N.Korea's Kim Jong-il sends $500,000 to quake-hit Japan

[Viva_La_Revolution]

Source: msnbc/Reuters

SEOUL — North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has sent half a million dollars to aid Korean expatriates in Japan after the devastating earthquake and tsunami, Pyongyang's official news agency said on Thursday.

Decades of tightly controlled economic policy that has seen North Korea channel much of its scarce resources to arms development has left the country acutely short of cash although its leaders continue to live lavishly, according to South Korean news reports. Food is also reportedly scarce.

Japan, formerly Korea's colonial master, is frequently lambasted as a "war monger" in North Korea's state-controlled media along with South Korea and the United States.

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42241686

[Poll_Blind]

1. That's very odd for a number of obvious reasons.

PB

[Marie Marie]

2. He's very odd for a number of reasons

[Poll_Blind]

4. Too true. He might just be trying to keep everyone on their toes.

I'm partly surprised he didn't send them $500,000 worth of Hennessy, instead.

PB

[somone]

6. Or his rice wine

[Very_Boring_Name]

13. Sheesh he's got the whole "Godfather" thing going on

coat hanging over shoulders, dark sunglasses.

[CountAllVotes]

5. whatever

Maybe he felt something called sympathy for his neighbors that he had been said to dislike.

The times they are a changing ... oh yeah.

:)

:dem:

[Paradoxical]

10. He doesn't exist in reality. I doubt he has the capacity to feel genuine sympathy.

[WatsonT]

18. Hahahaha . . .no

he doesn't. He starved his own people by the millions so he could live in mansions (complete with his own personal waterpark).

Sympathy is not a word he knows.

This is showboating, trying to show how benevolent and prosperous his nation is.

He could give them far more than half a million by simply refusing to take any more aid from Japan.

[FLPanhandle]

20. Where's that "sympathy" for his own people? nt

[Old Troop]

23. He didn't send the money to "the people he had been said to dislike",

he sent it to Chongryon, the North Korean supported association of Korean residents of Japan. At least that's what one of the North's media outlets (KCNA) reports.

[aquart]

9. Obvious to whom?

Not me.

[Paradoxical]

12. His country is one of the most impoverished nations on Earth.

His people are so terribly malnourished that they are statistically shorter than their southern brothers and sisters.

The only reason why the government persists is because China provides them with massive amounts of humanitarian aid.

They cannot afford to send $500,000 to any country, let alone one of the wealthiest.

[rpannier]

14. Russia does large business with North Korea

It helps to keep starving refugees from flowing into Russia

[krispos42]

3. Isn't their biggest export counterfeit US money? n/t

[AsahinaKimi]

7. Choto henna!

How strange... indeed.

[msongs]

8. cheapskate and tightwad. That blatant imperialist Gwen Stefani is giving $1 mil + a clothing line nt

[demwing]

11. He's not giving it to Japan, he's giving it to Koreans in Japan

Not such a good neighbor after all...

[4saken]

15. Apparently he's also giving $100,000 to all victims of the earthquake.

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/24_37.html

[demwing]

19. Then more power to him!

its $100,000 more than I was able to send, and I'm happy to hear of it :)

[Name removed]

22. Deleted message

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[no_hypocrisy]

16. The leader of another Asian country sent HALF of the donations

given by Sandra Bullock and Demi Lovato?

http://www.popeater.com/2011/03/18/bullock-lovato-donate-japan/

And Gwen Stefani?
http://www.popeater.com/2011/03/18/bullock-lovato-donate-japan/

[tavalon]

17. Huh?

It's not an onion article, right?

[RedCloud]

21. No. they "reported" Korea had already nuke most of Asia.

[unkachuck]

24. "...Kim Jong-il has sent half a million dollars to aid Korean expatriates in Japan..."

....now that's a nice gesture....let's see if we can build upon it....or is that asking too much?

[Cognitive_Resonance]

25. Check the bills closely for counterfeit. They're notorious for it. nt

[Robb]

26. Zing.

...And, beat me to it.