[food]

To call a group of our fellow humans "a sort of new species" - as the author does - is offensive, no matter who the target. That legitimately offends my sensibilities, as I consider myself to fall under the same umbrella as North Koreans - that of humanity at large. As you stated yourself, these people are physically different from others due to a lifetime of malnutrition, NOT a genetic evolution, which would be necessary for a new species to emerge. Also, using the term "dwarf", which is a colloquial term for a medical disorder, is simply inaccurate, and hints at the superiority bias of this author. The rest of the piece follows a similar tone, and to me does no good in bringing us to a more civil position with North Korea.

[bballant]

I think one of Hitchens' points is that there may be no good to be done with a civil position toward North Korea. In discussing the book, The Cleanest Race, he says the conclusions of the book could "mean that peace and disarmament negotiations with [N. Korea] are a waste of time—and perhaps a dangerous waste at that."