Maybe the best rationale for North Korea having nuclear weapons is that it’s the only way for the rest of the world to take it seriously. It has an economy that even Cuba can look down on. It budgets for a standing army of more than 1 million while chronic food shortages continue to plague the population. Deceased leaders, who ruled with iron fists, are mourned melodramatically. The only families who can live in the capital, Pyongyang, are those deemed particularly trustworthy, such as families of party members and military officers.
And sheer heredity determines its autocratic leaders, the latest of which is the notably unaccomplished, 20-something Kim Jong Un, already dubbed “supreme leader” of North Korea’s ruling party and “commander” of the military. The latest personality-cult creation is already well under way. Obviously a thin line between “supreme leader” and fat kid with a bad haircut.