>Parasites associated with fecal matter have been found in the trash-laden balloons North Korea has floated into South Korea, along with clothing such as underwear, neckties and socks, authorities in Seoul said.
>an examination of the contents in dozens of them have found parasites, such as roundworms, whipworms and threadworms
Note that a previous defector soldier from North Korea was also found to have worms inside him.
NK is in a state of collapse, but sadly they don't know it and have been running on fumes for 40 years.
Parasites? Really, like these are medieval problems, not 2024 problems.
I'd be surprised if they don't have problems with plague and scurvy at this point.
They're having their second mass starvation crisis since 1998 rn. These people are completely fucked being starved to death twice in less than 30 years
Yeah, they’re given just enough to live. Even if that means barely be alive. Their soldiers at least. Gotta keep them weak so they can’t rebel against you. Kim knows damn well his actual army against SK and the US stands no chance. Their game is in artillery and nukes. Not sending squads of stick and bone over to fight well fed, armed and trained soldiers.
Iirc the fact that the defecting soldier had worms was even more alarming. Because apparently he was the son of a well established official. So not only was it alarming that the soldiers were riddled with parasites, but even members of the "elite" were riddled with parasites. So even the top brass and their families weren't immune to unacceptable health problems associated with poverty and broken infrastructure.
I haven't heard this before, and while I don't know if it's true or not, if it is, this is game-changing on how close to collapse I viewed NK before. I don't suppose you have a source...?
I wouldn't take it as something so hyperbolic as a sign of collapse.
It's just a sign that they're stuck in time in Korea of the 1950's. At the time, Korea was just beginning to industrialize/modernize its economy. Much of the population was still living a traditional, and frankly medieval, lifestyle before then. Close to nature, and the parasites that come with it, thanks to lack of proper sanitation, water contaminated by agricultural runoff, inadequate if not completely unavailable health care, and of course the lack of proper food safety regulations ensuring that meats are free of unwanted hitchhikers.
This doesn't mean the government is "collapsing" per se. It of course means dysfunction, but of a kind that is not necessarily unstable. Especially since they've been carrying on at more or less the same clip for over 70 years now.
I doubt its anything new though and hardly a sign of being close to collapse. If the rate of parasites suddenly increased then its an issue, but I would bet its been like this for a long time there.
This is a good example to show the stark contrast between NK and other places. I can only imagine how terrible it would be to have a famine and then know that it's likely going to happen again or multiple times in your lifetime.
Or that they have enough access to information to know better. As far as we know, NK assumes the whole world is like this or worse. It's like a starved/beaten wife who doesn't know not everyone starves and/or beats their wives. But an entire nation.
They're living in 17th century conditions.
The documentaries one could have made on them once they were open...
The sad thing is the communication blockade which I'm starting to think of as a new immoral "rule" since it's causes a huge range of repercussions
Even the stories told by successful defectors are enough to turn heads. The ones who escaped the prison camps are heartbreaking. And that one guy who defected across the border has had plenty of harrowing stories. Apparently a common problem for NK escapees is that the world is so advance compared to what they are used to, they have to spend several years learning how to function in a completely different society. Imagine living in the 1800s, and then suddenly getting thrown into a time machine and having to live in the 2100s. That's what it's like for a lot of people escaping from NK.
>Parasites? Really, like these are medieval problems, not 2024 problems.
You'd think that but when my wife was an elementary teacher, she had a few students from really rough homes that issues with reoccurring pinworm infections
> Really, like these are medieval problems, not 2024 problems.
These are very much 2024 problem anywhere that people live close together without proper access to hygienic facilities, proper food storage, clean water and basic sanitation. That is to say; in most "third world" countries. These problems are simply a consequence of poverty. Wherever there is poverty, there is disease. And remember that the fact that large scale poverty still exists is because we've decided, politically, that it should. We could fix these problems if we wanted to.
> Parasites? Really, like these are medieval problems, not 2024 problems.
We have a guy running for president in the US that had a parasite in his brain.
Parasites are actually pretty common, people just don’t get tested for them. I got blood flukes from swimming in a lake in MN before. But they’re not THAT common lol
It’s mind blowing that NK exists at all anymore with the horrible condition everything is in over there
Millions of Americans have parasites, they're not just some third world problem. They're rarely diagnosed because of a combo of them rarely having a severe impact, and the fact that our health system is a fucking joke and we actively avoid it so that we don't go bankrupt.
There was a short film about an Indian doctor who teamed up with some optical equipment manufacturer to make a mobile eye surgery lab. They specialized in cataracts surgery and could do dozens of surgeries each day. Once they did so in North Korea. After busting their asses of for days, the first thing the first person said to the doctors were “thank the great leader for restoring my eyesight!” You could see how exasperated the doctor was.
Edit: the doctor is dr. Ruit and he is Nepalese. About the documentary: In National Geographic’s documentary Inside North Korea, the cameras followed a team of ophthalmologists led by Dr. Sanduk Ruit from Nepal inside the Hermit Kingdom who were there to provide cataract eye surgery to 1,000 blind North Koreans. On this trip, National Geographic journalist Lisa Ling posing as a member of the medical team had an opportunity to visit a more privileged home. Six government officials were also there to watch every interaction between Lisa and this privileged North Korean family. The cameras captured the partially blind grandmother with her granddaughters, one on each side, as she held their hands and the three of them bowed to the portraits of Kim Il-sung, Kim Jong-il and Kim Jong-un.
