A starving North Korea is begging for food from foreign nations. Flood, a brutal winter, and livestock disease has made the situation worse in a country where malnutrition is already a way of life. The North Korean government has ordered its embassy personnel to basically beg. It is currently betting from Japan, a country that North Korea usually threatens.
The United States cut off food aid several years ago over concerns about nuclear transparency. It has said it has no plans to start up again. The UN Food Program has said it will only contribute food for another month.
According to the Washington Post:
The request has put the United States and other Western countries in the uncomfortable position of having to decide whether to ignore the pleas of a starving country or pump food into a corrupt distribution system that often gives food to those who need it least.
We have always been a generous nation, even with our enemies, at least in the 20th century. North Korea is simply too much of a problem to start giving hand outs. A country that won’t play by the rules and issues threats all the time is in no position to be asking favors. On the other hand, there are starving people. The question we must ask ourselves is, would the starving people even get the food? I would give food only if I could distribtute it to those in need. If our troops went anywhere near there to give food, they would probably fire on them.
What do you think we should do?
Notice North Korea at night. The people have no electricity:
If you give a mouse a cookie..
but these are people, not mice. How can we ensure the most needy get the food, that is the problem. This is not the first time North Koreans have starved to death. what a horrible death, poor children children, that they should suffer because of man’s cruelty.
@Elena, You cannot ensure that anyone gets food that we might give them. That is the problem.
I hear what you’re saying Elena but it’s like giving a drunk wifebeater another drink. If you don’t do it; he’s gonna beat his wife. If you do it; he’s going to beat his wife.
The people (North Koreans) have to break the cycle. We tried once and it went very bad.
@Elena
Elena, your comments make me hopeful for the human race. I don’t think your community likes me on this blog, but I come here because I truly value the perspective you and Moonhowler present. You don’t seem to identify as “liberal,” but your viewpoints are always on the side of caring about struggling people. You are unique in my experience. My partner is from Virginia (Mechanicsville), and also likes to read this blog (but doesn’t leave comments). It inspires us to see that people other than MoveOn activists exist who are standing up to teaparty hysteria in their own remarkable ways. It is also a huge lesson in how to co-exist with people who are diametrically opposed in ideology. I don’t get along with extremely conservative people, online anyway. I get along with anyone face to face, but hard core conservative talking points are too personally hurtful to everyone and everything that really matters to me. I’m sorry that I so vehemently disagree with the majority (I think) of people who comment here, but I don’t think I’ve ever disagreed with you or Moonhowler. Even if you don’t always stand in my shoes exactly, your care and ability to self-reflect and remain open shine through.
You are absolutely right. If WE, and I mean the West, are allowed to distribute the food, then give it to them. Otherwise, the food will go to the military. This is what happened to previous food aid. The people still starved.
There is no easy, pat answer. The regime will never put the peoples’ need over their continued power.
I agree that Elena’s concerns are genuine, but the peoples of North Korea are the ones who must rise up just as the people are doing in the Middle East. As much as I usually disagree with Cargo, he is right–any food we or anyone else would send would not be seen the by ordinary people. It is not possible for us to intervene militarily–too depleted from our two “wars” and the military is busily downsizing as this is written. Plus we are not financially able to wage another war. It is also claimed that North Korea could put down a million artillery rounds on South Korea in a very short span. I am not certain South Korea or we are willing to initiate such an action.
Further, if we were to attempt to do so, it is more than likely China would get involved as it did before and more than likely we would lose our largest creditor. We are in a no win situation–many North Koreans–the very old and very young– will die before this is done.
@BoyThreeOne
You are free to disagree with them. We are a strange blog in that all points of view are represented here.
I am glad you are here. Try to get your partner to post also.
Thank you for your kind words.
Ok, if George, Cargo and I agree on something…. We’re only missing one more horseman.
We know much more about Iraq than we do about North Korea. That has been such a closed society for so many years. Do the North Koreans even have cooking fuel? What a sad situation. They live in a land time forgot.
How many of them defect? Can they even get out at all? How porous are their borders?
Here is an idea of what we might be facing if we were to attempt to intervene militarily–it is not a pretty picture.
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/oplan-5027-1.htm
@Moon-howler
As the link above might show–we know more about North Korea than we let on. If the DMZ is any indicator of border porosity, then I don’t think they are very open. Cooking fuel???
How do the NKs cook their food? wood?
This reminds me of what happened when we tried to be nice guys in Somolia when the war lords were killing and starving women and children.
Remember Black Hawk Down. That entire effort began as humanitarian aid, or at least that is what the American people were told.
MH, interesting perspective. I think one part will alarm you.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A41966-2003Oct3?language=printer
The fourth horseman just arrived. And George Harris is spot on. We are between the proverbial rock and hard place. If the situation is as dire as reported, this is not going to be pretty. And, if, as George suggests, people do rise up, we could see a Libya, not an Egypt. Given all the complex factors involved, I don’t think we face a greater political and humanitarian dilemma anywhere.
@Wolverine, I wish you and George would translate some of what he linked to. I don’t know all the acronyms. Please clarify.
@Moon-howler
The initial incursion into Somalia happened under Bush 41. He basically invaded with 25,000 troops, told everyone that if they shot at the soldiers bringing food, he was going to annihilate them. He didn’t care who was running things as long as the starving people were fed. Clinton tried to do the same thing with reduced troops and added nation building. The problem was that we were negotiating with the same people we were hunting. Clinton’s def. Sec, denied the use of armor because of “political” reasons, resulting in an inability to control the streets. Thus…Black Hawk Down.
Clinton’s intentions were good. But if you use military might…USE it.
@Wolverine
We will be damned if we do and damned if we don’t. I agree that this is the greatest political and humanitarian dilemma we face. The whole world is waiting to see if we blink. We cannot afford to–the stakes are just way too high. I don’t think there can be a hint of our involvement. If this thing should blow up, I would suspect that we will lose most of the troops we have there–sacrificial lambs sadly.
There are also many defense contractors there from what I have been told. It is a bad situation. @ George. George, I might need you to clarify some of that link. Not a military person here. duh me.
And South Korea is terrified that the SOUTH will win a war with North Korea. They don’t want millions of starving, culture shocked refugees heading south. The South is in a no-win situation.
We give them butter, they’ll have more resources for guns. Assuming we did have oversight over the distribution, where would WE get the money for this aid?
I think we have consensus that we feel for the plight of NK civilians but that our aid will probably trigger the powerkeg that is Korea..again.
I agree that without control over the food that it’ll go straight to the NK government and military; civilians be damned.
@Emma, give them food with what we were going to give Egypt before they beat up our journalists.
Agree with all who say the civilians would never get food, even if air dropped.
How is the situation in North Korea today?
How about Libya?
“You surrender, allow your nukes to be dismantled, and your artillery destroyed. THEN, you get food.”
That works for me.
Insert the word ‘verifiable’ in there, and I will agree. Oooops, I left off I want the nuclear materials removed from the country. I am driving a hard deal here.
Sure. Easy. We get to do it.
I know just the inspectors to use. We used them in Iraq…..
Their motto is “All The Way!”
In case anyone is wondering…that would be the 82nd Airborne….
I know everyone was just sweating trying to figure it out and nobody wanted to be first to comment…. 😉
The sad crazy nation of North Korea, i fear that any food aid will only go to the regime and its toadies, HK has been run as a Stalinist state since its inception, as I always say,
You won’t see a skinny soldier in NK…