North Korea, Juche, and Conservatives

As George Lakoff describes the strict father model of morality as applied to politics, self-discipline leads to self-reliance, which leads to success in a competitive world. Belief in this strict father hierarchy reinforces an admiration for the military, as well as a conservative view of small government where defense is the most vital service the government performs.

On the death of Kim Jong-Il in North Korea, much was said in the press how Kim had carried out his father’s belief in juche, often translated as self-reliance, and in the primacy of the military. I couldn’t help but think, rather mischievously, that in North Korea we have the state American conservatives have been striving to build.