While I was in Asia I kept up with the news in the U.S. as best as I could which was really not all that difficult.  The story of former NBA star Dennis Rodman being invited to North Korea to meet its young leader Kim Jong Un seemed to me to be something from The Onion.    I mean it should have been a big joke right?   It wasn’t a joke at all and a guy (Dennis Rodman) who has never taken himself seriously is now..being taken seriously.

Time Magazine’s Michael Crowley wrote an article entitled ‘Could Dennis Rodman’s North Korea Trip Affect U.S. Policy?’ Now I liked the”Worm’s” tenacity under the boards when he played in the NBA but his visit to North Korea is nothing short of bizarre.   The DPRK and the U.S. claim to have direct communications according to White House spokesman Jay Carney, but even the White House was at a loss to explain how Mr. Rodman’s visit would be beneficial to U.S. – North Korean relations at the governmental level.   The request passed along to the White House that Mr. Kim asked that President Obama ‘call-him’ (Maybe?), and you can’t help but shake your head.   It was less than a month ago that North Korea yet again detonated an underground nuclear device in defiance of just about every country in the world, in fact even agitating the neighboring (and supporting) Chinese.  Mr. Rodman also termed the North Korean leader as being ‘awesome’.    He did not specify why.

If Mr. Kim is trying to be a relevant leader I can safely offer that this is precisely NOT the way to go.  Mr. Rodman is simply irrelevant and this episode does nothing to change that.  The scary part is thinking that the North Koreans could possibly view ‘The Worm’ as being representative of Americans in general.   It’s a good thing former NBA player Daryl Dawkins (self-declared being from the planet ‘Lovetron’) was off on vacation and unavailable for comment.

I now have a picture in my mind of Mr. Rodman riding on a North Korean missile like Slim Pickens in Dr. Strangelove.    OK maybe I am wishing that a bit as it would make a GREAT photo opportunity.  If I was adept at Photoshop I’d be all over that.

Hey I can dream can’t I?