Comments on: North Korea Classics: Chris Hill Can Do Business With This Man?

By: Oscar

Oscar — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 19:25:00 +0000

Related to UNDP “corrupted” activities in North Korea. If you would like to find real and relevant cases of corruption, investigate UNDP in Afghanistan.
Everything there is corruption, incompetence and favoritism. I am talking about hundreds of millions of US$ Dollars. Only in 2003, the UNDP Budget was more of 1 Billion US$ Dollars. Most of them, are, of course, … “missing”.

By: Tom Paine

Tom Paine — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 03:26:05 +0000

I would like to see some serious reporting on what the administration believes that it is doing.

They must have a rationale. And the assumption that they’re just stupid strikes me as a big assumption that needs a bit more examination.

By: Bloodthirsty Liberal

Bloodthirsty Liberal — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 00:07:54 +0000

I hate to quote myself (well, not really), but we get the genocidal despots we deserve. Bloodthirsty Liberal

By: Brian

Brian — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 22:32:21 +0000

I must have sleepwalked through this part of Morning Edition.

I’m appalled . . . during the entire first half of the interview, Mr. Hill appears to be scratching his head in bewilderment. He first believes that the NoKors won’t meet the deadline, which is fast approaching because there’s no indication they’ve invited the inspectors in.

And then, wrt to the $25 million bank issue, he notes that the NoKors won’t move ahead until it’s resolved. This puzzles him:

But they keep saying they need this bank issue resolved. And the trouble is is that it is resolved. I mean the money has been returned, its available, and so it’s a little puzzling to us that they say they need it resolved because it is resolved.

And then he goes on to say he can rely on what his negotiating (!) partners commit to!

It reminds me of one of my favorite quotes:

“I don’t know what you mean by ‘glory’,” Alice said.

Humpty Dumpty smiled contemptuously. “Of course you don’t—till I tell you. I mean ‘a nice knock-down argument for you!’”

“But ‘glory’ doesn’t mean a ‘nice knock-down argument,’” Alice objected.

“When I use a word,” Humpty Dumpty said in a rather scornful tone, “it means just what I choose it to mean—nothing more nor less.”

“The question is,” said Alice, “whether you can make words mean different things.”

“The question is,” said Humpty Dumpty, “which is to be the master—that’s all.” (Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass, Chapter VI)

Brian