"North Korea has accused South Korea of using drones to scatter propaganda leaflets over ... Pyongyang"

TWZ:

According to the North Korean Foreign Ministry, the drone incursions occurred on several nights this week — October 3, 9, and 10

...

Meanwhile, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said they could not confirm the North’s accusations. They did, however, bring up the North Korean practice of sending balloons into South Korean airspace.

Striking doctors in South Kora have been threatened with arrest if they don't return to work

"doctors are struggling to convince the public that more doctors would be a bad thing and have garnered little sympathy"

Japan failed to register newly-designed fruit, and thus can't stop China and South Korea from selling cheap knockoffs

AFP:

The variety of juicy grape ... took scientists 33 years to develop and can sell for $100 a bunch in Tokyo department stores.

...

According to the Japanese government, China and South Korea took Shine Muscat seedlings out of Japan and grafted them onto local vines to produce fruit that looks and tastes -- almost -- as good.

...

Japan cannot stop China or South Korea from growing the fruit because Tokyo -- some say naively -- failed to register the variety overseas within the six years required under international rules.

...

Japan cannot export grapes to China itself because of Beijing's quarantine rules, so Chinese growers are not technically cannibalising Japanese sales.

"Five Russian men fleeing military conscription have been living at a South Korean airport for months"

CNN:

"The men are able to shower but have to wash their clothes by hand and are unable to leave the departure and duty-free areas"

...

Military conscription is a sensitive issue in South Korea, where military service is mandatory for all able bodied men between the ages of 18 and 35.

Positive drug tests for Russian and Iranian Olympians; South Korea's Garlic Girls each have a breakfast-themed nickname; the Dutch deny manipulating the ice

AP:

the 15-year-old Russian superstar who was expected to deliver her nation its third straight Olympic gold medal in women’s figure skating, practiced as usual Thursday, hours after reports that she tested positive for a banned substance [before the games].

...

Russian skaters in particular have a history of positive results dating to 2000

To slow Covid19, South Korea has banned the playing of fast music in gyms

BBC:

Gyms in South Korea's capital Seoul and its surrounding region have been told not to play music with a tempo higher than 120 beats per minute (bpm), in order to limit the spread of Covid-19.

Treadmills will be limited to a maximum of 6km/h (3.7 mph).

"North Korea is imposing stiff fines or prison for anyone caught...copying the way South Koreans speak"

Reuters:

Measures include fines for parents whose children violate the bans, up to 15 years in a prison camp for those caught with media from South Korea

From a thread explaining:

Many North Koreans privately watch South Korean films and dramas smuggled on USB sticks, and fantasise about richer, better realities - demanding political change tho is of course too risky, a non-starter.

— Sokeel Park 박석길 (@Sokeel) January 21, 2021

But mimicking South Korean accents and words learnt from smuggled media falls in a relatively safe spot between fake loyalty and full on dissent. It is public, but is subtle and intangible enough to get away with. And it makes the speaker sound cool.

— Sokeel Park 박석길 (@Sokeel) January 21, 2021

When enough (esp young) NKoreans in a city mimic SKorean accents in this way it becomes common knowledge that many other people are privately engaging in illegal, subversive behaviour - watching South Korean media at night - and may not buy in fully to the official ideologies.

— Sokeel Park 박석길 (@Sokeel) January 21, 2021

All of which means it might make sense for Kim Jong Un to try to crack down on people speaking funny, excessively saying oppa etc.

Difficult in practise tho. “Hey you! Did you just use a south chosun accent?!” “What me?! No sir I don’t even know what they sound like!”

— Sokeel Park 박석길 (@Sokeel) January 21, 2021

A theory as to why wooden boats containing skeletons keep washing up on the coasts of Japan

CBC:

For years, no one knew why dozens of battered wooden "ghost boats" were routinely washing ashore along the coast of Japan, often with the bodies of starved North Korean fishermen reduced to skeletons.

An investigation by the journalism organization The Outlaw Ocean Project based on satellite data collected over the last two years has revealed, however, what marine researchers now say is the most likely explanation: China is sending an armada of industrial boats to illegally fish in North Korean waters, displacing smaller North Korean boats, forcing them farther out to rougher seas, and spearheading a decline in once-abundant squid stocks of more than 70 per cent.

