Did the Onion Start World War III?
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Responsible Journalism
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Supreme Leader Threatening Nuclear Strikes
As the world scrambles to deal with North Korea’s supreme leader Kim Jong-Un’s threats to make pre-emptive nuclear strikes on the US mainland and its Pacific bases in Hawaii and Guam, nobody acknowledges what may have provoked Kim Jong Un’s rage and his threats.
Even Communist China is nervous and disapproves of his posturing.
According to Steve Forbes, the security umbrella provided by the US, which has prevented world wars from developing since the 1940’s, is degenerating. As respect for the U.S. decreases, the boldness of despots and terrorists increases.
What Could Have Sparked This?
What could have sparked North Korea’s Kim Jong Un’s recent rash of seemingly deranged rage and threats towards the United States? Anybody keeping an eye on the news in November 2012, however, might have a suspicion.
Less than a year after his ascent to power, the youngest head of state in the world, just 29 or 30 years old, faced global humiliation and ridicule. The young man who loves American Basketball, Michael Jordan, and collects expensive Nikes, was ridiculed over an Onion article.
The Onion, a news source specializing in parody, named Kim Jong-Un the “Sexiest Man Alive.” Clearly a joke, to those familiar with the Onion’s reputation for tongue- in-cheek humor. However, China’s biggest newspaper fell for the hoax story, taking it to be complimentary, and reprinted that article in China.
The Chinese newspaper wrote: “With his devastatingly handsome, round face, his boyish charm, and his strong, sturdy frame, this Pyongyang-bred heartthrob is every woman’s dream come true.”
Global Ridicule
So the new despotic supreme leader of North Korea was subjected to global ridicule, with hardly a news source missing the opportunity to describe the double public humiliation- the Onion’s ridicule of Kim Jon-Un’s appearance, as well as the gullibility of the Chinese press in taking the parody as a compliment.
Syte Reitz grew up in Queens, New York, in a family of Lithuanian immigrants who fled Nazi and Soviet domination during World War II. Her education includes a Ph.D. in Biochemistry, and post-doctoral work at Princeton University. Syte left her job as an Assistant Professor at Oakland University, Michigan, to devote herself to raising her children, and ultimately homeschooled them through the end of high school. She is a member of Madison's Cathedral Parish.
