Something Strange Here: An ERA Observation

There was something very odd about the article printed by the Associated Press today about Dick Cheney's surprise visit to Iraq. Why such secrecy? The Prime Minister of Iraq didn't even know about it. I'm not saying this is a load of propaganda or anything, or wait, maybe I am saying that. I mean look at the wording.

Take a look at these quotes from two different articles. Quotes are taken from a Dec. 6th article on the official North Korean News site regarding Kim Jong Il inspecting a unit in North Korea. The other is from today's AP article regarding Dick Cheney's secret visit to Iraq. Is there much of a difference?

AP:
"The participation levels all across the country were remarkable,'' Cheney told reporters after an hourlong briefing from the war's top military commanders. ''And that's exactly what needs to happen as you build a political structure in a self-governing Iraq that can unify the various segments of the population and ultimately take over responsibility for their own security.''

DPRK:
He expressed satisfaction over the fact that the unit is training officers and men as a-match-for-a hundred stalwart fighters by successfully building modern drill ground to suit the content and nature of training and widely applying the latest apparatuses to it.

AP:
The vice president visited with Iraq's leaders and military commanders in the Green Zone, saw an Iraqi troop training demonstration at Taji air base, lunched with soldiers who provided security for Thursday's election and gave a speech to troops.

DPRK:
He called on all units to pay primary attention to the combat and political training, noting that intensified combat training provides a basic way of bolstering the strength of the matchless army and the master key to training the soldiers as a-match-for-a hundred fighters.

AP:
He saw rows of housing for soldiers at Camp Victory fortified by concrete walls. Smoke for the trash fires burning throughout the occupied city drifted up toward his chopper.

DPRK:
Going round the compound of the barracks, he learned about the unit's management. Watching the compound of the barracks and their surroundings that match well the compound kept spick-and-span, he said this is fantastic scenery which can be seen in the era of Songun. He highly praised the servicepersons of the unit for having radically changed the appearance of the unit in a few years.

AP:
While Cheney was surrounded by U.S. forces guarding him with guns at the ready, the Iraqi soldiers had no weapons but held their arms out like they were carrying imaginary guns.

The Associated Press Article can be found here http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/international/AP-Cheney-Iraq.html
The North Korean article can be found here http://www.kcna.co.jp/index-e.htm Look into the archives and search out Dec. 6th.