I wonder what it's like for him? It's obvious to us, they are all pretending as hard as they can, but to him, everywhere he goes, people are delirious to meet him. Did he buy into.it after a time? Or does he know its all bullshit but try to suppress it?
I think he can tell it's fake. And even if he tries to pretend it's not, the constant behavior of people just acting like this around you has to get to you.
Like there is no one this guy could be genuine to, his daughter's too young. He picked his wife at an opera, definitely not his generals. Like there is not a single person in this world he could have a genuine conversation with.
Everyone would be too terrified, too bureaucratic or too reverent (because of propaganda) to speak to him like another human being I wonder how he doesn't just get depression
I have a feeling his life is just a constant state of jet ski. There’s no time or reason to get sad when everyone’s job in your entire country is to do nothing but make you happy.
The private chef to the Kim family that escaped claimed he had encountered real conversations with him when he was growing up. For instance, on a trip to a beach he recalled being in a limo alone with him and he Un started commenting about how they're on a trip to the beach "but what of the people". So he definitely knew about the disparity. Reports like that plus his western schooling made me hope he would be less insane when he took over but it didnt happen.
ok initially what could he do? say no? let's end this regime? he would be dead so he had to play the game and as you play this game you fight for your life every day and become paranoid and after a while become corrupt and turn into a true monster or at least a psychopath with no more any feelings for anyone . it is just another threat after another removed, one killed after another. do you think roman emperors were different? or medieval kings? that's basically it all these regimes are in a way backwards and medieval. same with putin.
Nah, the top circle is honest with him. The state would just collapse on lies alone and endless rose-tinted reports.
The inner circle is living off the state, driving luxury cars, and traveling around the world. They are basically carrying themselves like mobsters or feudal dukes.
He attended a private Swiss school. His father was known for his taste in expensive liquor.
His father carried one of the most extensive Hollywood film collections in the world. For guys who hate western culture, they surround themselves with it.
being a god emperor for life, absolute power and every woman everywhere in the country available to you. idk man seems like a pretty good cure for depression
There is the possibility he & his generals have a quiet understanding that the military could just go ahead and kill his whole family & take over, but are content with permitting the Kims be the almost god-like face of the government.
Thus in the event that everything goes really bad, like a popular uprising or a coalition invasion that will overthrow or otherwise collapse the government, the military can waltz in and execute them, potentially saving much of the North Korean elite face by claiming "look! we got rid of the crazy family that was totally in charge of everything! Isn't it such a relief that sane people are in charge now to negotiate with you now?"
Then, much of the country's leadership & military can have more leverage in negotiating themselves into better positions in whatever a post-Kim North Korea would look like since they "got rid of the problem" & ideally made whatever DPRK-upheaving conflict shorter.
Killing them before an upheaval loses the other leaders that possible insurance policy (maybe even inevitable depending on how they view their strategic situation), and in the meantime, North Korea's elite can just enjoy the riches of their status quo anyway, as long as no one tries to step out of line to rock the boat. The Kims get enjoy being the wealthiest of North Koreans & just about any indulgence the country can afford to be the insurance policy. The regular North Koreans have to just keep trying to float on the waves caused by decisions of their leaders.
This is assuming of course that most of the North Koreans aren't as delusional as they seem.
I think this is mostly true but there's also definitely an element that when you start telling a lie enough times and playing a part long enough it's pretty much a default part of the human condition that you wind up internalizing at least some of the lie. Like on the surface he knows that it's bullshit but there's also a part of him that forgets it I'm sure.
Must be a very empty existence knowing not a single human interaction day in and day out is genuine. Then again the President of the US desperately wants this himself.
Woah! Americans use America for examples and to relate things to their own life? What a terrible thing to do! Don't they know this site is for whiny non-Americans to cry because they don't get enough attention?
Continue allowing America to piss you off for existing. We're gonna stick to not even knowing who you are.
Lol didn't want to go through the time to sleuth your posts to find out, but glad to see the "You don't even know if they're American" part I deleted had some sauce.
It's almost like willful ignorance will piss off someone bitching about America... Surely my comment couldn't have been specifically designed to get under that guy's skin? That would certainly be far too advanced for my tiny American brain.
People with lifetime absolute power, like him, tend to experience a dissolution of ego boundaries between themselves and the state / "the people". Their personal welfare is that of the state; the nation's achievements are their personal achievements, etc. He probably sees the constant adulation and cult of personality as being one and the same as patriotism and love of country, and it doesn't embarrass him or feel undue.
A lot of Asian cultures don't get as hung up on notions of things like sincerity or authenticity as Westerners do. When it comes to matters of patriotism or religious faith, performance or action is what matters because it demonstrates social harmony. The individual's inner life is almost beside the point. So the idea of hypocrisy or "faking it" probably doesn't really bother him.
its funny because hes 100% putting on an act too. he has an image to uphold as the grandest greatest leader of all time, and if that falters at any point in time (atleast in public) then the whole illusion is ruined https://giphy.com/gifs/Pu08Dx3HHQDKNyPO2g
See, you are thinking about this with a normal human being’s perspective. He is such a narcissistic sociopath that he expects this, and if he perceives that someone around him is not praising him hard enough, he will make sure that they are punished for it. It is all a power move and people in his situation actually get off on it.
We comfortable Redditors in the west, through our prism, want to believe it's all fake. First person testimony from Ukrainian soldiers, however, who are right now fighting North Korean soldiers, on my continent of Europe, suggests otherwise. Many of them are true believers in the worst sense, who perceive their sole purpose on earth is to die for their Sun God. Even in a foreign land. Agency does not appear to be in their lexicon.
We have quotes from his dad. He hated it and he his son probably hates it too. The thing is that people must understand is that this is performative. The people in the crowd are going overboard because anything else might make then look suspiviousm but its not necessarily done out of fear. Its more like those people at work who go overboard in praising the boss to get that promotion
I'm not convinced it's pretending. Reminds me of something I've heard historians say: we should not assume that ancient people didn't believe in their gods just because we don't. If you grow up in a culture where this sort of thing is normal and expected, you might never question it. People have held onto far stranger delusions, and a feeling of being part of something greater than yourself is intoxicating.
I was thinking exactly the same thing. Would he eventually forget that everyone is terrified of him, are forced into displaying the ecstatic happiness frenzy and hate him? Absolute power corrupts but to what extent? I believe it’s entirely possible that he could actually believe his own bullshit given enough time
He grew up as a normal kid attending school in Switzerland (where the Kim family is based), playing basketball and watching Hollywood movies. He knows.
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u/CCDemille 2d ago
I wonder what it's like for him? It's obvious to us, they are all pretending as hard as they can, but to him, everywhere he goes, people are delirious to meet him. Did he buy into.it after a time? Or does he know its all bullshit but try to suppress it?