What are the chances that the North Korean ruling class will move into China's camp when Kim Jong Il bites the dust? This is probably their only option besides starve to death. The NK Political Class wants to stay in power. China wants hegemony. The NKs would probably be willing to accept hegemony from them if it keeps them where they are. Either way it's bad news for ROK and everyone else.
Kind of a scary thought, but at the same time it is relieving. Although the PRC is no joke and the idea of a hegemony could bring back ideas of the cold war, it has always been my opinion that China really doesn't want to go toe to toe with the United States. Not because of military reasons, but it would damage their economy.
On one bright side, I think it is very unlikely that things could be worse for the NK people. It will be worse in the eyes of the world that China, known for selling us poison toothpaste and sewer-shrimp, is the one that feeds the NKs. It should have been RoK and we should have helped them. It would have been a good place to spend all of those billions we handed over to African dictators a few years ago, for no reason.
Originally posted by Thrust_0311: What are the chances that the North Korean ruling class will move into China's camp when Kim Jong Il bites the dust? This is probably their only option besides starve to death. The NK Political Class wants to stay in power. China wants hegemony. The NKs would probably be willing to accept hegemony from them if it keeps them where they are. Either way it's bad news for ROK and everyone else.
What your talking about is Anarchy, and I will have none of it in my Air Force. When Kim Jong Il does go we will proceed to offer the people of NK lotion, for all the beatings Kim has been inflicting on his people. Danny Devito is also slated to star in a film based on Kim when he passes, I hear the likes of George Lucus, Speilburg, Oliver stone, have sent in their interests to the sponsering company (in directing roles).
Go to Munsan ni and watch the train loads of car parts going north to Kaesong and the assembled Hyundais coming south. When Kim is gone Hyundai will be the center of their economy. It is a cheap labor source for the South. North Korea will disappear with a wimper like East Germany. The CEO of Hyundais parents were refugee from the North.
Originally posted by Vampire3R: Go to Munsan ni and watch the train loads of car parts going north to Kaesong and the assembled Hyundais coming south. When Kim is gone Hyundai will be the center of their economy. It is a cheap labor source for the South. North Korea will disappear with a wimper like East Germany. The CEO of Hyundais parents were refugee from the North.
The best thing would be for the country to collapse in a succession struggle. It would save far more lives in the long term.
What is important is that we back up South Korea if they choose to invade, before China tries to regain another historically hegemonial tributary. The South Koreans may have a lot of problems, but they are one of the shields of White Christian Civilization against the Chinese threat. Also I doubt that SK's are all as stupid as the ones we hear about in the news. That their nationalist party is under fire from their media and academia only shows that we have many similarities.
To think - you are considered a "progressive intellectual" in SK if you look up to the Kim dynasty. It's equally absurd here but at least, in this case, you can look at a case study from OUTSIDE the asylum.
Originally posted by Thrust_0311: The South Koreans may have a lot of problems, but they are one of the shields of White Christian Civilization against the Chinese threat. Also I doubt that SK's are all as stupid as the ones we hear about in the news. That their nationalist party is under fire from their media and academia only shows that we have many similarities.
I find this comment rather arrogant and somewhat racist. Western civilization is not exclusively composed of white/Caucasian or Christian people although it did start out that way. You have non-Caucasian minorities (black, Asian, Hispanic, South Asian, etc.) as well as followers of non-Christian religions such as Judaism and Buddhism and so forth, all of whom share the same basic rights as you and who play many different roles in Western society, such as your new President Obama. They also may or may not share the same values as you in the melting pot societies of North America (namely Canada and the US), Australia and Western Europe(including the UK).
For someone like you who has served in the US military (even in the most conservative branch, the USMC), you should be mindful of such diversity.
It's a figure of speech. Race doesn't really matter as long as you are fighting the good fight, but it does matter when your race is on the defense. Part of Japan's entire reasoning in the Pacific War was that they were racially superior. It isn't taught in schools today, but they considered themselves to be more highly evolved (which is the root of all modern genocide) and therefore less succeptible to the faults of others such as body odor (I'm not making this up).
The Chinese have a racial superiority complex and it is sure to come to the fore when we fight them. If we don't stop hating ourselves then we are giving them a helping hand. Also considering that they are atheists, it would stand to reason that they have a sincere NEED to prove themselves the masters of the world, and will kill as many people as necessary to make the point.
A good comparison is the Alamo: There were actually a few ethnic Mexicans who fought alongside the rest of the Anglo defenders. Santa Anna put entire villages of people to the sword on the way to San Antonio as a measure of his revenge. The Chinese Generals have promised to do the same with the 'corrupted' Chinese (and other races) that live in America. They either realize what will happen to them and help or we should throw them outside the gate, but I will waste no time trying to reason with people who would invite their own destruction. Part of standing up means throwing off the burden of white guilt that the Chinese certainly know of and will exploit, just as the Soviets did.
Kim Jong Il's son elevated to defense post Updated April 27, 2009 10:50 AM
SEOUL (AP) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Il's youngest son has reportedly been named to the powerful National Defense Commission, an appointment analysts said indicates the 26-year-old is being groomed to take power.
Kim Jong Un speaks English, likes basketball — and is said to look and act just like his father.
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Kim Jong Il has allowed no opposition, raising concerns about a power struggle if he dies suddenly without naming a successor.
The eccentric leader has three known sons by two women. The oldest, Kim Jong Nam, was long considered his favorite — until he tried to sneak into Japan using a fake Dominican passport and visit Tokyo's Disney resort in 2001.
The middle son, Kim Jong Chol, apparently has never been a favorite as a possible leader. Kim Jong Il's former sushi chef says in a 2003 memoir that the leader considers his second son "girlish."
But talk about the youngest son has been growing. On Sunday, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported Kim Jong Un was assigned to a low-level post at the defense commission, the top government body, several days before his father was reappointed as the commission's chairman on April 9.
That reappointment marked the first major public appearance for the "Dear Leader" after his reported stroke. He was gaunter, grayer.
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Little is known about Kim Jong Un. The former sushi chef, Kenji Fujimoto, says in his memoir that the son looks and acts just like his father.
The teen studied at the International School of Bern in Switzerland, a short walk from the North Korean embassy, where classes are taught in English and many students come from diplomatic families.
A recent article in the French-speaking weekly L'Hebdo described Kim Jong Un as a shy student enrolled under the name of Chol Pak, who enjoyed team sports like basketball, went skiing with friends on Fridays and admired Michael Jordan and Jean-Claude Van Damme.
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Kim Jong Il believes his youngest son has "charismatic leadership" like him, said Cheong Seong-chang, a senior analyst at the security think tank Sejong Institute.
Cheong said Kim Jong Il's health problems would speed up his naming an heir.
But Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies, disagreed, saying Kim Jong Il is believed to be focusing more on consolidating his support base rather than appointing his successor, which would quickly erode his power and "worsen his health condition."
