If this isn't a media setup of some sort, you can bet that it will be pretty soon.
I'm going to take a wild guess that this kid will be the following things by the end of 2013: TED speaker, bestselling author, Anderson Cooper guest, a regular fixture on magazine "Most Intriguing People of 2012/2013" lists; short-liat candidate for Time Magazine's Person of the Year.
I don't mean to be cynical, but we can all smell the media frenzy about to descend on him. And, while I applaud his speaking out against the horrors of his family dynasty, I have to keep in mind that a) he's been living a luxurious, sheltered existence in Macau on the ill-gotten gains that dynasty secured, and b) he has virtually nothing to lose by going public, as his father was disinherited from the dynastic succession a few years ago. (One wonders if he wouldn't be toeing the Kim party line, were he the next heir apparent to the Supreme Leadership).
All of that being said, I do share your sincere hope that he can, in some way, be a catalyst for change and improvement in the conditions of the North Korean people. He does seem to be sincere in his desire to effect change, and as such, I am forced to shelve my cynicism if he has any hope whatsoever of being an agent for that change.
I'm going to take a wild guess that this kid will be the following things by the end of 2013: TED speaker, bestselling author, Anderson Cooper guest, a regular fixture on magazine "Most Intriguing People of 2012/2013" lists; short-liat candidate for Time Magazine's Person of the Year.
I don't mean to be cynical, but we can all smell the media frenzy about to descend on him. And, while I applaud his speaking out against the horrors of his family dynasty, I have to keep in mind that a) he's been living a luxurious, sheltered existence in Macau on the ill-gotten gains that dynasty secured, and b) he has virtually nothing to lose by going public, as his father was disinherited from the dynastic succession a few years ago. (One wonders if he wouldn't be toeing the Kim party line, were he the next heir apparent to the Supreme Leadership).
All of that being said, I do share your sincere hope that he can, in some way, be a catalyst for change and improvement in the conditions of the North Korean people. He does seem to be sincere in his desire to effect change, and as such, I am forced to shelve my cynicism if he has any hope whatsoever of being an agent for that change.