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Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

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Re: Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

#41

Post by javert »

SoftwareMaven wrote: post #34
rdtsc wrote: post #12

Agree with others here, a very captivating read. Couldn't stop reading once I started. The personality of the protagonist is interesting to think about. Disturbed individual or hero? Both? We are presented with his actions, wonder what was going on in his head. Left his wife and kids to live for 3 years in a strange country. Did it again for 10 years. Remarried there to someone who doesn't speak his language. Had oth…

I have a hard time calling anybody who could leave his family like that a hero. He wasn't doing it to better their circumstances; he was doing it to satisfy himself.

Leaving your family is _nothing_ compared to providing emotional support for someone running concentration camps, abducting sex slaves, and all the other stuff.

Re: Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

#42

Post by midas »

Was anyone else surprised by the quality of food that the elites were/are eating? It doesn't surprise me that they had tons of expensive possessions and services, but I would've thought the perishable nature of food would make getting the ingredients for gourmet cuisine nearly impossible!

Re: Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

#43

Post by sciguy77 »

vwinsyee wrote: post #39
rdtsc wrote: post #12

Agree with others here, a very captivating read. Couldn't stop reading once I started. The personality of the protagonist is interesting to think about. Disturbed individual or hero? Both? We are presented with his actions, wonder what was going on in his head. Left his wife and kids to live for 3 years in a strange country. Did it again for 10 years. Remarried there to someone who doesn't speak his language. Had oth…

More like an antihero -- someone who blurs the lines between hero and villain. [1] [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antihero

I'm sorry but how the hell is this guy a hero in any way? Undeterred by sex slavery, assassination, execution, and forced labor he neglects his first batch of children and allows the second to be interned, and he says he can't wait to get back to the DPRK. He only informed the Japanese because they were holding him.

Re: Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

#44

Post by sciguy77 »

nitrogen wrote: post #28
dreen wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am guessing this was during the reign of Kim Il-sun when the country was apparently faring a bit better, and there were less sanctions etc. Also, did everybody in USA stop consuming sushi during war with Japan? Was it forbidden after the Pearl Harbor?

Quoting a dead comment: indiecore 14 minutes ago | link [dead] I don't think they had sushi in the west then. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_sushi#Appearances_in... Wikipedia was pretty unhelpful but there don't seem to be many western references until the 1950s and it probably wasn't popular until the 80s when Japanese culture started getting big. The term "sushi" does seem to skyrocket around 1980: http://…

Yes, that's true. The late rise of sushi in America is briefly mentioned in the movie Jiro Dreams of Sushi.

Re: Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

#45

Post by thejsjunky »

SilasX wrote: post #25

Kim Jong-il reveled in his enjoyment of sushi!? Does that strike anyone else as just ... distasteful, even by his standards? That would be like Japan opening up a McDonald's right where one of the A-bombs went off.

Probably not the best analogy as there are in fact McDonald's restaurants in Hiroshima (and I would imagine Nagasaki). There's one not far from the Peace Park towards Hiroshima Castle.

It's fair to be somewhat puzzled over it though; as mentioned in the article even today there is still quite a lot of animosity towards Japan in North Korea. I suppose it just goes to show that either the top Korean officials don't totally buy their own propaganda or that people are capable of amicably interacting with other people on a personal level even when they are at odds in the greater scheme of things - or some combination thereof.

Re: Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

#46

Post by rdtsc »

SoftwareMaven wrote: post #34
rdtsc wrote: post #12

Agree with others here, a very captivating read. Couldn't stop reading once I started. The personality of the protagonist is interesting to think about. Disturbed individual or hero? Both? We are presented with his actions, wonder what was going on in his head. Left his wife and kids to live for 3 years in a strange country. Did it again for 10 years. Remarried there to someone who doesn't speak his language. Had oth…

I have a hard time calling anybody who could leave his family like that a hero. He wasn't doing it to better their circumstances; he was doing it to satisfy himself.

