Gaming bloggers in Great Britain, aka UK Resistance, have posted a photo gallery of a summertime video-game arcade in Pyongyang. The photographer is anonymous, and North Korean entertainment technology, predictably enough, appears to be a couple of decades behind its neighbors.
Hat tip to LiberateLaura [e.g., the blog focusing on Laura Ling, the best-known journalist arrested by North Korean border police in Onsung county, North Hamgyong, DPRK last March, rescued by Clinton on 4 August ]. Although that particular blog now averages a new essay posting about every two to three weeks (a bit slow by our current pace at S.V., but certainly more thoughtful!), the author’s Twitter service is really an excellent selection of North Korea news items from around the Web.
Since the arcade pictured by UK Resistance isn’t as well-funded as the Mangyongdae Children’s Palace, here is a contrasting (undated) photo of gaming activity in that model facility:
For all the (mostly-justified) thrashing about regarding censorship of Obama’s student forum in Shanghai, it’s worth recalling that the only way Barack Obama can reach North Korean youth is through radio broadcasts which are illegal for Nroth Koreans to listen to.
Of course, the power of listening, of “lend me your ears,” is a wonderful notion which is alluded to in today’s KCNA sideswipe at American General Walter Sharp:
What the U.S. has done under the signboard of the “UN Command” is nothing but its increase of the threat to the peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and the danger of war there.
It is a strategic mistake and anachronistic daydream for the U.S. to work hard to realize its strategy for invading the DPRK and its wild ambition for dominating Asia by bolstering up its forces in south Korea, a leftover of the Cold War, and using them as a shock brigade.
No matter how noisily the U.S. bellicose forces may trumpet about the elimination of the “factor of conflict”, “protection” and “effective mechanism” in an effort to justify the existence of the illegal “UN Command” no one will lend an ear to such spate of rhetoric.
Piffle! More commentary on the gaming story here.
Adam Cathcart 
Thanks for the shout out. Yes, the blog side of LL is winding down, but the Twitter feed continues full speed. There is also a companion feed, LiberateNK, which tries to focus on the humanitarian crisis aspects of NK.
Richard, great to see you here, and the Liberate NK feed is equally impressive. Glad to know of it!
I’m based in Seattle but am in Los Angeles three or four times a year; have yet to attend a LiNK or similar events in LA but Wilshire Blvd. seems to be calling my name. Which is to say, please keep me in the loop if there are activities in LA area you’re sponsoring.