Did you ever wonder what North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s ultimate game plan is? Yes, it’s to protect his rule, but I’d contend it’s bigger than that. Since the 1950s, when his grandfather invaded the south, it has been the Kim family’s dream to reunite the country under their domination. So, consider this scenario: Once Kim has a credible threat of perhaps 150 nuclear-armed ICBMs pointed at America, he’ll announce his intention to fulfill Korea’s destiny by “liberating” the south and dare the U.S. to stop him, saying he’ll shoot if we intervene. Do we really think our dealmaker president would trade Los Angeles and Seattle and maybe Chicago, D.C. and New York, to save the likes of Samsung and Hyundai? Instead, there will be a negotiation, just as Hitler had with Chamberlain, prior to his swallowing up Czechoslovakia without firing a bullet. This will be followed by a phony plebiscite in which “99 percent of the Korean people” endorse Kim as their ruler, and that will settle the matter. In about three years, the chess pieces will be in place. The game can then begin.
Jay Schleifer, Wellington
