Friday, May 18, 2012

Crazy Is as Crazy Does

While technically satirical, a recent Onion Article captures the dysfunction of the North Korean government and its leader, Kim Jong Un, better than many news articles. Please enjoy, and any quips about North Korea are greatly appreciated, as is actual political commentary. A highlight of the article:
"Other ideas Kim has had for proving his insanity include placing anyone shorter than himself under permanent house arrest, issuing a new national currency every 90 days, normalizing relations with South Korea, and replacing all medicines with synthetic replications of his own saliva."

4 comments:

Brian Barch said...

Yes, it really is such a shame to have a true loony in charge of DPRK's great democratic people's republic. Kim Jong Un also just doesn't have as photogenic pictures of him looking at things, which really detracts from his legitimacy almost as much as his sanity does.

However, I think that Kim Jong Un should recognize that insanity comes in many different forms - he doesn't have to be the same type as his father, and in fact may only come off as a copycat even if he manages to do as good a job. I believe that Kim Jong Un should look to other sources for inspiration, such as that one Roman Emperor who declared war on the sea and sent his soldiers to fight it, or such as the Joker.

Aragon Outlook said...

Well said, Mr. Barch. Insanity comes in many shapes and sizes, and should be judged by its content, not outward appearance.

Brian Barch said...

Why thank you, Mr./Ms. Aragon Outlook.

Sarah Felix-Almirol said...

In Kim Jong-un's words for my reply to the Aragon Outlook, "Of course, I have to be careful not to come off as too crazy, because then it would just feel forced and no one would buy it," said Kim, noting that he was working on some slogans that North Korean schoolchildren would be forced to chant three times daily. "Then again, maybe having it come off as forced would make me seem even crazier, because what kind of a maniac would go to such lengths to outdo his father? Right? Or is that just a cop-out?"

The case in point should be that the way the insanity is presented should not be the focal point of his argument that the craziness makes him a leader like his father. The leadership of his father was never what the craziness was about, right? Kim Jong Un here sounds like he has no plans for himself, yet wants to hold the fort.