• joaomarrom [he/him, comrade/them]
    hexbear
    65
    5 months ago

    what in the everloving fuck is the SAND Institute? they make it sound like a legitimate organization, but literally the only mentions I can find of it anywhere are either quoting the BBC article or the article itself

    these fuckers can just outright make shit up and there's going to be some rube who'll buy it, zero questions asked

    • JoeByeThen [he/him, they/them]
      hexbear
      37
      edit-2
      5 months ago

      https://sand.or.kr/kr/

      Unfortunately without the ability to understand Korean I can't Google any info on funding, but if I had to guess I would say NED or US state department.

      • joaomarrom [he/him, comrade/them]
        hexbear
        60
        5 months ago

        lmao, I'm checking out the website with google translate and it's absolutely breaking my CIA meter, this shit looks like one of these fake websites the CIA used as fronts for spies in Iraq

        look at their history section, lol

        Show

        also, in the SAND activities page, there's a tab that goes into their vast social contribution:

        Show

        I know that google translate does not give perfect results, but this is hilarious to me lol a completely empty shell of an organization that just sprang up out of seemingly nowhere and somehow has enough credibility to be taken seriously by the BBC, the supposed bastions of quality journalism... get the fuck outta here

        • @tocopherol@lemmy.dbzer0.com
          hexbear
          14
          edit-2
          5 months ago

          What do you mean? They were selected as a "designated donation organization" in 2019, presumably by someone who knows their shit, they seem like real deal

        • RyanGosling [none/use name]
          hexbear
          13
          5 months ago

          This is 100% a CIA front website for spies and defectors in North Korea lol. Hide in plain site I guess. Wonder how long before some south Korean patriot accidentally leaks the list of agents while donating money