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Question, will this have a noticeable impact on the N.K. economy or is it more of an inconvenience?

by Veelox 9y ago

bgun 9y ago
I don't know about the economy at large, but this will certainly be more than an inconvenience to many of the Kim family's wealthy and influential friends.
- adanto6840 9y ago
  This is borderline off-topic, maybe a bit naive even, but I can't help but ask as I'm genuinely curious and don't know. What do the 'wealthy' look like in NK? Is there an upper class of non-relatives and, if so, via what means -- government ties (business or personal)? What do they do on a daily basis, for work, fun, etc? It just seems to isolated, and perhaps that's my internet adoration speaking -- but is there a class of wealth in NK, what does it look like, how does it come to be? And I'm honestly curious: if there is a wealthy class, what do they do for fun/enjoyment/entertainment purposes -- and how will this impact that?
  - no1youknowz 9y ago
    I was watching a portion of Michael Malice with Joe Rogan[0]. Michael wrote "Dear Reader: The Unauthorized Autobiography of Kim Jong Il". He actually mentions the upper class in NK. It's over 2 and a half hours long, but I like Rogan's interviews they go by pretty fast. [0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5B_idqiEoUE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5B_idqiEoUE
  - equalunique 9y ago
    >What do the 'wealthy' look like in NK? Suki Kim's “Without You, There Is No Us” (2014) offers a perspective from the time she spent there. >What do they do on a daily basis, for work, fun, etc? It just seems to isolated They are mostly isolated to Pyongyang where they live bureaucratic lifestyles. >what do they do for fun/enjoyment/entertainment purposes Not much. They basically are confined to the city. The make a comfortable living and spend their whole lives trying to please KJU. >how will this impact that? If the economic impact is extensive, then it would inhibit their ability to support the regime, and that would hurt morale all around Pyongyang.
  - rasz 9y ago
    In East Bloc under Russian occupation the privileged class (party officials, high ranking bureaucrats, top of military command, security service/interior ministry, government run company directors etc) had access to special chain of shops full of western goods with special prices, additionally they were rewarded with cars/flats/homes/summer cabins at substantial discounts, automatically skipped all queues/lists/quotas, used special government owned hospitals/hotels/resorts for free, not to mention had get out of jail unless you murder someone important card, the list goes on and on.
DarronWyke 9y ago
Yes. China is NK's #1 trading partner.
topspin 9y ago
I think it will. The regime gets much of the hard currency it needs to run the 'gift economy' from foreign operations. These companies also form an excellent mechanism to maintain control. Many of them are labor providers; young NK men are conscripted to do logging in Siberia, gold mining in China and other such work. Their wages are sent back to Room 39 and any accumulation of despondent young men is eliminated.
astrodust 9y ago
Will it impact their meth production or counterfeit money production in any meaningful way? It's quite an operation they've got going.

Question, will this have a noticeable impact on the N.K. economy or is it more of an inconvenience?

by Veelox 9y ago

Question, will this have a noticeable impact on the N.K. economy or is it more of an inconvenience?

bgun 9y ago

I don't know about the economy at large, but this will certainly be more than an inconvenience to many of the Kim family's wealthy and influential friends.

adanto6840 9y ago
This is borderline off-topic, maybe a bit naive even, but I can't help but ask as I'm genuinely curious and don't know. What do the 'wealthy' look like in NK? Is there an upper class of non-relatives and, if so, via what means -- government ties (business or personal)? What do they do on a daily basis, for work, fun, etc? It just seems to isolated, and perhaps that's my internet adoration speaking -- but is there a class of wealth in NK, what does it look like, how does it come to be? And I'm honestly curious: if there is a wealthy class, what do they do for fun/enjoyment/entertainment purposes -- and how will this impact that?
- no1youknowz 9y ago
  I was watching a portion of Michael Malice with Joe Rogan[0]. Michael wrote "Dear Reader: The Unauthorized Autobiography of Kim Jong Il". He actually mentions the upper class in NK. It's over 2 and a half hours long, but I like Rogan's interviews they go by pretty fast. [0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5B_idqiEoUE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5B_idqiEoUE
- equalunique 9y ago
  >What do the 'wealthy' look like in NK? Suki Kim's “Without You, There Is No Us” (2014) offers a perspective from the time she spent there. >What do they do on a daily basis, for work, fun, etc? It just seems to isolated They are mostly isolated to Pyongyang where they live bureaucratic lifestyles. >what do they do for fun/enjoyment/entertainment purposes Not much. They basically are confined to the city. The make a comfortable living and spend their whole lives trying to please KJU. >how will this impact that? If the economic impact is extensive, then it would inhibit their ability to support the regime, and that would hurt morale all around Pyongyang.
- rasz 9y ago
  In East Bloc under Russian occupation the privileged class (party officials, high ranking bureaucrats, top of military command, security service/interior ministry, government run company directors etc) had access to special chain of shops full of western goods with special prices, additionally they were rewarded with cars/flats/homes/summer cabins at substantial discounts, automatically skipped all queues/lists/quotas, used special government owned hospitals/hotels/resorts for free, not to mention had get out of jail unless you murder someone important card, the list goes on and on.

DarronWyke 9y ago

Yes. China is NK's #1 trading partner.

topspin 9y ago

I think it will. The regime gets much of the hard currency it needs to run the 'gift economy' from foreign operations. These companies also form an excellent mechanism to maintain control. Many of them are labor providers; young NK men are conscripted to do logging in Siberia, gold mining in China and other such work. Their wages are sent back to Room 39 and any accumulation of despondent young men is eliminated.

astrodust 9y ago

Will it impact their meth production or counterfeit money production in any meaningful way? It's quite an operation they've got going.