Kim Jong-il Described as “emaciated” and “gaunt”
by Richardson ~ July 5th, 2007. Filed under: Kim Jong-il.
It’s hard to tell if Kim Jong-il had the entirely plausible heart surgery – bypass, stint, etc. – or if every detail is now being interpreted in that light. At any rate, “emaciated” or “gaunt” are not words I would use to describe even the apparently slimmed down Kim Jong-il:
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il’s trademark paunch presses a little less snugly against his jumpsuits these days, but is that due to a healthier lifestyle or is he recovering from illness?
Two South Korean dailies ran pictures on Thursday of a slimmer Kim, 65, at a meeting this week with China’s foreign minister, alongside photos taken about a year ago, in which he seemed plumper and with more hair in his famed bouffant coiffure. “Kim Jong-il is noticeably thinner,” read the Dong-A Ilbo’s headline.
[. . .]
“The weight loss is not recent but he’s been losing it gradually,” said Koh Yu-hwan, an expert on the North at Seoul’s Dongguk University. “If you are overweight at his age, it’s a problem,” Koh said.
[. . .]
Kim was once a legendary eater, who demanded the best food for his table, according to a book by Kenji Fujimoto who served as his sushi chef for 13 years from 1988.
Kim ballooned in size during that period as he dined on choice pork from Denmark and caviar from Iran, all washed down with many glasses of top-of-the-range cognac.
“He’s quit heavy drinking, cut back on meat a lot and also on smoking,” said Jang Sung-min, a former aide to Kim Dae-jung. “When he’s got to watch his diet like that, it would be natural for him to lose weight.”
July 5th, 2007 at 3:40 pm
With his reckless lifestyle of drinking, smoking, eating and general asshattery, I guess it is finally catching up to him. He sure as hell did not get medical care in his own socialist utopia.
With that said, and this may sound harsh, but the sooner he kicks the bucket, the better off the world will be. Now this may not be a cakewalk if he does kick the bucket because the house of cards will most likely collapse because of power struggles and mayhem, thus other countries will be scrambling to solve the problem.
July 5th, 2007 at 5:00 pm
That’s not too harsh, Jack. Even one ounce of KJI on this earth is one ounce too many — unless it is in the form of ashes!
July 5th, 2007 at 5:05 pm
> “Kim Jong-il Described as “emancipated” and “gaunt””
I think you might rather use emaciated over emancipated.
July 5th, 2007 at 7:11 pm
Doug,
Thanks. Last weekend I visited a Civil War battlefield and had that on the brain. Or I’m an idiot.
Jack and Slim,
I was hoping for a nasty staph infection and a slow death, or maybe an aggressive flesh eating bacteria.
July 5th, 2007 at 7:12 pm
A bad picture to be sure, but with a sun tan, I don’t think he would look too different from someone trying to lose a couple pounds for health reasons.
July 5th, 2007 at 8:46 pm
Those shades make all the difference.
July 6th, 2007 at 12:26 am
I won’t hold my breath, dicators seem to live very long lives despite their hedonistic lifestyles, unless someone kills them. How many US Presidents has Castro outlived? And that jackass chain smoked for decades.
July 6th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
Heart operation or diet, KJI has looked better, and - fortunately for the Korean Peninsula and the world - he will not live forever. I’ll be in Seoul for my first ‘Korean Vacation’ starting next week. For the past few weeks I have been musing: “What would happen if KJI suddenly passed away during my vacation?”
July 6th, 2007 at 2:03 pm
Look for a post on that very topic sometime next week. It’s been in draft form for about a week now.
July 7th, 2007 at 12:07 pm
“Look for a post on that very topic sometime next week. It’s been in draft form for about a week now.”
I look forward to it.
July 7th, 2007 at 2:25 pm
His post-operation appearance reminds me of Bill Clinton after he got new arteries. KJI looks proportionately thinner in the face than in the gut, so the change seems more like wasting than weight loss.
“How many US Presidents has Castro outlived?”
It’s the medical care, stupid. Have you seen Sicko yet?
July 7th, 2007 at 6:35 pm
“It’s the medical care, stupid. Have you seen Sicko yet?”
No, its imported doctors from Madrid, stupid?
July 7th, 2007 at 6:57 pm
@#12 and anyone else who might take the last comment in #11 seriously : Please notice the wink at the end of my comment.
July 7th, 2007 at 10:49 pm
[...] good reasons why here & here. - Will there be a "Body by Kim" book on the way after Kim Jong-il’s successful weight loss program?- Transformers are absolutely dominating the Korean box office by garnering 75% of all [...]
July 8th, 2007 at 11:39 am
What’s with the Ajumma haircut?
July 8th, 2007 at 4:36 pm
Please don’t be so mean, words hurt dictators too;
July 10th, 2007 at 6:58 am
Richardson, that’s great. I have to post that on my desk at work. The comrades will get a kick out of it, thanx.
July 10th, 2007 at 7:27 am
No problem, glad someone’ll get a kick out of that. I’ve got it at my desk right now.
July 18th, 2007 at 5:23 am
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