Maybe a hero is the wrong word, and I personally don't consider him that, but I left that possibility as I can see how others can see him that way. Maybe in the same category as having someone wanting to climb the Everest and then almost dying up there. They didn't have to do it, but they did it, put their lives at risk, seemingly for the sense of accomplishment / fame, even though at home they might have their friends and loved ones waiting for them.

Re: Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

#47

Post by jpatokal »

oneiric wrote: post #15

Can someone explain the situation that started this? "he signed a one-year contract to teach sushi-making skills to young chefs in Pyongyang" Was this just in the classified ads? I thought North Korea was closed off from the world and Japan an enemy. Was this a low point in military tensions? Similarly what kind of flights went between Japan and DPRK?

There's a huge North Korean community in Japan, which are a major source of funds to North Korea. Until North Korea confessed to abducting Japanese citizens c. 2002, there was even a ferry that traveled regularly between the two.

The main catch is that Japan's "North Koreans" may be internally registered as such, but they're actually descended from people who were in Japan before 1948 and for most part have never even been to North Korea. This is all further complicated by the fact that Japan doesn't actually recognize North Korea as a state and holds on to the fiction that South Korea is the sole legitimate country on the entire peninsula. Wikipedia has a capsule summary:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chongryon

Re: Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

#48

Post by burntsushi »

nitrogen wrote: post #28
dreen wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am guessing this was during the reign of Kim Il-sun when the country was apparently faring a bit better, and there were less sanctions etc. Also, did everybody in USA stop consuming sushi during war with Japan? Was it forbidden after the Pearl Harbor?

Quoting a dead comment: indiecore 14 minutes ago | link [dead] I don't think they had sushi in the west then. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_sushi#Appearances_in... Wikipedia was pretty unhelpful but there don't seem to be many western references until the 1950s and it probably wasn't popular until the 80s when Japanese culture started getting big. The term "sushi" does seem to skyrocket around 1980: http://…

@indiecore - All of your posts are dead. Looks like you've been hellbanned. I've seen folks have success restoring their account after emailing the HN admins. Good luck!

Re: Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

#49

Post by markdown »

Taylorious wrote: post #31
avgarrison wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You might like the book "Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea." There's quite a few jaw dropping stories from people who defected from NK. It's such a mysterious country, I am completely fascinated by it. edit: a word

Thanks for the suggestion. I will definitely check it out. Although, I have trouble reading those types of books (and articles) because they tend to be a bittersweet experience. On the one hand I feel like it is sort of like a sin to be willfully ignorant of the terrible things happening in places like NK, but it is also incredibly depressing learning about these things and being so powerless. For some reason the bru…

Did you learn of the PNG situation from the article that was submitted to HN?

Did you know that since that article was shared here, the PNG govt is trying to push forward very tough laws to clamp down on the nastiness that goes on there. They're bringing back the death penalty, and it will now also apply to rape, violent robbery, etc.

> The prime minister also announced that the government would repeal the controversial 1971 Sorcery Act, which acknowledges the accusation of sorcery as a plausible defence in murder cases

> Prime Minister Peter O'Neill said violent crimes were becoming too frequent and that "draconian" measures were required.

> "There will be maximum penalties that have never been seen before in this country"

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-22366075

> Parliament last week resurrected the long-dormant death penalty and approved five methods of execution: hanging, firing squad, electrocution, lethal injection and asphyxiation.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-22698668

Re: Kim Jong-il's Sushi Chef

#50

Post by snogglethorpe »

jpatokal wrote: post #35
SilasX wrote: post #25

Kim Jong-il reveled in his enjoyment of sushi!? Does that strike anyone else as just ... distasteful, even by his standards? That would be like Japan opening up a McDonald's right where one of the A-bombs went off.

Raw fish is an integral part of Korean cuisine as well. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoe_(dish)

Of course, technically sushi doesn't refer to raw fish...
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