The House That Potemkin Built

Like everyone else, I too was struck by the unabashed displays of nationalism at Friday’s baseball game. The emphasis on military pride in particular echoed nearly every one of the claims made in Franklin Foer’s book “How Soccer Explains the World”. But instead of repeating this sentiment, I feel obliged to draw attention to another aspect I witnessed.

The Washington Nationals’ stadium is much more than just a baseball park. There are numerous food stations, memorabilia shops, VIP lounges, specialty stores, and other attractions. It functions more like a baseball-themed mall than an American-themed baseball park. While the game is the main attraction, there is enough to see, do, and buy to last a person the entire game. Add to that the planned promenade leading up to the stadium, which will be filled with even more entertainment and merchandise, and the fireworks and giant LED displays around the stadium. All this was meant to impress stadium-goers, and attract them to see the game again. Obviously, something about the team itself doesn’t quite draw the crowds. This policy of substituting glamour and showmanship for actual substantive performance is nothing new, and can be seen in the world of global politics, as well.

And who better represents this than North Korea?

Since its inception, the North Korean government’s acting policy has been to substitute real national infrastructure and economically-sound decisions with giant monuments and flowery mass gymnastic demonstrations. They try to hide their poor governance and heavy-handed tactics with impressive displays of unity that “prove” that they are the most efficient and prosperous state in the world. And they, like the Nationals, have made attempts to “sell” their artificial brand of prosperity to the outside world; upon the creation of the Demilitarized Zone, they erected a fake city called Kijong-dong just across from the Panmunjeom crossing. It was essentially a façade, meant to entice South Koreans to defect to the “lovely” North. In the city, they even went so far as to build the world’s tallest flagpole, so South Koreans could see the flag of the North from far away. Not to sound too derogatory, but in many ways, Nationals Stadium resembles North Korea: it provides ample amusement and stunning visual displays to distract from the inherent bankruptcy of talent and know-how. The dearly departed Yankee Stadium never needed any of these trivial add-ons, because Yankee fans came to the stadium solely to enjoy the game. Perhaps if the Washington Nationals spent less on petty diversions and more on talented coaches and players, they would gain a dependable fan base. And perhaps if North Korea spent less on building, dismantling, and rebuilding its nuclear facility at Yongbyon, and more on investing in market infrastructure, they would have a somewhat-respectable state.