...

Estimates of the total size of China's global fishing fleet vary widely. By some calculations, China has anywhere from 200,000 to 800,000 fishing boats, accounting for nearly half of the world's fishing activity. The Chinese government says its distant-water fishing fleet, or those vessels that travel far from China's coast, is roughly 2,600 vessels, but other research, such as this study by the U.K. think-tank ODI, puts the number closer to 17,000, with many of these ships operating undetected, in part by turning off the transponders that allow satellites to track them.

By comparison, the United States distant-water fishing fleet has fewer than 300 vessels.

CNN picked up the story too:

For years, Japan's north coast had been the site of a macabre phenomena: fishing boats washing up on shore carrying the bodies of dead North Koreans, more than 1,000 kilometers (600 miles) from their homeland.

But the numbers in 2017 were unprecedented: More than 100 boats landed on the Japanese coast with 35 bodies on board. Only 66 boats had washed up the year prior.

Today's funny posts

New burger restaurant open in Seoul. That slogan at the bottom... pic.twitter.com/Idf2S3dL5b

— Jamie (@jamiefinn2209) March 31, 2020

you call them "gunshot wounds"; I call them "freedom holes"

— Ray Radlein (@Radlein) April 1, 2020

getting a text from an acquaintance like “hey just checking in on you ❤️” and then the next day an essay is out like “why checking in on your ugly friends is so important”

— JP (@jpbrammer) March 31, 2020

Nancy by Olivia Jaimes for Wed, 01 Apr 2020 https://t.co/NlSA91WHZA pic.twitter.com/a3lR70YbzL

— Nancy (@SluggoIsLit) April 1, 2020

Every time I remember The New Yorker's in-house style for abbreviating Dungeons & Dragons I get angry. pic.twitter.com/nxua9SacCF

— CJ Ciaramella (@cjciaramella) March 31, 2020

We will not rest until Bill Belichick has been slimed https://t.co/yv8rlgiw3s

— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) March 31, 2020

Luigi is the only monarch worth protecting pic.twitter.com/ygFFNYAMu8

— Louise! (@themouseyouknow) March 30, 2020

Archie is a venerable elder gentleman, and with his diminished sight and hearing abilities doesn’t always notice things straight away. pic.twitter.com/Wo5MsLNz6I

— Constance Rimmer (@PigletParker) March 31, 2020

Somebody suggested my wife should make a toilet paper cake.

So she did. pic.twitter.com/8aqoRRevMb

— Michael Harris (@MichaelH_PhD) April 1, 2020

I feel like I should actually get, like, you know, my own identity as creator credited in this - versus just 'your wife'.

— Kate Pritchett (@sashimimimi) April 1, 2020

No way that cat will get through this! pic.twitter.com/Jr6SSVtegt

— jamie (@gnuman1979) March 31, 2020

*More funny posts.

"infected health official leading South Korea’s fight against Covid-19 is member of Shincheonji Church of Jesus doomsday cult"

SCMP:

The official, who was in charge of the district’s fight against the virus, identified himself as belonging to the cult after he tested positive for the virus, said Daegu City Mayor Kwon Young-jin.

...

Since coming to widespread public attention after hundreds of its followers tested positive for the coronavirus, apparently infected by a 61-year-old woman ‘super-spreader’, the cult has attracted controversy

WaPo yesterday:

In his internal message, published by South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency, church leader Lee called the mass infection “the devil’s deed to curb the rapid growth of Shincheonji.”

“Just like Job had his faith tested,” he said, “it is to destroy our growth.”

Related:

BREAKING: Iran's deputy health minister tests positive for coronavirus; he had previously looked unwell during a press conference pic.twitter.com/at0DHN0m3a

— BNO Newsroom (@BNODesk) February 25, 2020

This is #Iran’s deputy health minister, who we now know has #coronavirus, giving an interview about #COVID19 on state TV last night. The anchor says to him “you are coughing” he says “maybe I should cover my mouth like this” pic.twitter.com/2A7xRrCkTv

— Ali Arouzi (@aliarouzi) February 25, 2020

"'Parasite' Has a Hidden Backstory of Middle-Class Failure and Chicken Joints"

Foreign Policy:

so, with a couple of words, Bong implied an entire backstory for his basement dwellers: The patriarch once had a decent job and then started a chicken joint after being laid off. Then the chicken joint failed when five other people opened similar restaurants around them.

