The powerful lessons Kim Jong Il teaches us: On cool stuff, economic systems, and feeling smug in America.

The consumer psychologist inside my head has been reflecting for a few days now on the recent death of North Korea's recently deceased dictator, Kim Jong Il.  

He is infamous for leading an enormously repressive regime, one that had a terrifically adverse, oppressive effect on North Korea's good citizens; indeed, the standard of living in that country stands in dramatic contrast to the prosperity of it's thriving, prosperous neighbors and, quite literally, relatives to the south--you'd have to have been living under a rock for the past twenty years to not be aware of the stark, absolute poverty of Kim's domain.  

This effect was a direct reflection of Kim Jong Il's economic as well as consumption policies--and, yes, even the personal practices of Kim himself--which speak to a shameful legacy that I think is instructive to even prosperous people like you and me.  There are at least three lessons to be learned; let me tell you what I think they are...

[1] Cool stuff doesn't necessary make a person cool.  There was nothing Kim Jong Il didn't have that he wanted; indeed, he was the ultimate consumer with all the stuff that was modern and desirable, so reports the Los Angeles Times:

Defectors told of wild drinking parties and naked dancers…Kim imported $650,000 worth of Hennessy's finest cognac in a single year. His appetite for women and drink was exceeded by a love for the finest foods. He hired for his private kitchens a sushi chef from Tokyo and a pizza chef from Italy, both of whom wrote accounts of their experiences.

At the time, North Korea was in the midst of a famine that would eventually kill as many as 2 million people, up to 10% of the population, and leave many of them permanently stunted.

Homeless, starving children became a common sight at North Korean train stations. Kim nonetheless sent couriers on shopping excursions to buy rice cakes in Tokyo, mangoes in Thailand, cheese in France.

In later life, he gave up heavy drinking on the advice of his doctors, switching from cognac to red wine, but his epicurean tastes persisted. On a train trip through Russia in 2001, live lobsters and French wine were flown in to stops along the route, according to a memoir by a Russian official who made the trip.

Kim apparently saw no contradiction between the hardships of ordinary North Koreans and his own indulgences. While regular citizens could be sent to prison camps for watching South Korean or U.S. films, Kim maintained a personal library containing about 20,000 movies. Visiting delegations knew the most desired gifts to bring the leader were classic American films. During a 1994 trip, former President Carter introduced Kim to "The Godfather" and "Gone With the Wind."

Yep, Kim had the right stuff in a material sense--but no one really thought very highly of him.  President George W. Bush once comments to Bob Woodward that "I loathe Kim Jong Il," calling him a "pygmy" and a "spoiled child."  So much for getting people to think you're special just because you have special things!  In short, it didn't work for Kim.  It's never worked for me.  I doubt it'll work for you or anyone either.  The funny thing is, however, I know a lot of people do don't seem to get this.  

[2] Your choice of economic systems is makes all the difference.  If you listen to complainers like the Occupiers, there's a lot wrong with the American free-enterprise system and it needs to be scrapped.  Even Frank Luntz reports that the term "capitalism" is a bad word to use, for it conjures up images of a flawed economic system, which, if you think about competing systems of government, seems pretty good to me!

The following is reported [and which I heard him say myself]:  "I'm trying to get that word [i.e., "capitalism"] removed and we're replacing it with either 'economic freedom' or 'free market,' " Luntz said. "The public . . . still prefers capitalism to socialism, but they think capitalism is immoral. And if we're seen as defenders of quote, Wall Street, end quote, we've got a problem."

As imperfect as it might be, a system based on capitalism is to be prized over one that makes Kim's story even remotely feasible.  Call me funny, but spreading the wealth beyond one or a few people has the makings of much better plan than one that treats eveyone equally albeit cruelly.    

[3] Even if you live in America, you can't be entirely smug.  Two days ago I got a many-times forwarded eBlast from someone I know who seems to take a great deal of pleasure in the wholesale re-circulating of cyberspace broad-sides; it reminded me why what Kim did isn't restricted to just North Korea. The snapshot was that of an actual workman's delivery van somewhere in the U.S. with the following public question painted on the side of the truck:  "President Obama, if the Health Care Reform Plan is so great, why does it exempt you, Michelle Obama, congress, senators, and their families? Page 114, Line 22."  

And don't think for a minute that I believe this issue is a simple partisan matter:  about four weeks ago 60 Minutes ran a feature story on how members of both parties of congress operate under the assumption that insider-trading doesn't apply to them.  In effect, ordinary, middle-income citizens get elected to serve as federal representatives--and subsequently depart public office as millionaires.  At a minimum, their retirement plan is a sweet arrangement that I'd challenge any who's reading this to take to their private or public employer and get matched by what members of congress get!

Let me be clear, nothing the Congress or the President does is on the level of what Kim was known to do, but that doesn't mean you can think that the political class in the U.S. or anywhere else for that matter work in a Kim-free zone of consuming life and stuff just like the people they claim to serve.  

There you have it:  these are the lessons that Kim teaches us who remain to walk the earth in his absence.  Despite his dispicability, I think he serves as a usefulness instructor on the dark ways of life, economic and otherwise.  Nobody will miss him, save--perhaps--one person:  Jimmy Carter.  It is reported that he thoughtfully sent condolences at the announcement of Kim's passing.  Go figure.  
_______________________________________________________________

Follow Keith's biz blog on Twitter for updates and see more of what he's reading about on his Facebook Page. If you are inclined, you can write him at kmurray@bryant.edu.