Hacker News Reader

Comment by dblooman | Hacker News Reader

I wonder if we "took out" the leadership, how long we would leave things as they are to allow people to adjust. How much of shock would it be to tell people they can go and visit any country, call anyone, learn about other cultures without fear of arrest

View on HN

When the Berlin wall fell - the economic collapse of Eastern Europe was total for a decade. Leave vacuum at the top - and ordinary North Koreans will be even worse. Look at the paradise that is Iraq.

The only semi-successful country that avoided total pain was East Germany - and it was because of the unification.

The cost of the German reunification was enormous. And that was for a country that was probably one of the best economies of the communist states. I can't imagine what the cost and effort would be to keep North Korea from collapsing.

    > Look at the paradise that is Iraq.

Iraq was held together by a strongman of one of two secterian factions on the country, who when the country collapsed went right back to killing each other.

I don't think any such analogous situation exists in North Korea, it would be much more like East Germany, the economy would be horrible for decades, but I doubt it would come to perpetual civil war like Iraq.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com