# Life in North Korea **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 6, 2009, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536 "2009-03-06T15:44:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/21 "2009-03-07T02:16:39Z")
> [@Spartydog](#): > > The black market is more effective and efficient than the established government market. What does that say? That it’s a perfectly normal market? Governments have never been better than the market, at least unless the entire market itself was basically shot already, usually from massive, devastating war. ---
**Author:** ![Shamozzle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shamozzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shamozzle)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/22 "2009-03-07T07:15:31Z")
> [@smiling\_bandit](#): > > That may indeed be true, because real hunger is not wholly unknown there. Now there’s an understatement. It is estimated that during the famines of the 90’s, millions died. [Millions](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Korean_famine). ---
**Author:** ![straykat23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c4cdca/32.png) [@straykat23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/straykat23)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/23 "2009-03-07T08:34:56Z")
There’s this too: > **[North Korean Prison Camp Escapee Tells of Horrors, Worries About Those Left...](https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/10/AR2008121003855.html)** > > SEOUL -- In Camp No. 14, the North Korean political prison where Shin Dong-hyuk was born and where he says he watched the hanging of his mother, inmates never saw a picture of Kim Jong Il. An account from the only escaped survivor. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/24 "2009-03-07T16:12:31Z")
> [@Shamozzle](#): > > Now there’s an understatement. It is estimated that during the famines of the 90’s, millions died. [Millions](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Korean_famine). Well, I was trying to distance myself from the issue a little. This is one event I’ve sudied a bit and it still makes me angry. A cynical view would be that North Korea now suffers less from hunger because they killed off so many mouths to feed. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/25 "2009-03-07T16:20:11Z")
> [@Spartydog](#): > > North Korea and Cuba are the two most prominent examples of government that claim to aspire to the “Communist Ideal”. In fact, neither of those countries are Communist, they are dictatorships. Both are failures in respect to the quality of life that they have provided their people. The failure of the North Korean government has gotten them to the point where, in order to provide basic sustenance, their major industry is shaking down other countries by threats and therefore getting outside aid. To be fair to Cuba, the US sanctions and blockade makes quite a difference. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/26 "2009-03-07T16:46:17Z")
> [@Jormungandr](#): > > If I may ask another question. I heard that during the reunion of the families who were separated between North and South that when asked how life was in the North, the North Koreans would, if seated, stand up and spouted how the “Great Leader” took care of them almost Pavlov-like. Any truth to this? That may be overstating the parroting aspect on the part of the few NKers to have experienced these reunions, but IIRC all these encounters were supervised by NK govt. minders, and in general these families did not waste any time or energy discussing politics. ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/27 "2009-03-07T16:55:51Z")
> [@glee](#): > > To be fair to Cuba, the US sanctions and blockade makes quite a difference. They’ve got the whole rest of the world trading with them. If their economy/government is such a mess than trading with the United States is their ownly path to anything other than grinding poverty… that rather proves our point. ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/28 "2009-03-07T17:35:34Z")
> [@WormTheRed](#): > > I have nothing specific to add, but am very interested in the answer. > > I did however see an online series about an american dude (he looked like a dude) who went to North Korea - but I can’t remember what it was called ☹ > > ETA: Found it! It’s alled the [Vice Guide to North Korea](http://www.vbs.tv/shows.php?show=1442318652) Thanks, WormTheRed. I watched the entire documentary. It makes me appreciate living in the US even more. (If possible!) ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/29 "2009-03-07T17:48:09Z")
> [@glee](#): > > To be fair to Cuba, the US sanctions and blockade makes quite a difference. Since the Cuban Missile Crisis can you tell me when the U.S. has blockaded Cuba? Odesio ---
**Author:** ![WormTheRed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/bbe5ce/32.png) [@WormTheRed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WormTheRed)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/30 "2009-03-07T21:43:47Z")
> [@Jake](#): > > Thanks, WormTheRed. I watched the entire documentary. It makes me appreciate living in the US even more. (If possible!) Just glad y’all liked them. I really enjoyed them when I watched them awhile back. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Cymbeline](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_cymbeline/32/9244_2.png) [@Green\_Cymbeline](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Cymbeline)\ **Post date:** [March 7, 2009, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/31 "2009-03-07T22:49:53Z")
This article was in yesterday’s Washington Post and is about the food shortage/hunder problem. Very interesting: [At the Heart of North Korea’s Troubles, an Intractable Hunger Crisis](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/05/AR2009030503613.html) ---
**Author:** ![lalenin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@lalenin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lalenin)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2009, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536/32 "2009-03-09T13:51:18Z")
> [@glee](#): > > To be fair to Cuba, the US sanctions and blockade makes quite a difference. Blockade? What blockade?\* Unless you’re saying that the blockade that lasted for two weeks in 1961 is still having an effect on the Cuban economy. \*The Cuban government insists on calling the US embargo a blockade, which is probably what you meant. But this is plainly not an accurate use of the word. For one thing the US is Cuba’s biggest supplier of food, and for another Cuba can and does trade with every other country in the world, so no blockade. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-in-north-korea/488536.md?page=1)