All Things North Korea Thread

[PCS]

Ummmmmm.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/10/kim-jong-un-death-rumor-twitter-weibo_n_1268905.html?ref=technology

Kim Jong Un Death Rumor Explodes On Twitter, Weibo

An unconfirmed rumor hit the web on Friday morning claiming that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was assassinated in Beijing, China.

According to Gawker, the rumors began on Chinese-language microblog Sina Weibo, the Chinese web equivalent of Twitter. Users credited "reliable sources" and said the incident took place at the North Korean embassy in Beijing.

Gawker also linked to a translated feed featuring posts about the rumor (via Google Translate), which you can view here.

The rumor also found its way over to Twitter, even climbing its way up the site's Trending Topics list prior to 1 p.m. on Friday.

Many on Twitter are skeptical of the rumor, as it was reported several hours ago on Weibo and at 1 p.m. apparently had not yet been confirmed by major Chinese media outlets.

According to a tweet from Christian May, a political consultant for MIPPR, tweeted that an unusual number of cars were spotted outside the North Korean embassy in Beijing.

"Rumour of Kim Jong Un's death based on news that a host of blacked out cars have descended upon embassy in Beijing, where he was visiting," May tweeted.

*Click Link For More*

[GhostofSparta]

Oh boy. If that's true then things are about to get reallllllllly interesting. Yikes.

[Tulane Skins Fan]

@jkfecke

Jeff Fecke RT @MattBinder: Wait for confirmation on Kim Jong Un death rumors. Twitter is also reporting that "Jonas Brothers are the best band."

[PCS]

Oh yeah. Definitely want to wait for confirmation on this one. Though where North Korea is concerned,that might not mean a lot.

[pjfootballer]

When I see **** like this it makes me want to ***** slap people in this country that piss and moan about things that are irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. Like showing your ID for example.

Or the 99 percent occupiers.

Edited February 10, 2012 by pjfootballer

[styx491]

@jkfecke

Jeff Fecke RT @MattBinder: Wait for confirmation on Kim Jong Un death rumors. Twitter is also reporting that "Jonas Brothers are the best band."

:ols: That's hilarious

[RVAbrendan]

People are claiming the source that reported this isn't a real news outlet.

[No Excuses]

There is a tweet on a fake BBC news account that "confirmed" this story and twitter is blowing up with it.

People don't even check the source.

---------- Post added February-10th-2012 at 04:20 PM ----------

Kim Jong-un @KimWrongUn Reply Retweet Favorite · Open

Despite reports, I'm not actually dead. My eyes are closed because I'm just praying for Justin Bieber to follow me

Edited February 10, 2012 by No Excuses

[PCS]

http://security.blogs.cnn.com/2012/02/10/no-evidence-north-korean-leader-is-dead/

No evidence North Korean leader is dead

By Barbara Starr

The U.S. intelligence community has found no evidence to suggest North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is dead, a senior U.S. official said Friday following posts on China's version of Twitter that claimed Kim had been assassinated while in Beijing.

U.S. intelligence officials have been looking into such rumors for more than a week, according to the official, who has direct knowledge of the latest U.S. analysis.

"With that society you can never be 100% sure, but we just don't see any evidence of it," the official told CNN. "It's a closed society, but at this point we do not believe it's true."The preliminary analysis of the rumor suggests it is part of a "calculated effort to disrupt the economy of South Korea at a fragile time by suggesting things are going haywire up north," the official said.

*Click LInk For More*

Edited February 10, 2012 by Park City Skins

[China]

So it's clear that since it's been this long without North Korea refuting these reports that North Korea has limited internet access and doesn't know what's going on. Or else they don't care... or he's really dead.

[China]

North Korean government labels cell phone users as war criminals

In North Korea, using a cell phone could come with the accusation and punishment of being a war criminal.

According to The Telegraph, anyone caught using a mobile phone or attempting to flee to China during the 100-day mourning period for late leader Kim Jong-il will be considered a war criminal and "punished accordingly."

Kim Jong-il, 69, died on December 17 from a heart attack. His son, Kim Jong-un, has taken over as North Korea's president.

When Jong-il died, the country was swept in massive mourning and public outpourings of grief. However, according to The Telegraph, with reports of increasing poverty and oppression and diminishing food supplies, tens of thousands of people are trying to escape to neighboring countries.

The ban on cell phones seems to stem from the North Korean government wanting to keep a tight reign on information flow in and out of the country, according to The Telegraph. This isn't the first time North Korea has stifled cell phone use; in 2008, the government reportedly confiscated mobile phones for the same reason.

Click on the link for the full article

[Dan T.]

Is there any hope that the North Korean people can join the 21st century? They have been so crippled and brainwashed by a bizarre closed patriarchal society that it would take generations for any kind of reform to take effect.

[deejaydana]

If you want to see a truly terrifying documentary about North Korea and life under the Kim Jong iL regime, I suggest Kimjongilia. I have it TIVO'ed and I've been working my way through it. It's so damned sobering/depressing you'll be hard pressed to get thru it in one single viewing but it's still worth the effort because it lets you know just how cruelly the people of North Korea have been treated for such a long time (and how much some of them risked in getting out of the country).

Edited February 14, 2012 by deejaydana

[G.A.C.O.L.B.]

