North Korea Detains U.S. Citizen

[Azadina]

A professor has to be educated enough man to realize, that traveling to North Korea is equal to offering yourself to be taken hostage. Why he would risk this for aid mission that others could do, who knows.

[s_bushido]

Frederick Otto Warmbier- Destroyed, Stole the local propaganda.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Warmbier

I know defending heinous regimes like this is a fun pastime for internet edgelords, but when you're talking about someone who stole a poster from a hotel and was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for it, I'm afraid you're not going to garner much sympathy from anyone living in a country where that sort of crime would have otherwise resulted in a fine.

[ParanoiD84]

More likely to be used as a bargaining chip for the US to back off..

Yeah your probably right given the relations between the us and nk.

[XangXu]

Well after America proved once again how much of a god damned paper tiger they are, choosing to bomb poor and penniless sand people rather than the crazy dictator who threatens nuclear annihilation, I can't blame North Korea for having their ego inflated.

[Deleted]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Warmbier

I know defending heinous regimes like this is a fun pastime for internet edgelords, but when you're talking about someone who stole a poster from a hotel and was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for it, I'm afraid you're not going to garner much sympathy from anyone living in a country where that sort of crime would have otherwise resulted in a fine.

Pointing out that allot of Americans arrested in N Korea are so because they did stupid things is being a edgelord? Also how is that defending N Korea? Is it my fault that Americans abroad go to these places and then go piss off the local Warlord and his minions? The fact remains that the few western Tourists N korea receives. The American ones have a history of doing stupid things and then ending up in a labour camp turning big rocks into smaller rocks. Not the British, not the Germans, not Canadians.

Take Warmbier. He asked for a poster. The NORKS told him he cant have one. What does the genius do? He sneaks into the employee only area and steals a picture of what the locals think of as a God king. I mean we have reports of N koreans risking flood waters to save these types of pictures. Yet he decides its a good idea to steal from the religious zealots.

[Santti]

You know Kim is crazy and he has unlimited power in his country. He can have you killed on a whim, on the spot.

Why would anyone go to a place like that?

No idea. I guess they find Best Korea fascinating? See the people living there, etc.

Still a royally stupid idea, especially if you are from a country they hate to no end.

[Alydael]

No idea. I guess they find Best Korea fascinating? See the people living there, etc.

Still a royally stupid idea, especially if you are from a country they hate to no end.

I wasn't even aware that you could go to N Korea. It is not as if we have flights leaving JFK or LAX to N.K. or anything. He must have traveled to China and crossed that way.

I do feel bad for him though, apparently he was just trying to help the starving NK people. No surprise they locked him up for that. It is obvious that all the food they have only goes to Kim jung Il (or w/e his name is).

[satimy]

Breaking laws and doing stupid things. Something that Americans visiting N Korea seem to do often because other Western Tourists do not seem to have these issues.

Euna Lee and Laura Ling- Observing troop movement, taking pictures of things they were told not to. They also then handed the N koreans a list full of defectors, people escaping N Korea.
Evan Hunziker- Crossed the border illegaly, had several arrest warrants out for him in the US.
Robert Park- crossed the border illegaly, started smashing pictures of the Kims.
Aijalon Gomes- Entered N Korea illegaly. (And you Americans complain about Mexicans crossing borders :P )
Kenneth Bae- tried spreading Christianity in best korea. A big no no.
Jeffrey Fowle- Was proselytising, which is strictly forbidden in North Korea, also left a bible in a Nightclub, christianity is forbidden in N korea.
Kim Dong-Chul - Caught with a USB stick full of documents.
Frederick Otto Warmbier- Destroyed, Stole the local propaganda.

Now list me the other foreign tourists who the N Koreans detained for doing such stupid stuff.

They received an impartial trial for these charges right?

[Kujako]

A professor has to be educated enough man to realize, that traveling to North Korea is equal to offering yourself to be taken hostage. Why he would risk this for aid mission that others could do, who knows.

