
Kim Jong Un in Critical Condition - StandardFuture
http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20200421000392
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maallooc
CNN reports that Kim is in serious condition citing 2 individual US officials.
[https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/20/politics/kim-jong-un-
nort...](https://edition.cnn.com/2020/04/20/politics/kim-jong-un-north-
korea/index.html)

According to a reporter for NBC citing 2 individual US officials, US officials
believe Kim to be brain dead after undergoing surgery for a cardiac event. The
reporter has since deleted the tweet to wait upon further confirmation.
[https://twitter.com/KatyTurNBC/status/1252419884023087106](https://twitter.com/KatyTurNBC/status/1252419884023087106)

According to a reporter for Bloomberg citing White House officials, US
officials believe Kim is in poor condition if alive, or dead. The White House
is looking into who would succeed Kim if he dies.
[https://twitter.com/JenniferJJacobs/status/12524264588630261...](https://twitter.com/JenniferJJacobs/status/1252426458863026177)

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0xy
Translation: CIA source says Kim Jong Un in Critical Condition, despite being
wrong dozens of times before.

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Kemwer
Exactly my thoughts

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doh
“Reuters: South Korea govt says Kim Jong Un is not seriously ill - Yonhap”

[https://twitter.com/rover829/status/1252428970760388610?s=21](https://twitter.com/rover829/status/1252428970760388610?s=21)

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maallooc
Even South Koreans don't trust their government in terms of NK news.

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summerlight
[https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=2396104334...](https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=2396104334013025&id=100008404450908)

Well, I would rather trust S.K. officials than U.S. officials in the current
administration. Even Joo Seong-Ha, one of the most trustworthy source for
North Korea, asserts that this is a 100% false report.

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apl002
this 'article' is practically a tweet. And it cited CNN as the source which
should be taken with a grain of salt

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pscoutou
Original news story that triggered this - [https://www.dailynk.com/김정은-최근-심혈관-
시술-받았다여전히-특각서-치/](https://www.dailynk.com/김정은-최근-심혈관-시술-받았다여전히-특각서-치/)

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pscoutou
Based on their Wikipedia page, DailyNK appear to have good sourcing within the
NK regime.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daily_NK](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daily_NK)

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omot
Implications?

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macintux
If it’s true, instability in a rogue state with nuclear weapons and a loaded
gun pointing at Seoul. The possibility of a flood of refugees entering China
when it’s struggling to contain a new deadly virus.

So, hard to say, but unlikely to be good implications.

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koolba
If you’re a North Korean barely not starving to death, it’ll likely be an
improvement.

Hell, enough turmoil that you don’t get shot when fleeing across the border
would be an improvement.

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tasogare
You are assuming most people want to quit their country, with of no proof or
argument. If anything, a bunch of defectors into the South are disappointed by
what they found there.

Also it’s not the NK government starving its citizens to death (that strategy
doesn’t make sense to keep the power), it’s the US by imposing economic
sanctions. The live of the people in this country would improve if they were
allow to do business with the rest of the world.

Finally, the divide exists uniquely because of US intervention, and the state
would probably have normalized its relationships to the world by now, like
China and Vietnam did, if there wasn’t the forced antagonism caused by an
enemy state existing just South.

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anthonybullard
You very clearly no little about the political and economic philosophy of the
country(Juche).

From Wikipedia:

> The Juche theory is the belief that through self-reliance and a strong
> independent state, true socialism can be achieved.

This isn't really started strongly enough about their views (or at least what
they tell their citizens) as regards self-reliance. Most of the famines there
have been caused by incompetence. But they are called the Hermit Kingdom for a
reason. They want to do it themselves.

They have the resources to create nuclear weapons, but not feed their
population? I honestly don't understand how people can make excuses for a
regime that had literally provided no value to their people or the world
except for war, murder, and suffering.

Note: Was a Korean linguist in a branch of the US military. Might make some
people think I was brainwashed, but actually just gave me actual context on
the country and it's people.

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dingaling
> The Juche theory is the belief that...

Those are just words. The actual philosophy is that the Kim dynasty wants to
play god with their own little world, without consequences. They've had 80
years to establish the Socialist Dream and instead continue to be nasty, petty
tyrants. They've no more interest in socialism than does a schoolyard bully.

> They want to do it themselves.

They as in the average NK working in a field? He'd happily eat US-provided
wheat, if the regime let him do so without punishment.

Or they as in the dynasty who go abroad for education instead of 'doing it
themselves' and who relied on Pakistan nuclear scientists instead of 'doing it
themselves' and who rely on Chinese and Russian armaments to maintain their
regime of fear? I mean to get to Pyongyang you have to fly on a Russian-built
airliner...

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ydnaclementine
Here's hope for unification

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hiccuphippo
There must be other people in the line of succession willing to continue the
status quo.

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pizza
The title "CNN says Kim Jong Un in Critical Condition" would be better. Best
to hedge the statement before more info comes to light.

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cmurf
COVID19?

