{"id":6911,"date":"2023-10-20T12:08:55","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T17:08:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/?p=6911"},"modified":"2023-10-26T13:03:32","modified_gmt":"2023-10-26T18:03:32","slug":"olga-reporting-live-from-pyongyang","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/?p=6911","title":{"rendered":"Olga Reporting Live from Pyongyang"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I was preparing a <strong>BLOTT<\/strong> about reliable, informative news sources that will help you get the big picture on Russia&#8217;s brutal invasion of Ukraine. This is a pretty big task, but as I was digging into <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@JakeBroe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jake Broe<\/a>, he had such an incredible story that I wanted to focus on this rabbit hole.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The background<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"\">Jake covers a lot of territory, including Russian state media and their top propagandists<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Russia is running out of artillery shells<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">In the past, Russia (and the Soviet Union) provided North Korea with a tremendous number of WWII vintage artillery shells<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">The 73 year old Russian minister of foreign affairs, bon vivant, and all round evil bastard Sergey Lavrov is currently in Pyongyang begging to get some of those back.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"\">Russian state propaganda sent media sweetheart Olga Skabeeva to Pyongyang to cover the festivities<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-2 wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"470\" height=\"237\" data-id=\"6914\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_074.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6914\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_074.png 470w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_074-300x151.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 470px) 100vw, 470px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"740\" height=\"549\" data-id=\"6917\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/131470532_lavrovnorthkoreareuters01.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6917\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/131470532_lavrovnorthkoreareuters01.jpg 740w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/131470532_lavrovnorthkoreareuters01-300x223.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"653\" height=\"177\" data-id=\"6915\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_075.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6915\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_075.png 653w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_075-300x81.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 653px) 100vw, 653px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A few cheap shots&#8230;.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-2 wp-block-gallery-2 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/f4b26f6702ce706eda71eb4cbb4320b7.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"862\" height=\"485\" data-id=\"6922\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/f4b26f6702ce706eda71eb4cbb4320b7.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6922\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/f4b26f6702ce706eda71eb4cbb4320b7.jpg 862w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/f4b26f6702ce706eda71eb4cbb4320b7-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/f4b26f6702ce706eda71eb4cbb4320b7-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 862px) 100vw, 862px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/6rgWHgp.jpeg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1100\" height=\"619\" data-id=\"6924\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/6rgWHgp.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6924\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/6rgWHgp.jpeg 1100w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/6rgWHgp-300x169.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/6rgWHgp-1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/6rgWHgp-768x432.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1100px) 100vw, 1100px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/WQQGWW6V5NAVBPNNJJ3G2SSMNA.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"400\" height=\"298\" data-id=\"6921\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/WQQGWW6V5NAVBPNNJJ3G2SSMNA.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6921\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/WQQGWW6V5NAVBPNNJJ3G2SSMNA.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/WQQGWW6V5NAVBPNNJJ3G2SSMNA-300x224.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/1_bHAC1E84xxB35Fej88_P-w.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"399\" data-id=\"6920\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/1_bHAC1E84xxB35Fej88_P-w.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6920\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/1_bHAC1E84xxB35Fej88_P-w.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/1_bHAC1E84xxB35Fej88_P-w-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/putin_lavrov_table.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1366\" height=\"758\" data-id=\"6923\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/putin_lavrov_table.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6923\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/putin_lavrov_table.jpg 1366w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/putin_lavrov_table-300x166.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/putin_lavrov_table-1024x568.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/putin_lavrov_table-768x426.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/putin_lavrov_table-1200x666.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1366px) 100vw, 1366px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Propaganda Clown Troika<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They alternate from playing the bully to playing the victim.<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"126\" class=\"wp-image-6928\" style=\"width: 225px;\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/f08daf4-simonyan-soloviev-skabeeva-collage-.jpg\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/f08daf4-simonyan-soloviev-skabeeva-collage-.jpg 690w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/f08daf4-simonyan-soloviev-skabeeva-collage--300x168.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">But back to Olga<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s midnight in Koryo Hotel in North Korea&#8217;s capital, Pyongyang. Olga Skabeeva&#8217;s there to cover Lavrov&#8217;s visit to beg for 60-year-old artillery shells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>WLBOTT Wonders:<\/strong> Does Olga ever reflect upon her life choices, her mortality, her upcoming meet-and-greet with Saint Peter?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In this bizarre video, she&#8217;s saying weird things like &#8211; &#8220;The hotel lobby is empty because it&#8217;s midnight&#8221;, &#8220;no one controls our actions at all&#8221;, &#8220;the Korean people do not look gloomy, sad, or depressed&#8221;, and how we are <em><u><strong>not<\/strong><\/u><\/em> under surveillance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&#8217;s like getting pulled over for speeding, and they first thing you say is, &#8220;By the way, officer, there is <em><u><strong>not<\/strong><\/u><\/em> a dead body in my trunk.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But to be fair to Olga, she&#8217;s probably experiencing a combination of jet lag and thermonuclear diarrhea (from the North Korean kimchi).<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/i\/status\/1714730787054956681\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"590\" height=\"531\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_049.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6930\" style=\"width:500px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_049.jpg 590w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_049-300x270.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 590px) 100vw, 590px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here&#8217;s the translation of her late-breaking live telecast:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"395\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/olgaSays-395x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6933\" style=\"width:400px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/olgaSays-395x1024.jpg 395w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/olgaSays-116x300.jpg 116w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/olgaSays-593x1536.jpg 593w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/olgaSays.jpg 607w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 395px) 100vw, 395px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Koryo Hotel<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is the hotel Olga is bitching about&#8230;.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Koryo_Hotel\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"551\" height=\"419\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_073.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6937\" style=\"width:450px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_073.jpg 551w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_073-300x228.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 551px) 100vw, 551px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We invite our readers to do their own Google search for &#8220;Koryo Hotel in North Korea&#8221;, or visit <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tripadvisor.com\/Hotel_Review-g294444-d306459-Reviews-Koryo_Hotel-Pyongyang.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Trip Advisor<\/a>. It is truly weird that most of the photos are devoid of people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-2 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-3 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-coffee-shop.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"700\" height=\"400\" data-id=\"6940\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-coffee-shop.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6940\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-coffee-shop.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-coffee-shop-300x171.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"550\" height=\"413\" data-id=\"6939\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6939\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel.jpg 550w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-2.