World Net Daily ... For brutal dictators, the main pillar of power is fear. It is so much a factor for them that sometimes it triggers the law of unintended consequences, leading to the despot's demise.

 

One of the most brutal dictators of modern time was the Soviet Union's Josef Stalin, responsible for murdering millions of his own countrymen. The fear factor was so ingrained in his dictatorship that those in his inner circle dreaded being in his presence as they might unknowingly say or do something to draw his wrath. 

This was evidenced by doctors caring for him as his health declined whom he would imprison for giving him bad news.

 

The story of Stalin's lingering death at age 73 is detailed in the book "Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar" by Simon Sebag Montefiore. The author shares that, on the morning of March 2, 1953, four members of Stalin's inner circle discovered him, unconscious, lying on the floor of his bedroom in pajamas soaked in urine after suffering a stroke.

But they froze, experiencing mental paralysis as they were uncertain what to do. Their paralysis was fear of making any independent decision absent the concurrence of a leader obviously unable to give it to them.

 

One of those present was the influential head of the secret police, Lavrentiy Pavlovich Beria, the dictator's lap dog. At one point, appearing that Stalin had taken his last breath, Beria spewed out hate and mockery toward his leader. 

But when Stalin suddenly stirred, his body still showing signs of life, Beria became paralyzed with fear. Like a chameleon, he quickly changed color, dropping to his knees and kissing Stalin's hand.

 

Valuable time was lost by those present before finally deciding to do what should have been done 12 hours earlier – calling for medical assistance. However, the damage of delayed treatment had been done; four days later Stalin died.

 It launched Beria on an effort to claim Stalin's throne, ending 10 months later when he was executed.

 

Had fear not been the tool by which Stalin wielded power, had he allowed those around him to exercise independent thought, the dictator might well have lived to kill again.

 

Sixty-seven years later, another dictator in another country, also relying on the fear factor, is believed to be gravely ill – the result possibly of reaping the fear that he sowed.

 

Various stories as to the health of North Korean strongman Kim Jong-un, 35, continue circulating since he did not appear at the all-important April 15 national holiday honoring his grandfather – the country's founder. 

With Pyongyang issuing no official word on the matter, the rest of the world can only watch and wait.

 

North Korea's neighbor and ally, China, is in the best position to know his fate – yet even there we receive mixed signals. South Korea claims nothing is amiss and the U.S. tends to agree. Japan claims Kim is in a vegetative state following a botched surgery. And in Hong Kong, the vice director of a news channel, who is the daughter of a Chinese foreign minister, says Kim is dead. 

If Ki Jong-Un is in a vegetative state - or dead - then, once again, fear instituted by a dictator will have had unintended consequences, causing his demise.

 

While some details are sketchy, it appears Kim, despite his youthful age, suffered a heart attack. That is unsurprising as the overweight 69-inch tall Kim, who ballooned from 198 to 300 pounds in five years (in a country habitually suffering food shortages), was a physical disaster in-waiting. 

Interestingly, he had intentionally gained the weight to look more like his grandfather who still remains revered by the North Korean people after his 1994 death. His overeating was accompanied by excessive drinking and smoking.

 

Unconfirmed reports claim that Kim was in the countryside when he clutched his chest, suffering a heart attack days prior to the national holiday. Unlike Stalin, however, those present immediately rushed him to a hospital. There, it became immediately clear, the rotund leader required surgery. 

It was at this point a surgeon and the fear factor reportedly would come into play.

 

Anyone in the presence of the "Supreme Leader," as Kim was called, felt intimidated. After all, this was a man who had not hesitated to execute those around him for whatever reason motivated him to do so. One such victim was his defense minister who made the mistake of falling asleep as Kim spoke at a meeting. 

And family ties proved no salvation as Kim also had his own uncle executed.

 

Additionally, the boy wonder seemed to experience inordinate pleasure by ordering outrageous executions. In the case of the defense minister, he was shot, not by a firing squad, but an anti-aircraft gun. In the case of his uncle, he was fed to a pack of wild dogs.

 

One can understand, therefore, why a heart surgeon who finds himself operating on Kim would be extremely terrified about doing so. Clearly intimidated, his hands reportedly trembled during the purported surgery. Not only did he find himself operating on a deified leader, but he also found himself confronting a surgical problem he had never experienced before with other patients.

Historical food shortages had always left his patients with minimal body fat. That was not the case with Kim. Grossly overweight, Kim presented an obesity problem that reportedly complicated the surgery, requiring him to cut through layers of fat.

According to the reports, the surgeon's fear and inexperience combined to leave Kim in a vegetative state. Whether he remains so or has since passed is unknown.

 

It is ironic, both for Stalin and Kim, the intimidating fear upon which they so heavily relied to maintain power, in the end, contributed to their demise. Fortunately, for North Koreans, while it took a long time for karma to catch up with the 73-year old Stalin, it only took half that time to do so for the 35-year old Kim, assuming he is dead. 

There is no telling how many North Korean lives have been saved, unless, of course, we see – as we most likely will – more of the same from his successor.