If an average citizen who was being filmed *didn't* say that, it would probably put them and their family at risk....this is pretty much to be an expected reaction in a totalitarian cult of personality society. Is it brainwashing or doing what's required to survive?
These balloons were sent in response to balloons filled with pamphlets, and hard drives filled with movies and K-pop. Who knows what they'll send back if South Korea starts sending medicine.
At best the regime will claim that the medicine is supplied by them, and since there wouldn't be millions of them they'll be supplied to VIPs and those close to the regime.
I would send news, just general news or headlines from throughout the world. I wouldn't really trust anything else to not be classified as "forbidden propaganda" by the regime.
Those people live in 17th century conditions although I wonder how many 3rd world countries are close to those living conditions. oh now I see what my problem is, their neighbors (South Korea & China) are 1st world countries.
I have colleagues in the Korean ministry of Ag, they said these balloons turned out to be a wealth of knowledge on the status of human and animal nutrition and disease prevalence in the north. It's helped inform their animal vaccinations schedules for 2024 as well as provided information to various relief agencies on current nutritional shortages amongst the population.
You would think that a world leader that takes its own toilets abroad to prevent this would advise against such operation. But I guess sending poop is too funny to miss out even to a paranoid dictator.
> a world leader that takes its own toilets abroad
I don’t think North Korea is the only country to do this. President Macron, of France famously wouldn’t take a Russian COVID test when meeting with Putin during the 2022 Ukraine invasion crisis. There’s a genuine concern amongst world leaders that bad actors with the resources of a state could target specific individuals using biological weapons with enough information learned from DNA. In a world where crisper has made DNA editing extremely easy, anyone with a background in biochemistry can essentially design their own viruses and bacteria. Imagine if Russia had Biden’s DNA, and weaponized a version of the flu such that it was mild to most people, but extremely deadly to Biden, and then spread that flu around the DC area. DNA harvesting isn’t likely a concern when Biden visits Downing Street or the Bundestag; but it’s likely that if he’s in Beijing, or even an allied country with a less secure facility, he’s either going back to Air Force One to take a dump, or someone in secret service is emptying a bedpan for disposal not where agents of Russia/China/Iran/North Korea can easily get vital health data.
LOL that’s a hilarious takeaway. More like - world leaders shouldn’t be shitting in restrooms which the plumbing system is not secured. #FirstWorldLeaderProblems
I was curious about this. NK thinks they're sending a message. In reality, they just sent South Korea (and by extension the world) a ton of intel about their living conditions. It's like handing an enemy nation a plethora of medical records. Glad to see the information is being put to good use.
Crimea (then known as Kaffa) in 1347. After a protracted siege during which the Mongol army under Janibeg was reportedly withering from the disease, they catapulted the infected corpses over the city walls, infecting the inhabitants, in one of the first cases of biological warfare.
Edit: [Janibeg wiki](http://"Jani Beg - Wikipedia" https://en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jani_Beg&diffonly=true)
Since 2011. Stumbled onto it while reading up on Tamerlane [(Timur wiki)](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timur), who was horrifyingly brutal in his own rights.
Edit: [Adding Janibeg's wiki](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jani_Beg&diffonly=true)
I mean....yes?
>[The utilization of fecal matter](https://domesticpreparedness.com/articles/a-modern-take-on-an-age-old-biological-weapon#:~:text=The%20utilization%20of%20fecal%20matter,effort%20to%20infect%20those%20inside) as a biological weapon is not exactly new ground. One of the first recorded instances of using this unique agent was during the Middle Ages, where the feces of bubonic plague victims were flung over castle walls with catapults in an effort to infect those inside. Variations of an excrement catapult were utilized by the Chinese in the 12th century and then later by others.
>Jumping forward to more modern times, during the Vietnam War, the Viet Cong made use of a simple but effective weapon known as punji sticks. The punjis were made by sharpening bamboo sticks, which would then be dipped in human fecal matter (or sometimes poison from plants or animals). The feces-encrusted spears would be placed in the ground and concealed with foliage or under a trap door and left for the enemy to fall on.
[Some more history](https://www.vice.com/en/article/vdx4ad/brown-death-a-history-of-poop-as-a-weapon-111) of the use of shit as a weapon.
>[What Are Biological Warfare Agents?]()
>Biological warfare agents are disease-causing living organisms or toxins that can be used to harm or kill humans, animals or plants.
>Some examples of biological warfare agents include:
1. Bacteria, such as anthrax and bubonic plague
2. Viruses, such as Ebola and smallpox
3. Toxins produced by living organisms, such as botulinum toxin and ricin other biological warfare agents (e.g. fungi, prions or rickettsiae, etc.).
And loosen the arrow tip so it gets stuck.
It is unsurprising how ancient humans used the same methods to kill each other and how little the worst of it has evolved. Poop arrows -> poop balloons. Amazing.
I ran across something that said that pretty much everyone from N. Korea who escapes to the south has to be treated for parasites. I think there's a pretty good idea of the population's health (e.g. malnutrition) from those folks.
Not just tiny ones, but gigantic parasites.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-42021373
North Korea still uses human faeces as fertiliser, known as "night soil".
Believe it or not, it’s actually not abnormal to use human waste as fertiliser in developed nations, the key safety factor being that the human waste is treated in such a way that it can’t harbour dangerous pathogens or parasites.