Because his desire to help others trumps his desire to protect himself? I know, it sounds weird, but it happens.

[judgementofantonidas]

http://thehill.com/policy/internatio...citizen-report



Get ready for a heavy dose of military escalation.

Why did the snapping turtle bite off my finger when I put my hand in it's mouth???

[Stormspark]

You know Kim is crazy and he has unlimited power in his country. He can have you killed on a whim, on the spot.

Why would anyone go to a place like that?

The guy is a US Citizen but he is originally from Korea. A lot of Korean families were separated at the end of the Korean War when the DMZ went up. There are a LOT of South Koreans who have family in North Korea. Imagine a wall went up in your home town, separating you from your parents, and the part of town they lived in was taken over by a dictator.

I'm not saying people should go to North Korea but at the same time I can see why some might want to.

[Video Games]

Pass me the controller, bro. I'll rescue him.

[breadisfunny]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Warmbier

I know defending heinous regimes like this is a fun pastime for internet edgelords, but when you're talking about someone who stole a poster from a hotel and was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for it, I'm afraid you're not going to garner much sympathy from anyone living in a country where that sort of crime would have otherwise resulted in a fine.

they stole the dear leaders image. this is a very serious crime.

- - - Updated - - -

https://travel.state.gov/content/pas...l-warning.html

it's not like they don't warn you. go to a foreign county and you are subjects to their laws.

no pornographic materials......damn there goes my trip to north korea....

[Polarthief]

nuk them !!!

Just evaporate an entire country and a bunch of innocent people and children as well? Yeah that seems like a logical choice with no possible repercussions or issues that will arise from that.

[Alydael]

Pass me the controller, bro. I'll rescue him.

That should be the next raid. We take a break from demons to sneak into NK and free this innocent man. Last boss: Kim Il (w/e his name is).

Then we find out that NK is actually aligned with the Legion and those missles he always proudly displays are filled with green hellfire!

[breadisfunny]

Just evaporate an entire country and a bunch of innocent people and children as well? Yeah that seems like a logical choice with no possible repercussions or issues that will arise from that.

pretty sure he's not being serious.

- - - Updated - - -

That should be the next raid. We take a break from demons to sneak into NK and free this innocent man. Last boss: Kim Il (w/e his name is).

Then we find out that NK is actually aligned with the Legion and those missles he always proudly displays are filled with green hellfire!

his name will be kim ill un. since it went sung jung ung next logically is un,

[Shadowferal]

Say what you will about N Korea. But Americans visiting the place often break laws or do other stupid things. They are very rarely innocent.

You have no idea of what the hell you're talking about.
NK isn't some tourist destination..

[I Push Buttons]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otto_Warmbier

I know defending heinous regimes like this is a fun pastime for internet edgelords, but when you're talking about someone who stole a poster from a hotel and was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for it, I'm afraid you're not going to garner much sympathy from anyone living in a country where that sort of crime would have otherwise resulted in a fine.

He's not saying they are right, he's saying that's their law.

If those people didn't do those things, or heaven forbid used some common sense and never went to North Korea in the first place, they wouldn't have gone to prison there.

Apostasy is a death sentence in Saudi Arabia... If some guy renounces Islam and then flies there and stands in the street bragging about his apostasy, they will arrest him and fucking execute him... Pointing out that he violated their law isn't defending Saudi Arabia, if anything it is pointing out how much of a retard the guy is.

Same thing with North Korea... People know it is an authoritarian police state... They know the dictator is so absurd he is basically a caricature of what is considered an evil dictator. So people who go there in the first place are already fucking retards... If they break the laws, then their retardation has seemingly scaled exponentially up. Because they know the consequences, they know they are being watched, etc., and did it anyways.

[Wilian]

Yes, but Trump at least doesn't have dictatorial powers.

In a way over issuing military strikes he does, plus 'thankfully' due to legistlation passed during Bush era in post 9/11 world he can technically declare war on his own even if it's under pretense of something else and not 'a real a war'