Kim and Clinton: the movie?
I was watching some of the news stories on Clinton's
success at getting the two journalists released from North Korea and one of the
reporters said something to the effect that if you had written this in a movie
script no one would have believed it.
Then it occurred to me: WAS it a movie script? Kim is known
to be an avid movie buff with thousands of films in his collection. He's such a
fan, in fact, that he has kidnapped
some of his favorite directors and actresses to work in his industry. Could he have put together this
production?
On the other hand, Kim's tastes tend to run in a less pacific
direction. His favorite movies include
"Rambo," "Friday the 13th" and the James Bond films, which suggests perhaps that had he
written the script he might have opted for a more action-packed climax. So we arrive at the possibility that Clinton,
or even the Obama administration, might have written the screenplay. After all,
they had the last 8 years of the Bush administration as an example to fall back
on. These guys staged complete fictions and promoted illusions (Powell's
presentation at the UN; the President landing on an aircraft carrier to
proclaim the end of major combat; the whole song and dance about WMD, etc.) in
order to wage a war that was unnecessary and based on fabrications, though it did resulted in all-too-real tragic
consequences.
So why not apply this
dream factory approach to foreign policy to more peaceful ends? Like
diplomatically resolving a nasty crisis that otherwise could have ended badly?
Be that as it may, if the prisoner release story wasn't
scripted before, it probably will be in the near future. If Hollywood takes a pass, no doubt Kim's people
will express interest in the property.
That is, if the person Clinton met with was indeed Kim Jong
Il. Some say the erratic despot actually died in 2003, and that he has been
portrayed by a look-alike actor ever since. So the past six years of North Korean shenanigans have been nothing but playacting.
One way or another, it's only a movie.