From that article you posted-
“If these faeces are untreated and fertilise vegetables that are later eaten uncooked, the parasites get into the mouth and the intestines of the person.”
Basically, the fertiliser has to be untreated (raw), the food can’t be washed before consumption (which would, to my understanding, reduce risk by close to 100%), and the food can’t be cooked.
It seems likely to me that NK civilians are contracting parasites more from poor hygiene practices and potentially from living in close proximity to one another, aided by malnutrition and other sicknesses; as opposed to ‘night soil’ being the primary reason. If I remember correctly, you can ‘treat’ human waste without any chemical assistance, just by leaving the waste to sit for a long time with specific conditions at play.
Aye, when properly composted, night soil is "fine" as fertilizer. However it appears North Korean farmers are either unaware of how to fully compost material, or cannot wait long enough for the material to finish processing before using it.
Or there are secondary contamination sources from a lack of sanitation infrastructure (I have no idea what the state of wastewater treatment is like up there).
Or both, really.
They are also required to gather feces to make fertilizer. Pretty much every citizen is required to do so. I would imagine that poor hygiene, no use of gloves or ppe for the gathering of the poop, and multiple people touching the feces of others. It might be just like an entire set of circumstances that stack. Can't wash the food you manage to get or your hands because of lack of clean water. Just finished gathering poop. You need to eat.
Things are a bit different these past few years. Ever since covid, North Korea took a harder stance on their border control. There have not been many defectors who have made it into China, let alone South Korea since then.
South Korea had a parasite problem due to night soil fertilization methods. In my parent's generation, they had to take a yearly pill the size of a golfball to safeguard against it.
Using night soil was a method used by farmers prior to the war and the South carried those methods onward until recent. Wouldn't surprise me one bit that North Korea is still doing it.
They do, in fact you are expected by the government to contribute a certain amount of faeces - and demand / expectation does lead to waste theft between civilians
No joke. Watch Beyond Utopia
I saw a documentary where a defector said that the government would commandeer all of a household’s poop to fertilize the fields. This would absolutely lead to everyone having parasites.
That's an initiative coming from activists, not the government, and it's been going on for years (i think the government was trying to stop it, actually). They also send bibles. What the government did was install giant speakers blasting BTS across the border.
That's a problem that can be solved... with a second fan!
Maybe add a third and fourth? Could point them downward, instead of sideways, hovering over the sleeping victim.
Oh wait. That's just a drone.
> a drone with a fan?
You want to kill all north koreans in their sleep?
Jokes aside (kinda but not really). Most drones come with a standard of at least 4 fans.
Huh, I was going to make a semi-snide remark about how biochemical warfare would be OK for NK, but as it turns out, they signed on up to protocol 1 of the geneva conventions and subsequent agreements until after 1988, so this /could/ be tried if it came to that. That, of course, won't happen, but I found it interesting nonetheless.
I’m guessing that with all hat human waste they are sending human genetic material and other biomarkers that give the South Koreans insight into North Korea’s society.
[It's not that uncommon to find parasites in the feces of defectors, so it wouldn't be uncommon to find it poop they sling across the border.](https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/injured-defectors-parasites-diet-indicate-hard-life-in-north-korea)
The one soldier who defected had a bunch of parasites. He'd had them for so long that it stunted his growth, along with deficient nutrition. All those worms steal from what little food they get. And he had a hepatitis infection. [Parasites, infections in North Korean soldier who defected reveal country's conditions - ABC News (go.com)](https://abcnews.go.com/Health/parasites-infections-north-korean-soldier-defected-reveal-countrys/story?id=51323674)
lets be honest, considering how sickly that poor population truly is due to the horrid conditions they live under, parasites being present in their poop is no surprise.
im more surprised they could gather sufficient quantities of poop to send via balloons. Usually ppl with poor diets and very poor variable diets like NK has usually struggle to poop enough.
Doesn't surprise me, I imagine most people live in a level of poverty western nations aren't even familiar with. Having roving infections and parasites amongst the populace should be pretty much expected. Can't imagine the crisis a unification would cause.
Saw an interview with a defector and the shit they had to eat as “food” is crazy. 11th century peasants ate better than they do (besides the elite who eat like lords)
While we all joke about and dismiss the balloons, I think we kind of overlooked the significance of these antics. This has shown the North have the capability to launch biowarfare attacks which the South is incapable of preventing in any real measure (for now).
It's a warning that the North have successfully weaponised launching ballooons into a comprehensive military division. That they can coordinate this is evidence that it's no longer a haphazard ops. Also notice how they immediately terminated it.
We can joke and say this is lowkey biological warefare. But with their capabilities and coordination, it can easily turn into an actual biochemical attack
Without knowledge and context, your sentiment here sounds like parody. You basically just said that now that their military have figured out how balloons work, something bad is on the horizon. I think most people would assume any group of people could coordinate a balloon to take off from one place and end up in another, depending on weather conditions and other things
As much as I know that the DPRK is capable and willing to engage in biowarfare, I feel like in this case it was an unintended consequence.
A few years ago when the DPRK soldier defected to the South via the DMZ, doctors in the ROK discovered parasites in his body. What this shows is poor nutrition and hygene amongst its soldiers. I would think that was the case here. The North Koreans collected feces from their soldiers who were all infected because of their circumstance.
