23 February 2010: “The Little One”

Kim Jong-Eun still has a way to go to gain the adoration, much less acceptance, of the North Korean elites:

According to a high-level source, the nickname of Kim Jong-il’s heir, Kim Jong-Eun, is “the little one.” According to multiple sources, the North Korean elites officially call Kim Jong-Eun “the great leader” and “successor of the great accomplishments of the military-first policy,” but inofficially, Kim Jong-Eun is referred to as “the little one. “The little one” is usually used in North Korea to refer to children or younger siblings. It is also used to refer to a boss who does not have enough credentials.

Kim Jong-Il’s nickname is “pot belly.”

Did China oppose the succession of Kim Jong-Eun? While I can see reasons for China to oppose anything that would make North Korea a less stable puppet, I’m skeptical about any reports sources to high levels in the North Korean or Chinese regimes.

What is the likelihood of Kim Jong Il’s indictment in the international criminal court? Low, if it depends on governments taking action:

“Under ICC rules of procedure and evidence, it’s impossible for the court to investigate or indict North Korea on its own, because North Korea is not a signatory to the Rome Statute,” Kwon said. “But South Korea and Japan can ask the ICC to place Kim on trial if they are determined, because crimes like abuse of South Korean POWs and abduction of South Korean and Japanese citizens took place within the territories of the two countries, which are signatories to the Rome Statue and are within ICC jurisdiction.”

________________

Another report that South Korea will step up demands for the return of its abducted citizens.

A Korean expert suggests putting a time limit on the six-party talks to discourage North Korean stalling. Personally, I see much cosmetic value in the six-party talks, and I like the idea that there are open lines of communication — at least among the other five parties — in the event the Kim regime becomes unstable, or in the event that there’s a striking enough change in conditions that real progress becomes possible. That isn’t the case now, of course. But the answer isn’t to cut off diplomacy, it’s to invest our policy in the constriction and subversion of the regime while pretending to emphasize diplomacy. President Obama seems uniquely well postured to carry off that pretense credibly, if he’s smart enough to shift the emphasis of his policy toward more promising directions.

North Korea’s indigenous word processing software is called Changdeok 7.0:

Another Changdeok system indicating the absolute power of Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-il are CTRL modifier keys. for “Kim Il-Sung” and for “Kim Jong-Il” are only modifier keys allowed in the Changdeok system These special characters and modifier keys is one side of Kim Il-Sung’s and Kim Jong-Il’s idolization. But, considering “Kim Il-Sung” and “Kim Jong-Il” in North Korean published works must be in bold text, special characters and modifier keys are for convenient editing processes as well.

Someone has managed to invent software even crappier than Vista. The lack of competition tends to have similar results in different places.