#3. The Korean Border Runs Through a Single Table Were sure youre already aware that theres nothing that isnt crazy about North Korea. As youd probably expect, a lot of that crazy is concentrated at the border between it and South Korea, the point where two of the most tensely standoffish nations on earth meet and stare each other down. Red rover, red rover, let North Korea come over! Known as the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), the Korean border is the most heavily regulated border in the world, with nearly 2 million troops from both sides stationed along its 160-mile length. And since the Korean War never technically ended (theyve only been in cease fire for the past 60 years), nobody is allowed to cross it. Ever. For any reason. Not even one of their presidents. Not even if one of their presidents is being chased by angry bees. They take this shit seriously. As youd imagine, this makes any conversation between the two nations very difficult, because neither nation can just invite the other over for coffee and waffles. So the Koreans came up with a bizarre solution. Well, bizarre to the rest of the world. They went ahead and built the MAC Conference Room right over the border, with a meeting table thats literally cut in half by the national border. This allows officials from both nations to sit down and discuss matters without ever leaving their respective countries, because thats not at all ridiculous. Even when its not being used, the room is full of soldiers just staring icily at each other all day. So, if theyre all sitting there, are they allowed to reach across and shake hands? If one president asks the other to pass the sugar, is he allowed to? Or does he just have to kind of hurl it over the border? And if he does that, does it violate the cease fire? Read more: cracked/article_19925_the-5-stupidest-things-ever-done-with-borders.html#ixzz38G8uhMGl
Posted on: Wed, 23 Jul 2014 03:39:10 +0000
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