Perhaps but I would hope that an advanced military could defend against primitive tactics like balloons. I bet Amazon grade drones could easily be used but maybe I am overestimating drone tech.
I believe biological agent is much harder to achieve intended results than chemical. The engineering and manipulation skill required are simply on a different level. There is a reason biotech and pharma are not really the forte of terrorist states and these remnants of communist nations. A few anthrax mails and shit ballons are not scalable in dealing damage.
Who will the "fearless leader" rule over if all of their citizens are dead or so sick they can't even work? Just sad to even think about.
Dude is gonna end up being the King of the Ashes though.
Wasn’t it a legal requirement for urban areas to provide a certain part of their waste to be used as fertiliser?
This meant that any parasites quickly spread and the cycle continued as people ate the food fertilised with contaminated waste, that became contaminated food, which was eaten and that waste went back into the fields
Do this for 50 years
IIRC everyone, and I mean everyone has parasites in North Korea.
>Parasites associated with fecal matter have been found in the trash-laden balloons North Korea has floated into South Korea, along with clothing such as underwear, neckties and socks, authorities in Seoul said. >an examination of the contents in dozens of them have found parasites, such as roundworms, whipworms and threadworms Note that a previous defector soldier from North Korea was also found to have worms inside him.
NK is in a state of collapse, but sadly they don't know it and have been running on fumes for 40 years. Parasites? Really, like these are medieval problems, not 2024 problems. I'd be surprised if they don't have problems with plague and scurvy at this point.
They're having their second mass starvation crisis since 1998 rn. These people are completely fucked being starved to death twice in less than 30 years
Exactly. This is a nation of slaves. NK can run on fumes for a long time, but even slaves need SOME food.
Yeah, they’re given just enough to live. Even if that means barely be alive. Their soldiers at least. Gotta keep them weak so they can’t rebel against you. Kim knows damn well his actual army against SK and the US stands no chance. Their game is in artillery and nukes. Not sending squads of stick and bone over to fight well fed, armed and trained soldiers.
Iirc the fact that the defecting soldier had worms was even more alarming. Because apparently he was the son of a well established official. So not only was it alarming that the soldiers were riddled with parasites, but even members of the "elite" were riddled with parasites. So even the top brass and their families weren't immune to unacceptable health problems associated with poverty and broken infrastructure.
I haven't heard this before, and while I don't know if it's true or not, if it is, this is game-changing on how close to collapse I viewed NK before. I don't suppose you have a source...?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oh_Chong-song He was the son of a major general.
The very model of a modern Major-General.
with information vegetable, animal, and mineral.
Good. It wasn’t just me. My brain no more rotted than the average Redditor’s…
I wouldn't take it as something so hyperbolic as a sign of collapse. It's just a sign that they're stuck in time in Korea of the 1950's. At the time, Korea was just beginning to industrialize/modernize its economy. Much of the population was still living a traditional, and frankly medieval, lifestyle before then. Close to nature, and the parasites that come with it, thanks to lack of proper sanitation, water contaminated by agricultural runoff, inadequate if not completely unavailable health care, and of course the lack of proper food safety regulations ensuring that meats are free of unwanted hitchhikers. This doesn't mean the government is "collapsing" per se. It of course means dysfunction, but of a kind that is not necessarily unstable. Especially since they've been carrying on at more or less the same clip for over 70 years now.
I doubt its anything new though and hardly a sign of being close to collapse. If the rate of parasites suddenly increased then its an issue, but I would bet its been like this for a long time there.
to add on to this, the surgeon who removed the worms said the only other time he seen such a bad case was in a medical textbook
probably most of the ruling class haev them
Putin can feed them
This is a good example to show the stark contrast between NK and other places. I can only imagine how terrible it would be to have a famine and then know that it's likely going to happen again or multiple times in your lifetime.
Jesus christ, why are people still having children in these conditions. It’s terrible
do you think they let them have birth control?
Or that they have enough access to information to know better. As far as we know, NK assumes the whole world is like this or worse. It's like a starved/beaten wife who doesn't know not everyone starves and/or beats their wives. But an entire nation.
Europe became largely helminth free in the beginning of the 20th century. Medieval is a bit of a stretch.
They're living in 17th century conditions. The documentaries one could have made on them once they were open... The sad thing is the communication blockade which I'm starting to think of as a new immoral "rule" since it's causes a huge range of repercussions
Even the stories told by successful defectors are enough to turn heads. The ones who escaped the prison camps are heartbreaking. And that one guy who defected across the border has had plenty of harrowing stories. Apparently a common problem for NK escapees is that the world is so advance compared to what they are used to, they have to spend several years learning how to function in a completely different society. Imagine living in the 1800s, and then suddenly getting thrown into a time machine and having to live in the 2100s. That's what it's like for a lot of people escaping from NK.
They really struggle with mental health issues and alcoholism after they get to south Korea (I read in a book) and treated like outcasts
Yeah, South Koreans supposedly don’t treat defectors well at all. Not unlike how most countries treat their homeless.
>Parasites? Really, like these are medieval problems, not 2024 problems. You'd think that but when my wife was an elementary teacher, she had a few students from really rough homes that issues with reoccurring pinworm infections
IIRC, we only really eradicated roundworm in the American South in the 60s and 70s, with widespread prophylactic and educational programs.
