Trump's Big North Korean Moment Is Either A Masterstroke Or A Horrible Debacle. There's No In-Between.
I agree that Kim and his ancestors, have been terrible leaders and abusive individuals. The system of gulag camps, nothing more than placing the opposition in work camps, is a human rights violation. Generations of political prisoners have lived and died in these camps. They have created one of the poorest economic systems in the world and all their people suffer because of it.
There is little to applaud about Kim and his tactics. That said, isolating NK as we have, and imposing punitive damages hasn't worked either.
I know that Kim wants to be legitimized. He wants to be seen as a real leader. He wants to go down in the annals of Korean history as his grandfather, literally as a god.
We can never facilitate positive change from a confrontational position. Violence never changes behavior, it only postpones it. Even interrogators find that they acquire much more accurate and actionable information when the prisoner is humanized and respected. Beatings and intimidation will never topple one who is dedicated to their cause. They will die rather than capitulate.
I see, and hope I am right, that these steps will ease the tension and allow Kim to change without loosing face in the eyes of his people. Image is paramount with Asian cultures, much more so than even in our Western Civilization. If we can help Kim save face, while allowing him the opportunity to do what is right from this time forward, we have the best chance of seeing the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, the closing of the gulag camps, and the people of NK begin to come out of their chrysalis and become mature, beautiful adults in the modern world.
Punishing Kim for his crimes against his people is not nearly as important as changing the condition of the oppressed and demoralized people of North Korea. - dlm
