https://hexbear.net/post/244410 from this post which had good faith questions about some possible racism/homophobia in instances of reporting from the DPRK, all well and good. Then a few people in the comments thought to let their liberal demons out and accuse the DPRK of somehow being a monarchy. Pure ideology. No real Analysis.
The DPRK is a Dictatorship of the Proletariat, a democracy. Stop being a liberal idiot and read some actual theory before defaulting to your corporate media propaganda.
I thought this site was better, but perhaps this is an isolated incident.
Edit: now the same people seem to be saying that the DPRK is Anti-Communist
I'm not very educated about the DPRK so anyone feel free to correct me if I'm dead wrong about this, but doesn't the Kim family's position as long time leaders of the country grant them an advantage in elections? We criticize bourgeois democracy because the power of existing political institutions makes it impossible for anyone to be elected that isn't aligned with the ruling class. Technically there's nothing stopping everyone from voting for a communist president, but instead people in capitalist countries keep voting for absolute shitheads. Having a democracy in theory doesn't matter much when it's controlled by institutional power in practice.
There are obviously massive differences between a western bourgeois democracy and the DPRK. But if Kim Jong-un suddenly became a capitalist wouldn't he still have a massive advantage over an electoral opponent through the power his family has wielded and the publicity they've received? I see a lot of people in this thread arguing that the Kim family is inarguably good because they were voted in. That certainly disproves the DPRK being a monarchy, but I think it's worth questioning how fair a democracy is that puts the same family in charge for the better part of a century.
Only if that family does something obviously wrong. I believe they're currently operating on the entirely sane principle, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Sure, the Kims have an advantage over any potential opposition, and that is, again, a flaw in the democratic process. But the only way to see whether the democratic process is actually working is to see what happens when a Kim tries to come to power and isn't fit for the job.
In the US, we've had 45 bad leaders in a row. In the DPRK, they've had 3 good ones in a row. I'd say they've earned the right not to be compared to the US so far.
That's a very good point. When I read your statement about the DPRK having had three good leaders in a row I instinctively disagreed, but on further reflection that instinct is 100% the western propaganda that's seeped into my brain. In hindsight, my original comment was basically assuming the Kims were poor leaders already and therefore wouldn't be in power in a truly democratic system. Thanks for helping me purge another brainworm.