jchengwsj

Hey guys! I'm back to answer this one. It's a tough one because there's so much that we want to know, and there are plenty of good questions that would be perfectly adequate, but you always want to find that perfect question, if you ever got the chance. Unfortunately, I'm not sure there is a perfect one. Most of the things we want to know are things that nobody knows, or that are likely to change quickly depending on circumstances, like, "How close are we to war?" or "Do you ever plan to use your nuclear weapons?" There are also a few that would fall into the unsolved mysteries category, like "What happened with Otto Warmbier exactly?" or "Did you order the hit on Kim Jong Nam, and why?" (North Korea has a lot of these unsolved mysteries, stretching right back to 1945 and beyond, but these would be two of the more recent ones.) Then there are the frivolous ones, like "Why Dennis Rodman?" or "Why that haircut?" I suppose I could also go down another line of reasoning: "What really keeps you up at night?" "Does your conscience ever nag you?" And I guess the one I'd really like to ask would be along those lines, and it'd be like this, for Kim Jong Un: "Did you ever contemplate a different path for North Korea when you took over from your father? You were educated abroad, and the country you inherited is in a very different position, and the world is a very different place, than when your grandfather founded the DPRK in 1948. Did you give any serious thought to a different path, and why did you ultimately choose this one?" I'm not sure how thoughtful and contemplative Kim is, but given the parameters of your question, Josh, with the prospect of an honest and sincere answer, that's probably what I'd ask. But hey, if anyone's got a better question, I'm all ears!

Josh, I'm saving this question for last, because I think it's a great one and my brain needs to process this a bit more...

I think a lot more of them believe a lot more of the propaganda than one might think. Keep in mind that this isn’t a country where there are multiple sources of mass media and information. North Koreans have been provided with one narrative for their entire lives, and it’s only with the beginnings of alternative sources of information — USB drives, more travel to China, the internet (as restricted as it is) — that this is beginning to change. But only just a little, so far.

Tell the Chinese I want out, have them sub in a puppet leader for me in Pyongyang and have them promise to veto any UN resolutions that would ever target me. Then, call up Dennis Rodman and start a record label or something.

One way to answer this is to say that they're always preparing for war. The country is on a perpetual war footing, and the language and rhetoric of their state media really has made it seem like a U.S. invasion has been imminent for a very long time. Are they more prepared than usual at the moment? It's hard for us to know, unfortunately, on a five-day guided visit to the capital. But my sense is that it must be at least a touch higher than usual, given -- as I mentioned in answer to another question -- that the situation these days is truly more unstable than in the past. North Korea is near the finish line on its weapons program, and a very unpredictable -- you could say a proudly unpredictable -- president is in the White House.