One can't help feeling sorry for North Koreans. In addition to what, by all accounts, is a pretty rough life, short on political freedoms and Michelin-starred restaurants, they have a dearth of television channels. Pyongyang keeps trying to launch a satellite – which the US and Japan perversely insist is some kind of long-range missile – but it has not managed to get one into orbit. It tried in 2006 but, far from reaching Alaska as the Americans claim it can, it disintegrated 35-40 seconds after launch, plopping harmlessly into the sea. That mishap has deprived the isolated country's 23m people of the range of viewing options they deserve. For the moment, at least, they must do without Pyongyang, 90210 and North Korean Idol.
人們不由地爲北韓人民感到難過。除了如大家所說過著相當艱苦的生活、缺乏政治自由和米其林(Michelin)星級餐廳以外，他們的電影片道也很稀少。北韓政府一直試圖發射一顆衛星——美國和日本執迷不悟地堅持認爲這是某種遠距飛彈——但尚未成功將衛星送入軌道。2006年北韓進行了試射，然而，衛星非但沒有像美國人聲稱的那樣到達阿拉斯加，反倒在發射升空35至40秒後便爆炸解體，落入大海，沒有造成任何破壞。這場事故使得這個被孤立國家的2300萬民衆無法享用他們本應享用的一系列電視節目選擇。至少在目前，他們必須忍受沒有《飛越平壤》(Pyongyang, 90210)和《北韓偶像》(North Korean Idol)的生活。