Any bets on the mental state of this guy just deported from North Korea?:
North Korea will deport a U.S. citizen detained since October after he entered illegally from China and told his captors he was manipulated by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the North Korean state news agency reported on Friday.
The KCNA news agency identified the American as Bruce Byron Lowrance and said he was detained on Oct. 16 as he crossed the border.
An American man of the same name was deported from South Korea in November 2017 after being found wandering near the heavily fortified border with North Korea, but there was no immediate confirmation of the identity of the man held by North Korea. [Reuters]
I have been dubious of the viral Go Fund Me campaign for a homeless veteran that raised $400,000 last year and thus did not promote it on this site. Sure enough it was a fraud:
Kate McClure, Mark D’Amico, Johnny Bobbitt
Mr Bobbitt and the couple first came to prominence in November 2017 when Ms McClure launched a crowdfunding GoFundMe campaign, which, they said, was to re-pay the debt of a homeless man who came to her aid at the side of a road.
A photograph of Ms McClure and Mr Bobbitt, a veteran and drug addict who had lived on the streets for several years, standing on the side of the road, fronted the fundraising campaign.
More than 14,000 people donated, many inspired by the story’s details, such as Mr Bobbitt instructing Ms McClure to lock her car doors before he returned with a can of petrol.
Officials said on Thursday they believe the photo was staged after the three met previously when Ms McClure and Mr D’Amico visited a casino near an underpass where Mr Bobbitt spent time. [BBC]
You can read the rest at the link, but they would have gotten away with this fraud if it wasn’t for the fact that Bobbitt sued McClure and D’Amico for more money than what they had given him. This caused an investigation which led to the discovery of the fraud.
This fraud is exactly why I have never given any money to Go Fund Me and I am very particular on where I donate my money to. I recommend everyone else should do so as well.
North Korea seems to be sending a message that they are growing impatient waiting for the sanctions to be dropped:
In this undated photo released Friday, Nov. 16, 2018, by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, listens to a military official as he inspects a weapon testing at the Academy of National Defense Science, North Korea. Kim observed the successful test of a newly developed high-tech tactical weapon.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un observed the successful test of an unspecified “newly developed ultramodern tactical weapon,” state media reported Friday, in an apparent bid to apply pressure on the United States and South Korea.
It didn’t appear to be a test of a nuclear device or a long-range missile with the potential to target the U.S. A string of such tests last year had many fearing war before the North turned to engagement and diplomacy. Still, any mention of weapons testing could influence the direction of stalled diplomatic efforts spearheaded by Washington and aimed at ridding the North of its nuclear weapons.
The North hasn’t publicly tested any weapons since November 2017, but in recent days Pyongyang reportedly expressed anger at U.S.-led international sanctions and ongoing small-scale military drills between South Korea and the United States.
Earlier this month, North Korea’s Foreign Ministry warned it could bring back its policy of bolstering its nuclear arsenal if it doesn’t receive sanctions relief.
“It’s North Korea-style coercive diplomacy. North Korea is saying ‘If you don’t listen to us, you will face political burdens,'” said analyst Shin Beomchul of Seoul’s Asan Institute for Policy Studies. [Reuters]
You can read more at the link, but of course the Moon administration in South Korea is playing down this weapons test:
North Korea’s test of an unspecified high-tech weapon should not be interpreted as a sign that the regime is abandoning denuclearization talks with the United States, a senior South Korean official said Thursday.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected the “successful” test of a “high-tech tactical weapon” at a national defense institute, state media reported early Friday (local time).
It marked the first such inspection by the leader following his viewing of an intercontinental ballistic missile launch in November 2017.
“It’s clearly something that we should watch carefully,” the senior government official who was visiting Washington told reporters on condition of anonymity. “But it’s still early to view this as a change of heart in terms of the North Koreans’ intention to have denuclearization talks or its intention to resolve the issue of regime security and improve ties with the U.S. through talks.” [Yonhap]
The big question remains what was tested? My guess would be is that they tested their multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) called the KN-09.
This photo from the North Korean daily Rodong Sinmun on March 4, 2016, shows a test fire of the country’s new multiple rocket launcher.
They last test fired their MLRS in 2016 and it reportedly has a range out to 200 kilometers. Maybe their new “ultramodern” weapon is an MLRS with greater range? Regardless a 200 kilometer range already threatens Osan Airbase and Camp Humphreys, the two major US military installations in South Korea.
