As many media outlets have reported it appears that North Korea has successfully tested their new rocket which could allow them to eventually send warheads as far away as Alaska or Hawaii. The technology will also allow them to develop larger weapons that could develop into ICBM’s which would reach around the world.

On the surface the threats presented by this technology are obvious as the leader of North Korea is, by the most generous standards, certifiably insane and willing to kill millions to achieve his goals. Just like Hitler or Stalin or Mao, this kind of utter insanity threatens to destablize the planet. But North Korea is scary for a much bigger reason.

In Germany, Russia and China there were, and in the case of China still are, people who opposed the leadership of the dictator. While they were patriots and did what they needed to support their country there were people, often near the top of the leadership, who would be willing to draw a line in the sand when things went too far.

This is why there were underground and opposition movements in each country. But in North Korea such a movement is lacking and the reasons behind that are what scare me the most.

When you look at Germany or Russia you find that both countries had at least some history of democracy and free speech. Or when you looked at Eastern Europe during the 1970’s and 1980’s they had access to information from the outside world. Even in China today there are places like Hong Kong and cities like Shanghai that provide some outlet to the outside world.

None of those things apply to North Korea.

Consider the history of this poor nation and it’s even poorer people.  Starting in 1900 the entire Korean nation was conquered by Japan and enslaved for 45 years. The people knew nothing of the outside world other than oppression and starvation. So their view of the outside world is hardly a positive one (for those over the age of 70 that is, as they are the only ones who would be around to remember).

For those under the age of 70 there is no memory of anything but the regime of the two Kims (well other than the memory of the outsiders blowing you up during the war). Everything they have ever heard, read or seen is what the government wanted them to hear.

There is no outside radio, television or other media. No internet, no books other than those written by the leader, no lessons in school other than those approved by the leader, etc. If you consider someone was born in 1940 in North Korea, they had a child in 1965 and that child had a child in 1990. We now have three generations aged 68, 44 and 18 (and thus fairly soon a 4th generation) who have never heard or read anything other than the glories of North Korea and the two Kims.

I am not sure we in the west can possibly comprehend the degree to which this indoctrination has settled in because I am not sure there is anything so universally accepted by our society. Even among the strongest supporters of President Obama there is a line that he can’t cross in terms of his actions. No matter how much you think he is good there are some things you would not support.

Perhaps the only thing we could compare it to is the common acceptance in the US that democracy itself is a good idea, or that abusing children is bad. Imagine a society where people feel that strongly about the idea that the President is always right.

As a result we face a real problem in terms of dealing with North Korea. Going into Nazi Germany we knew that once the war started going against them that many people would rise up to fight against Hilter. We knew that his support rested more on fear than love. This is not true in North Korea, there the people truly would fight to the death. I am not sure even Japan would have compared.

With that in mind, the fact that they may soon have the ability to nuke anywhere on the planet is VERY scary.