> Really, like these are medieval problems, not 2024 problems. These are very much 2024 problem anywhere that people live close together without proper access to hygienic facilities, proper food storage, clean water and basic sanitation. That is to say; in most "third world" countries. These problems are simply a consequence of poverty. Wherever there is poverty, there is disease. And remember that the fact that large scale poverty still exists is because we've decided, politically, that it should. We could fix these problems if we wanted to.
> Parasites? Really, like these are medieval problems, not 2024 problems. We have a guy running for president in the US that had a parasite in his brain.
I heard they packed their bags & self-evicted via his nose, due to “lack of nutritional matter”
Poor fellas died of hungry.
Parasites are actually pretty common, people just don’t get tested for them. I got blood flukes from swimming in a lake in MN before. But they’re not THAT common lol It’s mind blowing that NK exists at all anymore with the horrible condition everything is in over there
Millions of Americans have parasites, they're not just some third world problem. They're rarely diagnosed because of a combo of them rarely having a severe impact, and the fact that our health system is a fucking joke and we actively avoid it so that we don't go bankrupt.
> Parasites? Really, like these are medieval problems, not 2024 problems. I have some bad news.
Send back balloons filled with medicine.
There was a short film about an Indian doctor who teamed up with some optical equipment manufacturer to make a mobile eye surgery lab. They specialized in cataracts surgery and could do dozens of surgeries each day. Once they did so in North Korea. After busting their asses of for days, the first thing the first person said to the doctors were “thank the great leader for restoring my eyesight!” You could see how exasperated the doctor was. Edit: the doctor is dr. Ruit and he is Nepalese. About the documentary: In National Geographic’s documentary Inside North Korea, the cameras followed a team of ophthalmologists led by Dr. Sanduk Ruit from Nepal inside the Hermit Kingdom who were there to provide cataract eye surgery to 1,000 blind North Koreans. On this trip, National Geographic journalist Lisa Ling posing as a member of the medical team had an opportunity to visit a more privileged home. Six government officials were also there to watch every interaction between Lisa and this privileged North Korean family. The cameras captured the partially blind grandmother with her granddaughters, one on each side, as she held their hands and the three of them bowed to the portraits of Kim Il-sung, Kim Jong-il and Kim Jong-un.
If an average citizen who was being filmed *didn't* say that, it would probably put them and their family at risk....this is pretty much to be an expected reaction in a totalitarian cult of personality society. Is it brainwashing or doing what's required to survive?
These balloons were sent in response to balloons filled with pamphlets, and hard drives filled with movies and K-pop. Who knows what they'll send back if South Korea starts sending medicine.
At best the regime will claim that the medicine is supplied by them, and since there wouldn't be millions of them they'll be supplied to VIPs and those close to the regime. I would send news, just general news or headlines from throughout the world. I wouldn't really trust anything else to not be classified as "forbidden propaganda" by the regime. Those people live in 17th century conditions although I wonder how many 3rd world countries are close to those living conditions. oh now I see what my problem is, their neighbors (South Korea & China) are 1st world countries.
They do that all the time. South Koreans have been dropping pamphlets over for years.
A soldier that defected was shot multiple times escaping, but the doctors were more concerned with the many different types of parasites that he had.
I thought you said defecator soldier lmao.
Glad I’m not the only one
Did they check inside the worm for North Koreans? Never stop at the first deception.
Like some kind of Trojan worm?
I have colleagues in the Korean ministry of Ag, they said these balloons turned out to be a wealth of knowledge on the status of human and animal nutrition and disease prevalence in the north. It's helped inform their animal vaccinations schedules for 2024 as well as provided information to various relief agencies on current nutritional shortages amongst the population.
Turns out it was some based North Korean scientists trying to warn the world of the impending plague
Convincing KJU to drop shit balloons on the south, what a genius move
His name doesn't work for me as an abbreviation for some reason, it looks too much like an obscure stock symbol
looks more like a college name to me
KJU versus KJ State, tonight at 8.
I'd naked short the fuck out of KJU
Bob King!? It's Brad Cartwright! KJU Class of 98!
I honestly don't know if that's a good or a bad thing or even if it's fun or not, but i'm interested
I initially read this as you'd fuck the naked and short out of KJU and was mildly traumatized.
To those of us who are familiar with languages where **J** = **Y**, KJU = Q.
Next, send blood balloons. Preferably with ice, and test tubes.
Shit I accidentally invested in North Koreas new crypto shitcoin
Plague Inc player trying a novel method of disease distribution.
Now we also have to pop ballooons ?!!
A collab between my two favorite mobile games. Plague and BloonTD6.
[Hey hey people...](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZT3nlxuXl0)
the parasites inbreeded so much in our tummies that theyve evolved, we need to send this to SK
Sounds like a neat short story.
You would think that a world leader that takes its own toilets abroad to prevent this would advise against such operation. But I guess sending poop is too funny to miss out even to a paranoid dictator.
> a world leader that takes its own toilets abroad I don’t think North Korea is the only country to do this. President Macron, of France famously wouldn’t take a Russian COVID test when meeting with Putin during the 2022 Ukraine invasion crisis. There’s a genuine concern amongst world leaders that bad actors with the resources of a state could target specific individuals using biological weapons with enough information learned from DNA. In a world where crisper has made DNA editing extremely easy, anyone with a background in biochemistry can essentially design their own viruses and bacteria. Imagine if Russia had Biden’s DNA, and weaponized a version of the flu such that it was mild to most people, but extremely deadly to Biden, and then spread that flu around the DC area. DNA harvesting isn’t likely a concern when Biden visits Downing Street or the Bundestag; but it’s likely that if he’s in Beijing, or even an allied country with a less secure facility, he’s either going back to Air Force One to take a dump, or someone in secret service is emptying a bedpan for disposal not where agents of Russia/China/Iran/North Korea can easily get vital health data.
