{"id":2200,"date":"2025-08-27T17:50:38","date_gmt":"2025-08-27T17:50:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/?p=2200"},"modified":"2025-08-27T17:50:38","modified_gmt":"2025-08-27T17:50:38","slug":"strange-customs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/?p=2200","title":{"rendered":"STRANGE Customs?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/horizonpres.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/IMG_20250801_053650_207-300x224.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15340\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>When we think about strange or extreme traditions around the world, North Korea often finds itself on the shortlist. From synchronized military parades to highly controlled state-run media, the Democratic People\u2019s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is infamous for its secrecy and surreal public spectacles. But among the most jaw-dropping customs is something few outside the country have ever seen up close \u2014 mass public \u201cbody checks\u201d and regimented health inspections involving hundreds, sometimes thousands, of young women in controlled environments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A now-viral photo shows rows upon rows of young women dressed uniformly, standing silently in a large hall, awaiting inspection. While the image might look like a synchronized dance audition or a still from a dystopian movie, this is real life in North Korea \u2014 and it reveals much about how the regime exerts control not only politically but also over individual bodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Reality Behind the Photo<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though the North Korean government never publicly explains these gatherings, defectors and scholars suggest they are part of a state-run practice where women \u2014 often college students or applicants to elite state-run jobs \u2014 undergo physical assessments. In some cases, these inspections are used to determine fitness for military or labor assignments. In others, especially when tied to state performances like the Mass Games, it\u2019s about selecting \u201cideal\u201d bodies for propaganda events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Why the emphasis on physical uniformity? North Korea\u2019s regime is deeply rooted in image control. Every public event is designed to project the illusion of unity, strength, and perfection. Kim Jong Un\u2019s government uses physical appearance as a metric for ideological purity and loyalty \u2014 a concept deeply embedded in the country\u2019s \u201csongbun\u201d caste system. Those who don\u2019t measure up \u2014 physically, politically, or socially \u2014 are often excluded from desirable roles or opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>More Than Just a Beauty Contest<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It would be easy to dismiss these<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When we think about strange or extreme traditions around the world, North Korea often finds itself on the shortlist. From synchronized military parades to highly controlled state-run media, the Democratic People\u2019s Republic of Korea (DPRK) is infamous for its secrecy and surreal public spectacles. But among the most jaw-dropping customs is something few outside the&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2201,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2200"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2200\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2202,"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2200\/revisions\/2202"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2201"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topstoryus.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}