Kim Jong Un is reportedly lugging a private toilet to Singapore so no one can get ahold of his stools
Paranoia is often said to be a defining characteristic of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who traveled to Singapore this weekend on one of three airplanes — the other two being decoys to throw off any adversaries. Perhaps most illustratively, South Korea's Chosun Ilbo reports that Kim traveled to Singapore with a personal, portable toilet in order to deprive "determined sewer divers" from "insights into the supreme leader's stools."
But despite that sounding, well, totally nuts, Kim might actually be making a wise decision by keeping his excrement out of Singapore's sewers. Poop-divining is not unheard of, the New York Post observes: During the Cold War, the CIA allegedly obtained stool samples from Soviet leaders Mikhail Gorbachev and Nikita Khrushchev in order to gain insight into their health, and Josef Stalin also allegedly decided against signing an agreement with China's Mao Zedong in 1949 after collecting a sample of Mao's feces and using it to analyze his psychological profile.
Kim has long been rumored to be in less-than-perfect health, with the Post speculating he could suffer from "gout, diabetes, high blood pressure, sexually transmitted diseases, and psychological issues." Perhaps it is indeed better to be safe — whatever the disgusting costs — than sorry.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Political cartoons for January 17Cartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include hard hats, compliance, and more
-
Ultimate pasta alla NormaThe Week Recommends White miso and eggplant enrich the flavour of this classic pasta dish
-
Death in Minneapolis: a shooting dividing the USIn the Spotlight Federal response to Renee Good’s shooting suggest priority is ‘vilifying Trump’s perceived enemies rather than informing the public’
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
-
Trump says US ‘in charge’ of Venezuela after Maduro grabSpeed Read The American president claims the US will ‘run’ Venezuela for an unspecified amount of time, contradicting a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio
-
Bari Weiss’ ‘60 Minutes’ scandal is about more than one reportIN THE SPOTLIGHT By blocking an approved segment on a controversial prison holding US deportees in El Salvador, the editor-in-chief of CBS News has become the main story
-
CBS pulls ‘60 Minutes’ report on Trump deporteesSpeed Read An investigation into the deportations of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador’s notorious prison was scrapped
-
Trump administration posts sliver of Epstein filesSpeed Read Many of the Justice Department documents were heavily redacted, though new photos of both Donald Trump and Bill Clinton emerged
-
Trump HHS moves to end care for trans youthSpeed Read The administration is making sweeping proposals that would eliminate gender-affirming care for Americans under age 18
-
Jack Smith tells House of ‘proof’ of Trump’s crimesSpeed Read President Donald Trump ‘engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,’ hoarded classified documents and ‘repeatedly tried to obstruct justice’
