The Tyler Cowen

1. Secret video from inside North Korea. Lots of haircut footage included. Via Gizmodo.
   Pyongyang Style - North Korean Haircut from Steve Gong on Vimeo.
2. A series of interesting articles on Japan, ranging from the culture of disaster to the culture of practicality to the government's attempts to downplay the current radiation problem. 
3. New article from 38 North regarding economic engagement with North Korea. 

Homefront is a Joke

IGN recently published an interview with some of the advisors for THQ's upcoming video game Homefront. The game, set roughly fifteen years in the future, envisions a United States occupied by North Korean forces. In the interview, the advisors detail some of their theoretical assumptions which pave the way for such a situation. While both the advisors and the author dutifully pepper their ideas with caveats and reminders that this is all for the sake of entertainment and shouldn't be taken seriously, the article's title ("Is Homefront Possible?") irks me enough to deconstruct their theories in order.

The article relies on two basic fear-mongering facts: 1) historical precedent and 2) economic decline. The first basically follows the logic that no one predicted the inflation-ravaged Germany would sweep through Europe in the late 1930's, so it might happen again. The second falls back on the current cries of American economic and military decline thanks to a volatile Middle East and our reliance on oil. In unpacking each step of North Korea's hypothetical expansion, we will attack each of these parts as they crop up.

St. Paddy's Playlist

Punk-Fun Friday

Trying something new for the long-dormant music section. Hopefully daily updates with embedded MP3 player for your enjoyment. (The color-scheme could use some tweaking but we'll save that for another time.) All of the above have the pulse-quickening intangibles that are the best way to ring in the weekend.

The Tyler Cowen

1. Japanese torture gameshow.
   
2. Comprehensive piece examining The Arab Spring and the prospects for democracy. 

"...it has become clear that underlying conditions do have a big impact on democratic success. Five are of special importance: 1) the level of economic development; 2) the degree of concentration of sources of national wealth; 3) the coherence and capability of the state; 4) the presence of identity-based divisions, such as along ethnic, religious, tribal, or clan lines; and 5) the amount of historical experience with political pluralism."

3. Via The Browser, how we get North Korea's non-state sponsored bits of news. 

The Tyler Cowen

1. Two articles on North Korea, both from Marginal Revolution. The first regarding a North Korean restaurant in Virginia which spring-boards nicely into a biography of the owner. The second is about studying abroad in North Korea which seems like a handful of trouble if you ask me. 

The Tyler Cowen

1. Farm subsidies and the culture that is defending rural America. Via Marginal Revolution. 
2. The future. 
3. Applying Charlie Sheen's quotes to professional athletes with hilarious results. 
4. Pi presented musically. 
5. A cry of warning that may have come too late. 

The Arab Spring

Foreign Policy has a post regarding the importance of recession on democratic agitation here. In the post, Charles Kenny attempts to turn conventional wisdom on its head by pointing out that it was actually economic hardship that prompted the regime changes sweeping the Middle East. Not to be a turd in the punch-bowl but it seems a little early for these sorts of grandiose, theory-changing statements. What has transpired so far across most of the Middle East are revolutions. History has shown that revolutions are commonly sprung from hardship, economic or otherwise. These revolutions may be clothed in the rhetoric of democracy but that does not imply that a functional democracy requires economic recession. Kenny conflates revolution with democracy for the sake of sensationalist journalism.

There is a good reason why scholars have long accepted the importance of economic progress in democratic development: it is a logically sound theory that is supported by available evidence. As illustrated in Maslow's Pyramid, political self-expression is a luxury afforded by the achievement of more basic needs. A populace has little concern for democracy when their primary concerns are food and shelter. While higher levels of the pyramid can be achieved on a weak base, fundamental institutions must be in place to ensure the continued enjoyment of attributes such as democracy. Institutions like the rule of  law, the right to private property, etc. are vital for a healthy democratic system to thrive. The reality of any society is that the establishment of such institutions is better served by non-democratic governments. It is only when these basic structures have been cemented that democratic revolution can take place, resulting in a lasting democracy. And these institutions are facilitated by economic prosperity, not recession. Recession may be the spark for regime change but prosperity is the environment for long-term democratic stability.

Kenny rightly notes that the changes sweeping the Middle East are the products of economic recession. However, there is no assurance that these revolutions will lead to sustainable democracies. Furthermore, the link between economic recession and democratic change is not causal because Kenny conflates democracy with revolution. Revolutions sprung from hardship are nothing new but sustainable democracies will require economic prosperity to last.

The Tyler Cowen

1. The importance of solitude. Via The Browser. 
2. Which states have the most passports? Via Marginal Revolution. 
3. Does the Arab Spring promise to push the US closer to Israel? 
4. Why apples are better than oranges. Via Cool Infographics. 

Firefly: Out of Gas Review

Tim Minear.

A quick review of the writing credits for each of the eight Firefly episodes seen so far reveals some interesting attributes of each primary scribe. Whedon's writing is, unsurprisingly, the most accessible and pleasing. Serenity, The Train Job, and Our Mrs. Reynolds all move effortlessly between humor and drama with neither tone feeling overdone. The guest writers range from pleasing (Jane Espenson's Shindig was a delight) to hackneyed (Drew Z. Greenberg's Safe felt mostly tacky) to overwrought (Ben Edlund's Jaynestown being the worst-reviewed episode thus far). Which leaves the work of Tim Minear, Whedon's creative second-in-command. Minear was responsible for the hair-raising Bushwhacked and co-wrote the enjoyable The Train Job with Whedon. But perhaps the most poignant Firefly episode to date is also Minear's second solo act and Out of Gas does not disappoint, suggesting that Minear might have his finger closer to Firefly's emotional pulse than even its more famous creator.