"Opinion is ultimately determined by the feelings,
and not by the intellect."
- Herbert Spencer 

"Reasoning will never make a man correct an ill opinion,
which by reasoning he never acquired."
- Jonathan Swift 

"If you enjoy the opinions you possess,
if they give you a glow, be suspicious.
They may be possessing you."
- William H. Gass

Excerpts:
Asia analyst Gordon Chang rejected these remarks and insisted that something was "wrong" in North Korea.
While speaking to Fox News, he argued that Kim Jong-un's nation operates on strict patterns that are rarely broken.
He claimed that any break from these patterns was a cause for concern and an indication that something had happened.
Mr Chang said: "We know that something is wrong.

Kim Jong-un 'alive and well' claim REJECTED - 'Broken pattern' shows 'something is wrong'

Express · by Gerrard Kaonga · April 30, 2020
Kim Jong-un was rumoured to be dead last weekend from multiple sources. However, this has not been confirmed by  North Korea or any intelligence agencies. A top security adviser to South Korea's President, Moon Jae, claimed the North's dictator was "alive and well" earlier this week.
Asia analyst Gordon Chang rejected these remarks and insisted that something was "wrong" in North Korea.
While speaking to Fox News, he argued that Kim Jong-un's nation operates on strict patterns that are rarely broken.
He claimed that any break from these patterns was a cause for concern and an indication that something had happened.
Mr Chang said: "We know that something is wrong.
'Kim Jong-un NOT 'alive and well' as South Korean claim challenged (Image: Getty)
A top security adviser to South Korea's President, Moon Jae, claimed the North's dictator was "alive and well earlier this week. (Image: Getty)
"We know that he did not show up for the April 15th Day of the Sun celebration.
"This is the celebration that commemorates the birth of regime founder Kim Il-sung, his grandfather.
"Kim has not missed any Day of the Sun celebrations.
"Also he was a no show on Saturday for a celebration to mark the founding of the Korean People's Army."
Asia analyst Gordon Change challenged South Korea's claims and insisted that something was wrong in North Korea. (Image: Getty)
Mr Chang also explained why he was sceptical of South Korea's assessment of Kim Jong-un's health.
He said: "This is a pattern which is broken which means that something really is wrong.
"I don't think the South Korean Government is right when they say he is alive and well.
READ MORE:
Gordon Chang argued that Kim Jong-un's nation operates on strict patterns that are rarely broken. (Image: Getty)

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"He very may be alive, but the well part of it is, I think, subject to question.
"This is largely because this regime acts in patterns and when these patterns are broken we know something has occurred."
Vice director of HKRSTV Hong Kong Satellite Television, Shijan Xingzou, said a very solid source told her the North Korean leader had died.
Japanese weekly magazine Shukan Gendai said the dictator was not yet dead but in a vegetative state and would not recover.
Express · by Gerrard Kaonga · April 30, 2020

De Oppresso Liber,

David Maxwell
Senior Fellow
Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Personal Email: david.maxwell161@gmail.com
Phone: 202-573-8647
Web Site:  www.fdd.org
Twitter: @davidmaxwell161
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FDD is a Washington-based nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.


If you do not read anything else in the 2017 National Security Strategy read this on page 14:

"A democracy is only as resilient as its people. An informed and engaged citizenry is the fundamental requirement for a free and resilient nation. For generations, our society has protected free press, free speech, and free thought. Today, actors such as Russia are using information tools in an attempt to undermine the legitimacy of democracies. Adversaries target media, political processes, financial networks, and personal data. The American public and private sectors must recognize this and work together to defend our way of life. No external threat can be allowed to shake our shared commitment to our values, undermine our system of government, or divide our Nation."