Kim Jong Il has died....

[DarkRyter]

Huh? Wha?

Oh, some idiot died? Not my problem.

BACK TO POKEMON!


Yeah... I don't care.

It begs the question: why bother posting if you're going to be so flippant about it? Is it supposed to be "edgy" or "rebellious" or something?

Maybe he/she's really really into pokemon.

They're really good games, you know.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

One can hope this brings about positive changes in the country but there will probably be a fight for the power he held.

 

[Icyheart]

YES! One more down! Waitin' on you, Castro. Hurry up and die so I can get my cigars!

Anyway... I'm actually surprised he didn't try to go out with a bang. I figured he'd at least try to nuke America before he kicked the bucket. It should be interesting to see what happens in the country now. A lot of his citizens were pretty fanatic about the guy. Expect some anarchy. It might not be there yet, but it'll be there soon.

 

[Ickorus]

I know it's pretty naive but I hope the country becomes more stable and opens up a bit now he's gone.

I dunno, since when has someones death managed to shut up the Internet?

See?

That image is actually pretty old though I anticipate 'Kim Jong Dead' to be added to that soon.

 

[WanderingFool]

Hmmm... Somehow, this is going to be a bad thing...

 

[wooty]

I seeee a poooower struggle.......perhaps.

Lets hope not, I really want to go back to Tokyo and Seoul.

 

[ThatGuy]

In a small dictatorship as secretive as North Korea, it's not unlikely that Kim Jong-il and Kim Jong-un are just figureheads. It's even possible that they answer to a military government, and don't really have much say at all. In other words, they might not be the brains behind the operation.

Either way, I don't think things will get better for North Korea in the short term. And if Kim Jong-un should flex his muscles to solidify his place as a leader, things could get worse. Somehow I doubt this will happen.

 

[TheRightToArmBears]

You know what they say, everyone dies arone.

I doubt it'll make much difference overall, I can't imagine Kim jong-un will be any less of a douchebag.

 

[draconiansundae]

In a small dictatorship as secretive as North Korea, it's not unlikely that Kim Jong-il and Kim Jong-un are just figureheads. It's even possible that they answer to a military government, and don't really have much say at all. In other words, they might not be the brains behind the operation.

Either way, I don't think things will get better for North Korea in the short term. And if Kim Jong-un should flex his muscles to solidify his place as a leader, things could get worse. Somehow I doubt this will happen.

One of the possible scenarios is that Kim jong-un needs to define his image as separate from his father and grandfather, meaning that he might do something dramatic. Whether or not it will be positive (opening up the country, slowly, to international trade, diplomacy, etc.) or negative (more isolationism or even a provocation on the South - which North Korea traditionally likes to do to draw attention away from domestic issues) remains to be seen. I'd like to believe this will be the first step toward reunification, but I've also heard that the two relatively recent attack on the South, including sinking a warship and shooting an island, may also be attributable to Kim Jong-un rise as a four-star general, according to the BBC. However, trying to say that Kim jong-il was only a figurehead and didn't have any "real" power is just false and underestimates the political legacy established by Kim Il-sung. Even if the degree of his power is exaggerated, one can't discount the effectiveness of his cult of personality, which keeps the starving masses devoting their emotion into misplaced love for him, rather than social revolt.

 

[draconiansundae]

hmm.
he's... dead.

well then.

is america going to stop aiming nukes at Korea and calling it 'missile Feng Shui'?

Um no. Those missiles are there to counteract the North Korean ones pointed at Seoul. The Korean War has never technically ended, as as the South's primary ally in the war, the U.S. is bound to defend it.

 

[Lunar Templar]

in to poor taste?

 

[ZeroMachine]

Hmmm... Somehow, this is going to be a bad thing...

My thoughts exactly.

With all the insane dictators/terrorists dying this year, I feel like there's going to be an insanity power vacuum. It's only a matter of time until new, possibly worse, figures of insanity take their places.

... And that, my friends, was seriousness wrapped in a joke.

 

[theultimateend]

And it begins....

Homefront anyone?

Doubt it. The idea of South Korea uniting with North Korea without hesitation (as the plot of Homefront started) is absurd.

I was playing Fallout 3 when my mother told me the news. Jebus Christ, what now.

So here is how it goes down.

Homefront was actually made by a person from the future.

They came back in time to warn everyone of the upcoming unification of Korea.