The words “king castella” hint that the Kim family’s woes were compounded with yet another entry into a heavily saturated market.The words “king castella” hint that the Kim family’s woes were compounded with yet another entry into a heavily saturated market. If running a fried chicken joint in Korea is akin to day trading, running a king castella joint is like day trading on margins

"The halfway underground homes of ‘Parasite’ are real spaces"

LAT:

More than 36,000 South Koreans live in semi-basement homes, according to the most recent survey conducted in 2015, the vast majority of them in the greater Seoul metropolitan area. Many were built in the 1970s as bunkers for a potential North Korean attack and later haphazardly modified as stand-alone rental units to meet a surging demand for housing.

As in the climax of the movie, when the Kims wade through rising waters in their home during a downpour, many banjiha homes are vulnerable to flooding and have been submerged during monsoons.

Korean bunting contest

Yeah the Home Run Derby is cool, but nothing is more electric than the Korean bunting contest. pic.twitter.com/h5Acu4o34O

— Jacob Resnick (@Jacob_Resnick) July 9, 2019

*Previously: "Korea's national cigarettes have the single greatest logo I've ever seen on anything."

"The second woman accused of killing the half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been set free"

CNN:

Lawyers for the two women argued they were duped by North Korean agents who tricked them into thinking they were taking part in a prank reality TV show.

...

With Huong heading home, it is likely no one will ever be convicted of murder for using one of the world's deadliest chemical weapons to stage a brazen assassination in broad daylight.

"No bond for California veteran suspected in attack on North Korean Embassy in Spain"

LAT:

A U.S. Marine veteran from Southern California was part of a group of dissidents wielding machetes and fake guns when they stormed the North Korean Embassy in Madrid and tied up and beat officials inside, federal prosecutors alleged in a criminal complaint released Tuesday.

...

Free Joseon, also known as the Cheollima Civil Defense group, styles itself as a government in exile dedicated to toppling the ruling Kim family dynasty in North Korea.

...

As the other members of the group fled in the stolen embassy vehicles, Hong Chang hailed an Uber using the alias “Oswaldo Trump.”

...

Three North Korean students went to the embassy, jumped over a fence and ran inside to free the workers who were still tied up.

Ten funny tweets

'Swole' is now among the words making the dictionary bigger and stronger. https://t.co/NRPkZya8PE pic.twitter.com/I82bi7KnIW

— Merriam-Webster (@MerriamWebster) April 23, 2019

can't tweet this enough but thus is the most powerful sign in the world pic.twitter.com/iuqcGULKAV

— HUMMUS HQ✨ (@JohnImadNasr) April 23, 2019

Bernie should simply tap into americans’ pathological self-regard and be like “perhaps socialism failed elsewhere but we would be the best at it”

— Brandy Jensen (@BrandyLJensen) April 23, 2019

LMAO at these @utahjazz fans paying tribute to Hair Lady. pic.twitter.com/DZVNahpLbo

— J.E. Skeets (@jeskeets) April 23, 2019

Ive been in my house for about two hours, I just looked up and there’s TWO PIGEONS in my sitting room watching me eat my tea. What the fuck do I do? pic.twitter.com/wBtcDA0ag9

— Lucy Topping (@lucytopping) April 23, 2019

Actress Julie Adams being treated after hitting her head during the filming of Creature from the Black Lagoon, 1954. pic.twitter.com/onJXae9wjJ

— Film History In Pics (@FilmHistoryPics) April 23, 2019

So the alpacas got sheared last weekend, and I just couldn't stop laughing when I went there today :'D pic.twitter.com/il2usaRFUn

— dashase (@dashase) April 24, 2019

Telling people “I don’t want kids”:
-“You’ll change your mind one day”
-“When you meet the right person...”
-“You don’t understand, you’re not a parent”

