I am happy for the people of North Korea as rumours of the tentative introduction of a market economy by their leader, Kim Jong-il are leaked from diplomatic sources. Rice is no longer to be fixed and rationed but its price is now allowed to float and be bought and sold on the free market. The resultant rise in price to reflect economic reality has also prompted wage increases for many of its citizens. Whether this is a shift of policy borne of ideological change or one of pragmatism as a hungry and rebellious people begin to murmur is hard … Continue reading The Last Stalinists