DPRK 101
Pyongyang's iconic hammer, sickle, and writing brush
koryogroup.com/travel-guide/n…
“These three symbols represent the core classes represented by the Workers Party of Korea. The hammer and sickle symbolize the worker and farmers of ‘traditional’ communist ideology, while the
2/"calligraphy brush represents the intellectual class.

The inclusion of the intellectual class into the Workers’ Party of Korea is reflective of the role of prominent Korea intellectuals, including the linguist and scholar Kim Tu Bong, in the creation of the the party and early
3/"DPRK state as well as the traditional value of learning in Korean society.”

This piece 👇illustrates solidarity b/t workers (DPRK music students) = 🔨& farmers (= sickle). To entertain the farmers the band performed songs in the rice paddies.
4/With 3 well-defined classes comprising the whole of DPRK society & a gov't designed to work for the welfare of the People, North Korean society functions smoothly as a socialist system void of "dictatorship of the bourgeoise".

Politics of North Korea
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_…
5/"The premise of the "People's democratic dictatorship" is that the CPC and state represent and act on behalf of the people, but in the preservation of the dictatorship of the proletariat, possess and may use powers against reactionary forces. Implicit in the concept of the
6/"the people's democratic dictatorship is the notion that dictatorial control by the party is necessary to prevent the government from collapsing into a "dictatorship of the bourgeoisie", a liberal democracy, which, it is feared, would mean politicians acting in the interest of
7/"the bourgeoisie. This would be in opposition to the socialist charter of the CPC [or WPK].”

Let's say you're been living on a commune in rural America for a decade. There are 3 beloved hand-crafted wheelbarrows dating back to the commune's beginning. A slick wheelbarrow
8/wheelbarrow salesman shows up pitching his company's state-of-the-art new wheelbarrow & suddenly newer members of the commune want to buy them to replace the old ones. The commune is on a limited budget, doesn't really need them & the $ could be put to better use. The salesman
9/represents liberal democracy where you can buy anything you want w/ $. The commune elders chase the guy off the premises b/c he's a bad influence. Yet already members are considering leaving b/c by living outside the commune & subscribing to "dictatorship of the bourgeoise"
10/you can "get what you want" & not be limited to "get what you need". Yet this is the danger, the slippery slope of materialism greased by capitalist free enterprise that can lead to decadence & a 1% wealthy class getting fat at the expense of the 99% middle-poor classes.
11/Add to this that veritably all the spiritual disciplines emphasize prioritizing needs over wants, which even The Rolling Stones cover in You Can't Always Get What You Want.
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Can%2…
"The three verses (and the varied theme of the fourth verse) address major
12/"topics of the 1960s: love, politics, and drugs. Each verse captures the essence of the initial optimism and eventual disillusion, followed by the resigned pragmatism of the chorus."

North Koreans who would defect to South Korea for plastic surgery or to get wealthy would be
13/analogous to commune members leaving the commune to get fat in materialism. Siddhartha Gautama, aka the Buddha, a real historical person, renounced the Princedom he was to inherit to search for the answer to the question: Why do we suffer? He found it meditating and became
14/the Buddha. Which just illustrates than if on the spiritual plane, overt materialism is seen as an obstacle to spiritual development, something that should be reduced to a bare minimum, why should capitalist countries democracies denounce countries practicing socialism? Maybe
15/it's b/c if a people or society can live harmoniously on a collectively limited budget yet be happier in their lifestyle than liberal bourgeoisie, it means the entire capitalist liberal democracy model is flawed. And one thing that no one wants is to be proven they're wrong.

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More from @BonicMichael

23 Jul
Capitalism Isn't A Monopoly

15 Socialist Countries that Have Succeeded
yahoo.com/now/15-sociali…
“Socialism is an economic theory that stresses the ownership of means of production by society instead of private individuals. The core essence or principle in socialism is to shape
2/"society based on cooperation and welfare rather than on free market capitalist competition and “exploitation”. This is the textbook definition of socialism. In practice however, it is not clearly defined, is subjective and encompasses a whole range of different economic
3/"policies and even exists parallel to capitalism in some countries through what can be described as a pragmatic approach to socialism.