What they didn't realize was that South Korea got a hold of copies of Homefront and realized that by unity with North Korea they could be strong enough to take on America.

So by coming into the past to warn us they created the stimulus that lead to the events in the warning they created.

H O M E F R O N T

 

[RatRace123]

Really? I figured it was coming, but still a shock.
I wonder what's gonna happen in Korea now?

From what I heard about Kim Jong Il's son, he's not all that great, potentially too weak a ruler.
This could be one of the most important moments in history right now depending on how things turn out.

 

[Alssadar]

I hope this may be a turn for the better for them, and, as an American high schooler with little knowledge considering current world affairs involving North Korea and reading the two BBC articles (The listed, and US relations), I hope world leaders acknowledge Jong-un as a leader and offer any attempts of negotiation with the new leader to stop the thought of just another person with nukes who the rest of the world doesn't like.

 

[Del-Toro]

I've heard his Son is even worse, and is far more aggressive and problematic.

Well, fortunately North Korea is a pathetic military force. If he really does rush an attack against basically anyone, he's rushing his own downfall. There's a reason Kim Jong Il never made good on his threats.

You do realize that they have nuclear capabilities right? They prolly can't hit too many people, but they can hit china, and there's no way china's not gonna take a few pot shots at the US if they're going down anyway. And there's no way that the US won't take a few pot shots at somebody/anybody/everybody if we're going down anyway. An aggressive North Korea is not good for anybody.

True, maybe one of those country's missile defense system would stop the chain reaction, but I'm not quite ready for that big of a risk to global survival.

Wait wait wait wait wait wait.... so you're saying that if North Korea nukes China, the Chinese response will be to nuke the US? That's retarded, there's no way, first of all, that China can't sustain a nuclear war better than North Korea, and surely countermeasures exist. Second, what you're suggesting is the equivalent of Brazil being attacked by Bolivia and responding by declaring war on Poland. If North Korea, on it's own initiative, attacks China, the People's Republic is not going to fire a Parthian shot at the states, they're going to pump all their firepower into making North Korea not exist anymore, because North Korea probably doesn't have the rocketry to wipe China entirely out and the survivors won't want to deal with an invasion. I don't think you really understand how mutually assured destruction works, the idea is that the belligerents will wipe each other out, not that the defending side will attack third parties because they can.

 

[KingHodor]

North Korea doesn't release any true information about themselves. They have no chance whatsoever in a war against anyone; the only reason the US didn't take them out a long time ago is the fact that they're allied with China. The only threat they pose is nuking South Korea---which would be disastrous, but also spell their own doom, so I doubt they'll do it.

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2792.htm

North Korea does have the 4th largest military in the world. With plenty of weapons production, chemical weapons and air defense networks.
While the equipment is outdated, their army is still is a significant threat.
And that's besides the nuclear capabilities.

Back in 1990, Iraq boasted also boasted the world's fourth largest military. As it turned out, their outdated main battle tanks weren't even a match for American Bradleys armed with 25mm autocannons, let alone A-10's and Apaches raining down Mavericks and Hellfires on them. To quote General Tom Kelly: "Iraq went from having the fourth-largest army in the world to the second-largest army in Iraq in 100 hours"

Imagine playing CoD against a guy with unlimited Predator drone killstreaks, and you have a pretty good idea of what the odds of success of a North Korean invasion of the South would be like.

 

[ShindoL Shill]

hmm.
he's... dead.

well then.

is america going to stop aiming nukes at Korea and calling it 'missile Feng Shui'?

Um no. Those missiles are there to counteract the North Korean ones pointed at Seoul. The Korean War has never technically ended, as as the South's primary ally in the war, the U.S. is bound to defend it.

you're technically still at war with Korea?
jesus.

 

[Jumpingbean3]

Unless an all out war begins this means nothing to me. Someone will rise to take his place and it will be right back to business.

 

[AngloDoom]

Unless an all out war begins this means nothing to me.

Indeed, we should wait for someone to start killing us before we start discussing the matter.

No, no wait, that's a terrible idea.

OT:

If Mr. Kim Jong-Il's 'brainwashing' as I understand it is as effective as I've been lead to believe, his son will probably be hailed like Jesus. Considering the guy's been raised to consider himself above the concerns of other people, I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if he turns out to be just as cruel as his father.

Let's just hope he doesn't believe too much in his own power, and starts trying to blow holes in people he doesn't like.