Enter Pyongyang [video]

I just stumbled upon this after stumbling upon Shin Dong-hyuk to Dennis Rodman, where he recaps his unimaginable life born into slavery in Camp 14 before escaping at 2005. He's the first person to escape a prison camp of this kind. His letter urges Mr. Rodman use his friendship to end this immense cruelty and oppression.[1]

I'm merely a casual North Korea observer, but this video is startling because of it animates and explores the scale of Pyongyang in a way I've never seen. Teenagers hang out in a skate park, people get dressed up and go somewhere on a subway, a group of four traditionally dressed women walk down a giant sidewalk. The architecture is at a bizarre scale, but otherwise looks like a sterile combination of Las Vegas and Bucharest.

There is a strange dissonance in seeing a country with such dark and terrible corners brought to life in this way. Any attempt to distance or qualify North Korea as "other" sort of falls apart. They're ordinary people, living powerless under a state that exerts enormous violent force to maintain its idea of order.

[1] http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/how-dennis-rodman-can...

I have always taken the negative criticism of Pyongyang with a pinch of salt. Not that NK is a good country but USA is too notorious with propaganda.

Also, USA told us that Saddam Hussein had WMD and was violating human rights and a threat to the world and all. I guess eliminating Saddam and giving that country to ISIS has made world a better place.