I saw this on Reddit.........

When (if) North Korea "falls" and the citizens are shown and told all aspects of modern civilization and culture, what do you think the biggest shock will be for them?


I think it will be massive culture shock for many years to come, and a great anger for being lied to for so many years.

I think what may be most shocking for "Joe N. Korea" is how people can take things for granted like the bountifulness and variety of food available to the average person, not to mention how much gets wasted.

If and when it does happen I think it will take a couple generations for them to become un-brainwashed and afraid.

That the Kim family were not demigods.

The refugee problem will be huge. The immigration to China and S. Korea could be a nightmare. I suppose that is why China will do its best to keep N. Korea around in a somewhat stable manner.

As for the question I think just general knowledge of the West would be overwhelming. People who eat themselves fat and throw away food? People have multiple cars and large homes? Of course this is a generalization of the West.

It might all be according to how the information gets delivered. You might have some really angry citizens when they get a taste of the truth.

If and when it does happen I think it will take a couple generations for them to become un-brainwashed and afraid.
Absolutely. The horrors people experience under that regime is not something that will go away with a few therapy visits. If you haven't already read it, this is a great read on one guy's life in and escape from a N. Korean political prisoners camp, an unbelievably horrible experience.
http://amzn.com/0670023329

The concept of appetizers. Have some food before you have even more food.

This was an interesting article about how much of a culture shock it was after the struggle of defection.

The Telegraph - Escape from North Korea: 'How I escaped horrors of life under Kim Jong-il' (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/11138496/Escape-from-North-Korea-How-I-escaped-horrors-of-life-under-Kim-Jong-il.html)

I think it may be the genreal idea of making decisions for themselves vs. the collective. Im not sure how you do it but complete and immediate change to Democracy and free will may not be as advisable as a gradual change. Learning what is "right" and ethical may not be part of their thought process.

Learning everything in the past several generations has been a lie, well except for.........


During his reign as the unquestioned, unchallenged leader of the secretive nation, Kim, according to official North Korean state media reports, routinely shot three or four holes-in-one per round of golf.

But in the 1990s - another moment in time when an event in North Korea varies (some say it happened in 1991 and others in 1994), the late dictator, then 50 (or 53) years old, set a golfing standard that will assuredly never be surpassed. It occurred at the grand opening of the Pyongyang Golf Complex, which contains North Korea's only 18-hole golf course.

After picking up a golf club that day for the very first time in his life, the Dear Leader of the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea fired a 38-under-par round of 34 at Pyongyang. According to the 17 security guards who observed the performance, the score included an amazing 11 aces. Naturally, the event was dutifully reported to the North Korean masses by the state news agency.

But such unparalleled play on a golf course (minor question: how many par-3s could par-72 Pyongyang have?) is not surprising for the Supreme Commander of the North Korean Armed Forces. Kim also had the ability to influence the weather based on his mood; had a five-foot-two-inch body that didn't require him to defecate; and was blessed with an ability to drink incredible amounts of Hennessey cognac which, at $630 a bottle, made him the company's No. 1 customer, worldwide, over the past decade.