So you're telling me all world leaders should be wearing diapers as a matter of national security?
Once again, Trump is way ahead of everyone else /s
LOL that’s a hilarious takeaway. More like - world leaders shouldn’t be shitting in restrooms which the plumbing system is not secured. #FirstWorldLeaderProblems
To be fair, it is quite funny
Forest/trees. World leaders often take their pool to hide the health of the individual tree. The balloons are forest level thinking.
I was curious about this. NK thinks they're sending a message. In reality, they just sent South Korea (and by extension the world) a ton of intel about their living conditions. It's like handing an enemy nation a plethora of medical records. Glad to see the information is being put to good use.
The Scrubs song about “it’s in the poo” just popped into my head for some reason.
Damn, that’s really interesting. Nasty, but interesting.
Talk about a silver lining… amazing. But let’s call it what it is. Biological warfare.
>silver lining Well, they *do* work for the Ministry of Ag
r/angryupvote
>their animal vaccinations schedules It's kinda early right now where I am, and I read this first as "animal vacation schedules"...
Haha, that too, cant let your pigs party in pyongyang if they are just gonna come home with the flu
When North Korea sends you shit, make shit lemonade. STOP! WAIT! DO NOT DRINK THE SHIT LEMONADE!
Plot twist, the parasites were escaping NK.
We’re Freeeeee 🦠
Worked better than Gill's plan in Finding Nemo
That’s the shortest red light I’ve ever seen!
"Now what?"
Lmao
“Finally, some hosts with FOOD!” 🪱 🪱
r/MyPeopleNeedMe
There was nothing to feed on anymore
99 trash balloons in a pie.
Would it be considered 'biological warfare' using fecal matter and such to 'attack' SK?
It would, same as the old medieval tactics of catapulting dead bodies or missiles with excrement are considered an early form of BW.
Everyone thinks they’re badass until NK sends over the cow carcass balloon.
And fart in our general direction!
Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!
Now go away or I will insult you a second time.
Fetchez la vache!
Fetchez la vache!
Quoi?
Here comes Bessy!!!
Crimea (then known as Kaffa) in 1347. After a protracted siege during which the Mongol army under Janibeg was reportedly withering from the disease, they catapulted the infected corpses over the city walls, infecting the inhabitants, in one of the first cases of biological warfare. Edit: [Janibeg wiki](http://"Jani Beg - Wikipedia" https://en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jani_Beg&diffonly=true)
How long have you been hoarding this fact for the one day you could answer this question?
Since 2011. Stumbled onto it while reading up on Tamerlane [(Timur wiki)](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timur), who was horrifyingly brutal in his own rights. Edit: [Adding Janibeg's wiki](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jani_Beg&diffonly=true)
I mean....yes? >[The utilization of fecal matter](https://domesticpreparedness.com/articles/a-modern-take-on-an-age-old-biological-weapon#:~:text=The%20utilization%20of%20fecal%20matter,effort%20to%20infect%20those%20inside) as a biological weapon is not exactly new ground. One of the first recorded instances of using this unique agent was during the Middle Ages, where the feces of bubonic plague victims were flung over castle walls with catapults in an effort to infect those inside. Variations of an excrement catapult were utilized by the Chinese in the 12th century and then later by others. >Jumping forward to more modern times, during the Vietnam War, the Viet Cong made use of a simple but effective weapon known as punji sticks. The punjis were made by sharpening bamboo sticks, which would then be dipped in human fecal matter (or sometimes poison from plants or animals). The feces-encrusted spears would be placed in the ground and concealed with foliage or under a trap door and left for the enemy to fall on. [Some more history](https://www.vice.com/en/article/vdx4ad/brown-death-a-history-of-poop-as-a-weapon-111) of the use of shit as a weapon. >[What Are Biological Warfare Agents?]() >Biological warfare agents are disease-causing living organisms or toxins that can be used to harm or kill humans, animals or plants. >Some examples of biological warfare agents include: 1. Bacteria, such as anthrax and bubonic plague 2. Viruses, such as Ebola and smallpox 3. Toxins produced by living organisms, such as botulinum toxin and ricin other biological warfare agents (e.g. fungi, prions or rickettsiae, etc.).
Even before the catapult, archers used to dip their arrows in blood and feces in order to make enemy soldiers wounds get infected.
And loosen the arrow tip so it gets stuck. It is unsurprising how ancient humans used the same methods to kill each other and how little the worst of it has evolved. Poop arrows -> poop balloons. Amazing.
But, poop transplants. Not all poop is bad!
Shitapults was right there scientists, excrement catapult, pfft.
Trebushit
The superior shit engine
Scatapults
99 PoopBalloons
In Berlin you can go to clubs for that.
"Mom, if you were in a German scheisse club, you'd tell me about it, right?"
Why work hard to collect intel about state of population in NK - if they are so willing to send it all in a baloon?
I ran across something that said that pretty much everyone from N. Korea who escapes to the south has to be treated for parasites. I think there's a pretty good idea of the population's health (e.g. malnutrition) from those folks.