It seems like the Trump administration is going to keep playing along with the so called peace process by smiling for photo ops and saying the right things. However, so far it appears they will not drop sanctions until North Korea does something to show they are serious about denuclearization. At some point this will come to a crisis and it seems the Trump administration wants the Kim regime to be the ones blamed for starting the crisis:
South Korean President Moon Jae-in shakes hands with U.S. Vice President Mike Pence during a meeting in Singapore on Nov. 15, 2018. (Yonhap)
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence asked South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Thursday to communicate and talk more closely with North Korea, Moon’s spokesman said.
The remark, made during a meeting with Moon in Singapore on the sidelines of regional summits, is seen as a call for Moon to play greater roles so that upcoming talks between the U.S. and the North, including a second summit, will be able make progress.
Pence was quoted as telling reporters after the meeting with Moon at the Suntec convention center that U.S. President Donald Trump plans to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un next year and that the two sides are discussing details.
“My understanding is that (Pence) made a request to Moon separately even as talks are under way between the North and the U.S.,” the South’s presidential spokesman, Kim Eui-kyeom, told reporters.
Moon agreed to play active roles while closely communicating with both sides, Kim said.
Kim said that there was no mention of sanctions during the meeting. [Yonhap]
Along with the sexism here, the problem with so many Korean workplaces is how much they depend on _your_ loyalty for employee retention. That, and the age discrimination that makes it harder for you to find work elsewhere the longer you stay. https://t.co/jdmFTMh5SN
This photo released by the Namhae municipality shows the scenery along the winding Mulmi Seaside Road in the town of Namhae, South Gyeongsang Province, on South Korea’s southern coast on Nov. 14, 2018, with trees around the area displaying their autumn colors. (Yonhap)
It seems like President Moon is in a race to get sanctions dropped, a peace treaty signed, and loads of free cash to North Korea before his approval ratings drop so low he politically cannot move forward with his agenda:
President Moon Jae-in’s approval rating has dropped for the seventh consecutive week.
According to a new Real Meter survey of one-thousand-500 adults nationwide conducted between Monday and Wednesday, 53-point-eight percent of respondents answered that the president is doing a good job, down one-point-six percentage points from last week.
Over 39 percent of respondents had negative assessments about Moon’s performance, up one-point-one percentage points.
Real Meter attributed the falling approval rating to public concerns about the economy fanned by news of worsening economic indicators and the government’s failing economic policies. [KBS Global]
South Korea has blown up some of its own guard posts within the Demilitarized Zone as part of efforts to implement an inter-Korean military agreement.
The Ministry of National Defense said on Thursday that although it is using excavators to destroy many of the DMZ guard posts, considering concerns about safety and environmental protection, some posts located on hillsides had to be destroyed using explosives.
The ministry also unveiled photos that were taken last Sunday showing how the North Koreans were destroying their own guard posts.
The photos featured North Korean soldiers demolishing the military structure using large-sized hammers. [KBS Global]
It seems to me that Samsung is getting off pretty cheap on this issue:
Samsung Electronics plans to deliver an official apology on the long-standing dispute surrounding its former workers suffering from diseases apparently related to the working environments at its factories, the mediation committee said Wednesday.
The apology is part of the agreement reached between one of the world’s leading makers of chips and Supporters for the Health and Rights of People in the Semiconductor Industry (Sharps), a group of victims suffering from various illnesses such as leukemia after working on Samsung’s production lines.
Earlier this month, the mediation committee announced the settlement – which Samsung and victims earlier agreed to accept – which included compensation of up to 150 million won ($132,000) per illness.
The mediation committee said the signing ceremony of the settlement will be held on Nov. 23. In July, Samsung and Sharps agreed to accept any decision made by the mediator to end the issue that has been unsettled for over 10 years. [Joong Ang Ilbo]
President Moon said KJU is not deceiving anyone because he never agreed to close SRBM bases, and they aren't related to ICBMs or IRBMs. Which means he's ok with NK pointing SRBMs at SKorea.
I love this feeling of schadenfreude watching Moon make a total ass of himself. https://t.co/niYIL7VHhE
— John Lee (The Korean Foreigner) (@koreanforeigner) November 13, 2018
