On the Spot with Kim Jong-il (opens in new tab)

I find these pictures sad. There's a lot of people working like slaves in NK for whom these pictures document the most important day in their lives. Awash in propaganda, many of them probably sincerely believe they're engaged in a noble mission of freedom. Sometimes I wonder if Kim himself believes he's the only think holding it together.

The regime in North Korea seems to have a desperate need to convince others of its legitimacy, unlike, say, that in Myanmar where the junta holds the country in a equally tight grip but seems to shun all outside scrutiny. Whereas any educated person can recognize Kim Jong Il, even Google has only a few photographs of Myanmar's leader.

(in case you were wondering: http://1763coventry.com/burmeses/index.php/TOC_-_Leaders_%26...)

Christopher Hitchens wrote an interesting piece on NK recently http://www.slate.com/id/2243112/pagenum/all/

I always found it interesting how he was constantly in fear of getting ripped off by the government, and moreover, how the North Korean people he worked with never really talked to him about how they felt.

I found the story about the girl who was impregnated by an African student and forced to have an abortion to be incredibly fascinating.

What I really wonder is Kim Jong-il "in" on the staged-ness of these shots? Or does he just operate with a different perception of the world because things are always presented to him in such a tidy manner?