Ending 20th century Socialism

With the death of Kim Jong-il North Korea's totalitarian dictator, the world can finally say goodbye to the era of 20th century 'socialism' that dominated much of the globe throughout the century. The world can say goodbye to the Stalinist dictators and the kleptocrats and say hello to... what? Consumer capitalism? Or maybe, 21st century Socialism, in the style of Hugo Chavez and Evo Morales.

As we've seen with Fidel Castro's retirement from dictating, Cuba has made moves towards liberalizing it's economy and ameliorating some of its more criticized human rights problems. North Korea, which is on track to build a railway and gas pipeline connecting Russia and South Korea looks to be headed down a similar path if transition goes smoothly. Will Korea continue on its political path, collapse or turn into a state capitalist economy like China? It's too early to tell. One thing is for sure, the era of 20th century socialism is in its dying days.

What will this mean for American foreign policy? Well, it will likely spell trouble, if communism dies in Korea. Who will American authorities point at to say, "look you don't want to be like them, right?" The negativist approach to tackling the socialist problem. Not North Korea. Not Cuba. Venezuela is looking pretty peachy these days. As are Vietnam and Bolivia. Also, China. But wait, China isn't socialist, its state capitalist. Right, that may be America's last chance at salvaging the image of 'capitalism.' But they'll never admit that the burgeoning China is capitalist even if it will restore faith in capitalism, they're just too prideful.

Either way, two conceivable paths could be drawn with the end of 20th century socialism. The waning of capitalism in favour of 21st century democratic socialism, or a newfound respect for China's state capitalism, and the birth of the concept of 21st century capitalism with China at its head. This spells a dramatic shift away from democratic process and widespread human rights violations in favour of economic growth.

Thus ends 20th century Socialism. Your move, China.

Something Foamy Brewing in North Korea

Hailed as the Pride of Pyongyang the Taedonggang beer produced in a North Korean brewery is getting publicity in North Korea today. In a strikingly capitalist move thoroughly communist North Korea has launched a television ad campaign. To be fair it is not your typical Western media advertisement. It looks to have a significantly lower budget than it's western cousins with a style reminiscent of a 1960s Slinky® commercial.

Now I don't speak or read Korean, but it looks to me like the commercial advertises that the beer is locally made and appeals to the worker in North Korea. The advertisement says, "It represents the new look of Pyongyang," and, "It will become a familiar part of our lives." Foreign critics say the beer is of high quality. It is hailed for being produced with fresh and pure ingredients. The beer has also been sold in South Korea.

In recent weeks we have seen nuclear tests, missile test launches and threats from North Korea and retaliation from American and Western nations. As tension builds on both sides, is the DPRK government advertising this beer to keep dissent from brewing in the population? Or is it just a cash-grab for the Dear Leader Kim Jong-il?