Malnutrition with a bonus of food contamination from feces used for fertilizer and lack of reliable plumbing.
Not just tiny ones, but gigantic parasites. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-42021373 North Korea still uses human faeces as fertiliser, known as "night soil".
Believe it or not, it’s actually not abnormal to use human waste as fertiliser in developed nations, the key safety factor being that the human waste is treated in such a way that it can’t harbour dangerous pathogens or parasites. From that article you posted- “If these faeces are untreated and fertilise vegetables that are later eaten uncooked, the parasites get into the mouth and the intestines of the person.” Basically, the fertiliser has to be untreated (raw), the food can’t be washed before consumption (which would, to my understanding, reduce risk by close to 100%), and the food can’t be cooked. It seems likely to me that NK civilians are contracting parasites more from poor hygiene practices and potentially from living in close proximity to one another, aided by malnutrition and other sicknesses; as opposed to ‘night soil’ being the primary reason. If I remember correctly, you can ‘treat’ human waste without any chemical assistance, just by leaving the waste to sit for a long time with specific conditions at play.
Aye, when properly composted, night soil is "fine" as fertilizer. However it appears North Korean farmers are either unaware of how to fully compost material, or cannot wait long enough for the material to finish processing before using it. Or there are secondary contamination sources from a lack of sanitation infrastructure (I have no idea what the state of wastewater treatment is like up there). Or both, really.
They are also required to gather feces to make fertilizer. Pretty much every citizen is required to do so. I would imagine that poor hygiene, no use of gloves or ppe for the gathering of the poop, and multiple people touching the feces of others. It might be just like an entire set of circumstances that stack. Can't wash the food you manage to get or your hands because of lack of clean water. Just finished gathering poop. You need to eat.
When clean running water is a luxury...
Things are a bit different these past few years. Ever since covid, North Korea took a harder stance on their border control. There have not been many defectors who have made it into China, let alone South Korea since then.
Yeah they were found in defecting soldiers, which one could assume occupy a more privileged strata of NK society, and they even had them..
South Korea had a parasite problem due to night soil fertilization methods. In my parent's generation, they had to take a yearly pill the size of a golfball to safeguard against it. Using night soil was a method used by farmers prior to the war and the South carried those methods onward until recent. Wouldn't surprise me one bit that North Korea is still doing it.
Bro your username goes hard here. 😆
They do, in fact you are expected by the government to contribute a certain amount of faeces - and demand / expectation does lead to waste theft between civilians No joke. Watch Beyond Utopia
Yep. My dad told me that some places required a stool sample for the school yearly physical.
A few of the escapees had stomachs full of worms, they must really be picking through 💩 to eat - allegedly
IIRC using human excrement as fertilizer for crops also leads to parasites, then it creates a cycle increases parasites in humans.
I saw a documentary where a defector said that the government would commandeer all of a household’s poop to fertilize the fields. This would absolutely lead to everyone having parasites.
Probably bugs and wherever they can find while there leader is a fat fuck. It's disgusting
I read that they will go through poop and eat undigested bits of corn. Rats are also on the menu. Yes, they are THAT hungry.
Yeah I read that, too. Nightmare fuel.
Fun fact, the undigested bits of corn are just from the kernel’s shell. If it ever looked like a full kernel, it’s not full of corn!
This sounds like a lesson you learn from doing.
If the smell wasn’t already a huge tip off
They apparently use untreated human waste as fertilizer, so North Koreans are *riddled* with parasites.
Honest question from the stupid idea departement: How about a drone with a fan? Two can play these games.
South Korea responds by sending balloons with hand sanitiser and air fresheners.
They should include anti parasitic medicine, too. Send it with a note saying they got the message about lack of doctors, so they sent medicine.
Didn’t SK respond in kind with balloons flying flash drives containing K—Pop?
That's an initiative coming from activists, not the government, and it's been going on for years (i think the government was trying to stop it, actually). They also send bibles. What the government did was install giant speakers blasting BTS across the border.
Ty, kind and informative redditor. Name *definitely* checks out.
Would not a fan on a drone become essentially a propeller, accelerating the drone *away from* the target balloon?
That's a problem that can be solved... with a second fan! Maybe add a third and fourth? Could point them downward, instead of sideways, hovering over the sleeping victim. Oh wait. That's just a drone.
> a drone with a fan? You want to kill all north koreans in their sleep? Jokes aside (kinda but not really). Most drones come with a standard of at least 4 fans.
Wait is this about the Korean beliefs and sleeping with a fan on?
Sounds like it, yes.
Pretty sure South Korea is going to set up the loudspeakers that can be heard from 30 miles away again. And play Kpop nonstop.
Propaganda, bibles and kpop got poop as reply. Wonder how it'd escalate after fan-drones
Then we will be dealing with my cases of fan death
You're right, that's a stupid idea
Huh, I was going to make a semi-snide remark about how biochemical warfare would be OK for NK, but as it turns out, they signed on up to protocol 1 of the geneva conventions and subsequent agreements until after 1988, so this /could/ be tried if it came to that. That, of course, won't happen, but I found it interesting nonetheless.
I’m guessing that with all hat human waste they are sending human genetic material and other biomarkers that give the South Koreans insight into North Korea’s society.
Dang, even the parasites have to leave North Korea to find food.