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" data-id=\"6943\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6943\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-2.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-2-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-1.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"550\" height=\"367\" data-id=\"6941\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6941\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-1.jpg 550w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-1-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/images-4.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"183\" height=\"275\" data-id=\"6938\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/images-4.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6938\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/15573685074_3b8f1b49fe_h.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1068\" data-id=\"6944\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/15573685074_3b8f1b49fe_h.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6944\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/15573685074_3b8f1b49fe_h.jpg 1600w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/15573685074_3b8f1b49fe_h-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/15573685074_3b8f1b49fe_h-1024x684.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/15573685074_3b8f1b49fe_h-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/15573685074_3b8f1b49fe_h-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/15573685074_3b8f1b49fe_h-1200x801.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-lobby-renovation-pyongyang.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"750\" data-id=\"6942\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-lobby-renovation-pyongyang.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6942\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-lobby-renovation-pyongyang.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-lobby-renovation-pyongyang-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-lobby-renovation-pyongyang-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/caption.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" data-id=\"6945\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/caption.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6945\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/caption.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/caption-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/caption-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Five Stars (*****)<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"542\" height=\"215\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_073.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6948\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_073.png 542w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_073-300x119.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 542px) 100vw, 542px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-4 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/a-sitting-area-right.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" data-id=\"6951\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/a-sitting-area-right.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6951\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/a-sitting-area-right.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/a-sitting-area-right-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/a-sitting-area-right-768x1024.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/photo4.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" data-id=\"6952\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/photo4.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6952\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/photo4.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/photo4-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/photo4-768x1024.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-9.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" data-id=\"6955\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-9.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6955\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-9.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-9-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-9-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-9-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-8.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" data-id=\"6953\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-8.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6953\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-8.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-8-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-8-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-8-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-7.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" data-id=\"6956\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-7.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6956\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-7.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-7-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-7-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-7-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-5.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" data-id=\"6954\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-5.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6954\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-5.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-5-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-5-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-5-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-3.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" data-id=\"6949\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6949\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Koryo_Hotel._Pyongyang_North_Korea._2604008674.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1100\" height=\"731\" data-id=\"6958\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Koryo_Hotel._Pyongyang_North_Korea._2604008674.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6958\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Koryo_Hotel._Pyongyang_North_Korea._2604008674.jpg 1100w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Koryo_Hotel._Pyongyang_North_Korea._2604008674-300x199.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Koryo_Hotel._Pyongyang_North_Korea._2604008674-1024x680.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/Koryo_Hotel._Pyongyang_North_Korea._2604008674-768x510.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1100px) 100vw, 1100px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/content_Koryo_Hotel_5.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" data-id=\"6950\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/content_Koryo_Hotel_5.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6950\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/content_Koryo_Hotel_5.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/content_Koryo_Hotel_5-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/content_Koryo_Hotel_5-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-6.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"800\" data-id=\"6957\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-6.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6957\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-6.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-6-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-6-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/koryo-hotel-6-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">I swear I built this Heathkit in High School<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Starry Starry Night<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As a courtesy to the star-gazing citizens of Democratic People&#8217;s Republic of North Korea, the Dear Leaders turn off the lights at night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-1 wp-block-gallery-5 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_071.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"689\" height=\"490\" data-id=\"6960\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_071.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6960\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_071.jpg 689w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/irl_16_071-300x213.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 689px) 100vw, 689px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/76991.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1020\" height=\"680\" data-id=\"6961\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/76991.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6961\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/76991.jpg 1020w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/76991-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/76991-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1020px) 100vw, 1020px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>WLBOTT<\/strong> Central Texas Headquarters proudly flies the Ukrainian flag.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"860\" height=\"619\" src=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/IMG_5048.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-6963\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/IMG_5048.jpg 860w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/IMG_5048-300x216.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/IMG_5048-768x553.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I was preparing a BLOTT about reliable, informative news sources that will help you get the big picture on Russia&#8217;s brutal invasion of Ukraine. This is a pretty big task, but as I was digging into Jake Broe, he had such an incredible story that I wanted to focus on this rabbit hole. The background [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[11,43],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6911","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-asia","category-heros-not"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6911","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6911"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6911\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7564,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6911\/revisions\/7564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6911"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6911"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wlbott.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6911"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}