Telling people “My bloodline ends with me”
-Dramatic
-Your bloodline feels sacred and mystical
-Vaguely threatening

— Jem 💀🎃 (@Skelpyy) April 24, 2019

My dog emotionally spirals after a bath pic.twitter.com/9FDWsp5q2D

— Keith (@keithedwards) April 23, 2019

A Korean lawmaker Chae got stuck in his office today by other party lawmakers so he had to have his emergency press conference throughout a windowpane. pic.twitter.com/rfc8SckHzR

— Subin Kim (@SubinBKim) April 25, 2019

*More funny posts.

"In South Korea, the expression 'black-haired' is commonly used in nationalistic insults against South Koreans working for foreign companies who are said to be disloyal to the country"

WaPo:

International journalists’ organizations are criticizing the status of press freedom in South Korea after the country’s ruling party singled out a Bloomberg reporter with South Korean nationality over what it claimed was a “borderline traitorous” article insulting President Moon Jae-in, resulting in threats to the reporter’s safety.

"About 1,600 people have been secretly filmed in hotel rooms in South Korea, with the footage live-streamed online for paying customers to watch, police said Wednesday"

CNN:

the scandal, which involved 42 rooms in 30 accommodations in 10 cities around the country. Police said there was no indication the businesses were complicit in the scheme.

...

Cameras were hidden inside digital TV boxes, wall sockets and hairdryer holders and the footage was streamed online

Ten funny tweets

did you know you only use 10% of your brain. god uses the other 90% to mine bitcoin

— ben esposito (@torahhorse) March 18, 2019

I love this story https://t.co/qEVFAVR99Y pic.twitter.com/xzs7kW7eCx

— Ian Leslie (@mrianleslie) March 17, 2019

.@kemc sent me the best alpaca craiglist ad of all time:

"They ride in the car just fine. Great lawn mowers. Not mean, but not friendly either."https://t.co/UGMPOzFFQo

— Anne Helen Petersen (@annehelen) March 17, 2019

ahahaha at the refinery where i used to work, the giant obnoxious local ravens imitated the coughs of the smokers around the smoke pit

like someone would cough behind you and you'd turn and see one of them perched there going 'hurr hurr hurr' because you fell for it https://t.co/XEkolqR0nu

— Premee (@premeesaurus) March 15, 2019

Just found out my Mum is actually Daniel Day Lewis preparing for a role

— Laura (@fairycakes) March 16, 2019

[Hell]
Demon: We will punish you for your gluttony!

Me: Neato! I'm a glutton for punishment

Demon: ... *quietly into walkie-talkie* could I get a supervisor over here

— St. Patlettuce (@newLettuce) March 11, 2019

Major League Baseball’s Korean marketing campaign is incredible pic.twitter.com/8uSPLZM7wg

— Jason Koebler (@jason_koebler) March 17, 2019

my GI Joe code name is THIN ICE™ and I drive a big zamboni that shoots one missile and one net. You will be sure to find me wherever Cobra takes to the rink! I had a husky named HAT TRICK™ but he died when their hockey guy shot him with a puck gun

— Dollars Horton Official (@crushingbort) March 17, 2019

Greatest bad guy movie death scene of all time pic.twitter.com/osXp6b634u

— Vanessa 🌮 (@ilovejohnkimble) March 17, 2019

anyways look at cute photos of my dog from this weekend, he was born with a disorder called iris hypoplasia so he has to wear doggles when it’s sunny out pic.twitter.com/dkQCGRs9gO

— Calvin (@calvinstowell) March 19, 2019

*More funny tweets.

"A shadowy group trying to overthrow Kim Jong Un allegedly raided a North Korean embassy in broad daylight"

WaPo:

In broad daylight, masked assailants infiltrated North Korea’s embassy in Madrid, tied up the staff, stole computers and mobile phones, and fled the scene in two luxury vehicles.

The group behind the late February operation is known as Cheollima Civil Defense, a secretive dissident organization committed to overthrowing the Kim dynasty, people familiar with the planning and execution of the mission told The Washington Post.