4 ms·

Isn't that more practiced indifference? There is no nervousness about it. It's hard to zero in on it but in this case there is an air of helplessness and despon

by tobbyb 10y ago

Isn't that more practiced indifference? There is no nervousness about it. It's hard to zero in on it but in this case there is an air of helplessness and despondency, with all that iconic imagery and hubris typical of totalitarian regimes. It all looks a bit too dire trivializing the people and magnifying their helplessness. It could just be our or my own prejudice and perspective knowing what we know about North Korea and reading more into these rather unique and powerful set of images, you just want people to be free and happy if possible. I don't know, bribe China, bribe North Korea, surely there must be a way to get those holding the strings to let go and to do it not because of nuclear weapons, strategic interests or business but to set the people free. What a moment it will be. Humanity would have truly prevailed.

Declanomous 10y ago
Sounds like an example of the Kuleshov Effect: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuleshov_Effect https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuleshov_Effect
pavel_lishin 10y ago
> with all that iconic imagery and hubris typical of totalitarian regimes. I think all that iconic imagery is probably biasing you. I'm not saying that DPRK is a wonderland, but I'd wager that if you took photos of the Pyongang, Moscow Metro, London, Tokyo and New York subways and randomly swapped the various backgrounds, a casual viewer would view the Soviet-influenced Moscow- and Pyongyang-background passengers as gloomy, and the New York- and London-background ones as having "practiced indifference". (You'd probably have to be clever with the composition, though - seeing obviously-British people or people of African descent with Mao or Lenin behind them would be a little jarring, and a bit out of place.) I kind of want to do this now, but don't think I have the time today.
zodPod 10y ago
> It could just be our or my own prejudice and perspective knowing what we know about North Korea and reading more into these rather unique and powerful set of images, you just want people to be free and happy if possible. This, I can't help but think he'd have a different opinion if some of these pictures were shown out of context without any indication that it's NK.
effie 10y ago
> I don't know, bribe China, bribe North Korea, surely there must be a way to get those holding the strings to let go and to do it not because of nuclear weapons, strategic interests or business but to set the people free. What a moment it will be. Humanity would have truly prevailed. The desire for change must come out of North Korea inhabitants, then other states can help. Otherwise what you're suggesting would be externally orchestrated regime change, a thing that usually ends up badly for the people living there.

by tobbyb 10y ago

Declanomous 10y ago

Sounds like an example of the Kuleshov Effect: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuleshov_Effect https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuleshov_Effect

pavel_lishin 10y ago

> with all that iconic imagery and hubris typical of totalitarian regimes. I think all that iconic imagery is probably biasing you. I'm not saying that DPRK is a wonderland, but I'd wager that if you took photos of the Pyongang, Moscow Metro, London, Tokyo and New York subways and randomly swapped the various backgrounds, a casual viewer would view the Soviet-influenced Moscow- and Pyongyang-background passengers as gloomy, and the New York- and London-background ones as having "practiced indifference". (You'd probably have to be clever with the composition, though - seeing obviously-British people or people of African descent with Mao or Lenin behind them would be a little jarring, and a bit out of place.) I kind of want to do this now, but don't think I have the time today.

zodPod 10y ago

> It could just be our or my own prejudice and perspective knowing what we know about North Korea and reading more into these rather unique and powerful set of images, you just want people to be free and happy if possible. This, I can't help but think he'd have a different opinion if some of these pictures were shown out of context without any indication that it's NK.

effie 10y ago

> I don't know, bribe China, bribe North Korea, surely there must be a way to get those holding the strings to let go and to do it not because of nuclear weapons, strategic interests or business but to set the people free. What a moment it will be. Humanity would have truly prevailed. The desire for change must come out of North Korea inhabitants, then other states can help. Otherwise what you're suggesting would be externally orchestrated regime change, a thing that usually ends up badly for the people living there.