that is more powerful than outside forces because outside influence can wane and the domestic groups can become hostile and resentful of outsiders. but with such a tight state as north korea, one wonders about what the people think, hope, and desire for themselves and their nation. it's hard to find out but after watching the documentaries, there is hope that more are learning about the outside world and how it's not as bad as they have been led to believe. even more incredible is the footage i saw of dissent. any dissent is of course punished by torture and death but it's just amazing to see evidence of dissent. what i didn't know about from my previous curiosity and brief exploration into north korea via online reading and documentaries is that many farmers are being forced to grow narcotics instead of food and that the dprk then sells opium and such and makes billions. there is a shocking difference between the elite and the commoner in a so-called socialist nation but this forced drug business takes the cake.

i decided to make a list of documentaries on the dprk so that i could keep track of what i have seen and what i need to see. there are several documentaries available to view online and if you are interested at all in north korea or care anything about human rights, then i urge you to watch them.

while doing some searching on the internet, i came across a recent story of north korean refugees in los angeles fighting not to get deported. it made me sick. surely if anyone deserves refugee status it is north korean defectors. how can you deny them? it's maddening. i also can't believe i didn't hear of this until now and i fucking live in the area. the local news is crap. american news in general is crap. you can read the article for yourself: "north koreans sing for a chance at freedom".