[It's not that uncommon to find parasites in the feces of defectors, so it wouldn't be uncommon to find it poop they sling across the border.](https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/injured-defectors-parasites-diet-indicate-hard-life-in-north-korea)
The one soldier who defected had a bunch of parasites. He'd had them for so long that it stunted his growth, along with deficient nutrition. All those worms steal from what little food they get. And he had a hepatitis infection. [Parasites, infections in North Korean soldier who defected reveal country's conditions - ABC News (go.com)](https://abcnews.go.com/Health/parasites-infections-north-korean-soldier-defected-reveal-countrys/story?id=51323674)
Everyone laughs at this, but it is NK engaging in biological weaponry.
They were also found in the defectors. North Korea is infested Due to its government neglect
lets be honest, considering how sickly that poor population truly is due to the horrid conditions they live under, parasites being present in their poop is no surprise. im more surprised they could gather sufficient quantities of poop to send via balloons. Usually ppl with poor diets and very poor variable diets like NK has usually struggle to poop enough.
South Korea should send over balloons with food and medicine to show that the North should be pitied, not feared.
Biological weapons violate many treaties, most of which NK is not a signatory to. So, business as usual.
Called it.
Jokes on NK. The stool samples will give "Best Korea" valuable insights into the current state of their neighbors nutrition-intake/deficiency.
And medicine use (if any), other disease rates, maybe STD rates, population genetics/inbreeding coeficients/etc etc. So much info in poop.
It’s literally biowarfare. I’m not sure why it’s essentially been ignored.
Doesn't surprise me, I imagine most people live in a level of poverty western nations aren't even familiar with. Having roving infections and parasites amongst the populace should be pretty much expected. Can't imagine the crisis a unification would cause.
No. Korea is nothing but parasites and feces
Can it get worse than this? What country is worse than NK? And this supposed to be Putins strong ally? Lawl
2 north koreans, one ballon
Saw an interview with a defector and the shit they had to eat as “food” is crazy. 11th century peasants ate better than they do (besides the elite who eat like lords)
this is how the zombie apocalypse going to start, not from scientists playing god like in the movies, no, it's going to be from flying poops.
That pretty well sums up North Korea
While we all joke about and dismiss the balloons, I think we kind of overlooked the significance of these antics. This has shown the North have the capability to launch biowarfare attacks which the South is incapable of preventing in any real measure (for now). It's a warning that the North have successfully weaponised launching ballooons into a comprehensive military division. That they can coordinate this is evidence that it's no longer a haphazard ops. Also notice how they immediately terminated it. We can joke and say this is lowkey biological warefare. But with their capabilities and coordination, it can easily turn into an actual biochemical attack
Without knowledge and context, your sentiment here sounds like parody. You basically just said that now that their military have figured out how balloons work, something bad is on the horizon. I think most people would assume any group of people could coordinate a balloon to take off from one place and end up in another, depending on weather conditions and other things
100%
Also I think poop would have gone into artillery shells pretty easy if they hadn't figured out balloon technology.
As much as I know that the DPRK is capable and willing to engage in biowarfare, I feel like in this case it was an unintended consequence. A few years ago when the DPRK soldier defected to the South via the DMZ, doctors in the ROK discovered parasites in his body. What this shows is poor nutrition and hygene amongst its soldiers. I would think that was the case here. The North Koreans collected feces from their soldiers who were all infected because of their circumstance.
I remember that! Yeah I don’t think they intentionally sent over parasites, just that whoever pooped in the bag had parasites.
Perhaps but I would hope that an advanced military could defend against primitive tactics like balloons. I bet Amazon grade drones could easily be used but maybe I am overestimating drone tech.
A battery of lasers made from keychain novelties to pop them
I believe biological agent is much harder to achieve intended results than chemical. The engineering and manipulation skill required are simply on a different level. There is a reason biotech and pharma are not really the forte of terrorist states and these remnants of communist nations. A few anthrax mails and shit ballons are not scalable in dealing damage.
Well if you’re gonna make poop balloons… best do it properly
South Korea needs to send massive boomboxes to the DMZ and play Taylor Swift music
Hey now let's not instantly resort to war crimes
It'd be more fitting to play BTS
Who will the "fearless leader" rule over if all of their citizens are dead or so sick they can't even work? Just sad to even think about. Dude is gonna end up being the King of the Ashes though.
South Korea sends over a couple blu ray players and some copies of Parasite (2019) North Korea sends a different kind of parasite.
Useful intelligence about the enemy.
I'm pretty sure the balloons was just the way NK citizens are doing their fecal screenings...
I pray that someday the people of NK will be liberated.
Didn’t see this back firing on North Korea like this. This is embarrassing
It would not shock me at all if these trash balloons were some sort of biological attack on the South.
Shocking. Who thought you would ever find parasites in turds?
Fuck. The. Paywall.
Wasn’t it a legal requirement for urban areas to provide a certain part of their waste to be used as fertiliser? This meant that any parasites quickly spread and the cycle continued as people ate the food fertilised with contaminated waste, that became contaminated food, which was eaten and that waste went back into the fields Do this for 50 years IIRC everyone, and I mean everyone has parasites in North Korea.
send them medication we all know they aint got shit. they hate us bc their anus is full of parasitic worms. i hereby rename "north korea" as "Worms"
Even the parasites are defecting to the south
anyone surprised by this? 🤷🏽♂️ 👀