The Secret History of Kim Jung Il -- written by one of his high school teachers

Re:The Secret History of Kim Jung Il -- written by one of hi... by gwern on Tuesday December 20, 2011 @01:44PM (#3374555)

Indeed, but it also has some factors in common through different pathways - I grow nervous when I read of the ultranationalist riots permitted by the Party, because it seems like the kind of thing that would itself to the leaders deciding to enter 'a short, victorious war'. (Defending the Middle Kingdom, defending the Revolution; rather similar.)

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Re:The Secret History of Kim Jung Il -- written by one of hi... by jbooth on Tuesday December 20, 2011 @03:04PM (#3374896)

Entirely different, see my comment above about Deng Xiaopeng's ascendance in the late 1970s and the quite severe repercussions for the perpetrators of the Cultural Revolution. There's no linkage between the revolution and nationalism anymore. "A cat that catches mice is a good cat, whether it's white or black".

Nationalist pride, sure, that's been a constant through any cohesive nation's history. Koreans aren't Chinese, though, and the leaders of China are too smart to look for a "short, victorious war" on the Korean peninsula..

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Re:The Secret History of Kim Jung Il -- written by one of hi... by gwern on Tuesday December 20, 2011 @05:52PM (#3375557)

I didn't say nationalism and the Revolution were the same thing, I said they could play the same role.

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