Socialism is thought to impede innovation because it is thought to take away the incentive to innovate as society loses its competitive edge
Read 7 tweets
23 Jul
Preambles to Constitutions are preludes to the political ideologies that follow.
PREAMBLE to the U.S. Constitution: We the People
constitutioncenter.org/interactive-co…
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility,.” Image
2/Preamble to DPRK’s Socialist Constitution:
“The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is a socialist fatherland of Juche which embodies the idea of and guidance by the great leader Comrade Kim II Sung. ..“
constituteproject.org/constitution/P… Image
3/If the USSR & China had/have Constitutions laying out Marxist or Socialist political ideologies, why is it any different for the DPRK? Seoul doesn't acknowledge DPRK as a sovereign political entity just as Palestine doesn't acknowledge modern Israel as a Jewish state. DPRK is
Read 24 tweets
23 Jul
So - Mickey and Minnie Mouse and Snow White, Winnie the Pooh, the "Theme from Rocky" and Frank Sinatra's "My Way"…
IN NORTH KOREA??!
[explained]

Moranbong Band - Medley of Disney Songs [audio & color enhancement]
2/“The band debuted on July 6, 2012. Their first performance featured Western popular culture imagery and music, including Disney characters Mickey and Minnie Mouse and Snow White, Winnie the Pooh, the "Theme from Rocky" and Frank Sinatra's "My Way". Other Western music included
3/“"Czardas", "Zigeunerweisen", "La Reine de Saba", "Menuet", "Penelope", and "Serenade de l’Étoile", as well as "The Duel", described as "a popular song"; '"Victory", introduced as "a rap song"; and "Dallas": "a country music selection." Twelve cartoon film scores were also
Read 6 tweets
22 Jul
Israel is NOT a "settler colonial state" by definition. Anyone making that claim is just historically shortsighted. Israel's patriarchs Abraham, Isaac & Jacob were living in Israel c. 2200 BCE, Israel's period of Kings was from 1350 to 586 BCE...👇 Palestine of the ancient world ImageImage
2/and the Land of ancient Israel are the same geographic territory. So it's an indisputable historical fact that the Jewish people have been living in the Land of Israel from c. 2200 BCE to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, and since 1948. You have to look at the whole timeline.
3/Settler colonialism
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Settler_c…
“is a form of colonialism that seeks to replace the original population of the colonized territory with a new society of settlers. As with all forms of colonialism, it is based on exogenous domination, typically organized or supported
Read 12 tweets
22 Jul
Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly in DPRK passes 4 laws, notably a law “on rejecting reactionary ideology and culture”
[December 6, 2020]
koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/2020/12/06/nat…
“According to the official KCNA, the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA) convened under its
2/"president, Choe Ryong-hae, to pass four laws unanimously.  
 
Particularly notable was a law “on rejecting reactionary ideology and culture,” which KCNA reported would be “certainly observed by all the institutions, enterprises, organizations and citizens” in the country.
3/"The principles enshrined in the law were aimed at “further cementing our ideological, revolutionary & class positions by thoroughly preventing the inroads & spread of the anti-socialist ideology and culture and firmly maintaining our idea, spirit and culture,” the report said.
Read 18 tweets
22 Jul
Set aside the Western prism of media propaganda and see real North Koreans at last who are proud to be North Korean!:
From the NEW DPRK website:
Teenagers in North Korea | Blue sky blue sea blue dream MV | DPRK Vlog
2/North Korean teenagers performing contemporary dance in a music video released on New DPRK shows DPRK's leadership encouraging students to hold their own against their capitalist rivals, K-pop idols.

Thought experiment: Picture the elation these teenagers experience after a ImageImageImageImage
3/wrap of the video. The choreography was superb, dance execution was perfect & everyone involved is happy. Another student tho who has a flash drive full of K-pop music videos has alienated him-/herself from them by envying South Koreans.

Would you be THAT student?
Read 6 tweets

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