It turned out that the Kim Jung Un death rumors were really just confusion over the 70th bday party for Kim Jong Il

http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/02/10/kim-jong-un-assassination-rumours/

http://shanghaiist.com/2012/02/13/last_fridays_kim_jong-un_assassinat.php

Is there any hope that the North Korean people can join the 21st century? They have been so crippled and brainwashed by a bizarre closed patriarchal society that it would take generations for any kind of reform to take effect.

Know how Germany has had all sorts of issues reconciling East and West? Now multiply that by a thousand. I really don't think South Korea wants reunification at this point.

[pjfootballer]

It's sad that things like this still go on in the world today, regarding North Korea.

[China]

N. Korean army vows to turn Seoul to ashes

SEOUL — North Korea's military Monday threatened "special actions" soon to turn parts of the South Korean capital to ashes, accusing Seoul's conservative government of defaming its leadership.

The North has for months been criticising the South's President Lee Myung-Bak in extreme terms and threatening "sacred war" over perceived insults.

There have been no incidents but the language has become increasingly vitriolic. Some analysts said they believe a military provocation is likely.

"The special actions of our revolutionary armed forces will start soon to meet the reckless challenge of the group of traitors," said a statement on the official news agency.

The North said its targets are "the Lee Myung-Bak group of traitors, the arch criminals, and the group of rat-like elements including conservative media destroying the mainstay of the fair public opinion".

It said the actions "will reduce all... to ashes in three or four minutes... by unprecedented peculiar means and methods of our own style".

Click on the link for the full article

[G.A.C.O.L.B.]

Oh **** off North Korea. Your schtick is old.

[RVAbrendan]

N. Korean army vows to turn Seoul to ashes

...including conservative media destroying the mainstay of the fair public opinion".

Click on the link for the full article

Now that's rich.

[China]

It said the actions "will reduce all... to ashes in three or four minutes... by unprecedented peculiar means and methods of our own style".

I think we should all speculate what this might be. I'm guessing some sort of

...you know, in North Korean terms that's just a giant magnifying glass.

Kim Jong Un is remembering fondly how he used to burn ants with one when he was a child.

Edited April 24, 2012 by China

[visionary]

http://openchannel.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/04/24/11376100-nbc-north-korean-nuclear-test-could-happen-as-early-as-tuesday-night?lite

NBC: North Korean nuclear test could happen as early as Tuesday night

North Korea could carry out an underground test of a nuclear weapon as early as Tuesday night as the North's reclusive leadership dramatically tries to up the stakes with the U.S. and the West, U.S. officials told NBC News.

U.S. officials say North Korea may already have an arsenal between 12 and a "few dozen" far more advanced weapons, many more than generally believed.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/korea-mobile-weapons-capable-striking-us-16207572#.T5eECrNSSoY

N. Korea: 'Mobile Weapons' Capable of Striking US

A senior North Korean army official says his country is armed with "powerful mobile weapons" capable of striking America.

Vice Marshal Ri Yong Ho emphasized the importance of defending the North against the U.S. and South Korea as Pyongyang marked the 80th anniversary of the nation's army Wednesday.

He told officials at the April 25 House of Culture that the weapons could defeat the U.S. "at a single blow."

Edited April 25, 2012 by visionary

[Toe Jam]

You know, I thought Best Korea would calm down for a little while after Dear Leader passed.

[China]

North Korean missiles dismissed as fakes

A half dozen ominous new North Korean missiles showcased at a lavish military parade were clumsy fakes, analysts say, casting more doubt on the country's claims of military prowess after its recent rocket launch failure.

The weapons displayed April 15 appear to be a mishmash of liquid-fuel and solid-fuel components that could never fly together. Undulating casings on the missiles suggest the metal is too thin to withstand flight. Each missile was slightly different from the others, even though all were supposedly the same make. They don't even fit the launchers they were carried on.

"There is no doubt that these missiles were mock-ups," Markus Schiller and Robert Schmucker, of Germany's Schmucker Technologie, wrote in a paper posted recently on the website Armscontrolwonk.com that listed those discrepancies. "It remains unknown if they were designed this way to confuse foreign analysts, or if the designers simply did some sloppy work."

The missiles, called KN-08s, were loaded onto the largest mobile launch vehicles North Korea has ever unveiled. Pyongyang gave them special prominence by presenting them at the end of the parade, which capped weeks of celebrations marking the 100th anniversary of the country's founding father, Kim Il Sung.

The unveiling created an international stir. The missiles appeared to be new, and designed for long-range attacks.

Click on the link for the full article

[Bang]

At what point do they just give it up?

I mean, damn, we've ALL been there.. busted over something, vainly trying to save face... eventually most people just cave in to the inevitability.

All they're doing is humiliating themselves even further.

~Bang

[Larry]

1) They're dangerous enough that they have a kind of immunity. One that's good enough that they can even develop nuclear weapons (which may or may not work. Have they set one off yet that worked?)

Their immunity comes from their ability to threaten the civilian population, and the economies, of South Korea and Japan, not from their vast, Earth-shattering, military and technological prowess. But the immunity does exist.

2) From their perspective, whet they've been doing for the last 30 years has been working. How many other dictatorships have lasted this long? I can think of Cuba, China, and Russia. Not bad company to be in with.

[Forehead]

You know, I've always leaned more towards the compassionate, Predicto sort of opinion with North Korea, but after awhile, these claims start to get ridiculous. I know we need to worry about their brainwashed, regular citizens, but man, don't we have some giant glass dome we can just place over them? Tell them to pipe down and we'll let them out