In light of the precarious state of the Korean peninsula following the death of the tyrannical North Korean dictator (and exceptional golf player) Kim Jong Il, The Propagandist once again presents this award-winning and very relevant essay on how not to end the horror emanating from Pyongyang.

After a two year hiatus on rice aid to North Korea, Seoul has resumed shipments at the North’s request, citing devastating floods and a poor crop season. Despite the Cheonan attack last March which effectively froze North-South relations, a recent poll in the Joong-Ang Daily shows that a large majority of South Koreans support rice aid shipments to the North. Although such public sentiment is understandable, history has shown it is a horribly misguided policy.

When rice aid to North Korea began during the famine of 1998, Seoul saw their sphere of influence widen, hoping to gradually reform the North Korean government. Over the past decade, approximately 300,000 to 500,000 tons of rice per year has produced an increasingly belligerent nuclear program, growing naval conflicts, revived military organs and a consolidation...More >>