Enter at Your Own Risk

It’s not adventuresome, cool, or cute. But that’s the way many people who travel to North Korea view their irresponsible and selfish decisions to defy the US State Department’s travel warnings for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

One of my friends visited the reclusive, draconian country a few years ago and told me, “I just wanted to go somewhere most people have never been. It was an adventure."

It was also very foolish. Not only did he almost certainly contribute to a revenue stream that helps develop Kim Jong-un’s nuclear and weapons' programs, but he also took a chance that he and his family would suffer the same fate as University of Virginia student Otto Warmbier and his parents.

The 22-year-old Warmbier has returned to the States after spending over a year in a North Korean prison. His “adventure” is over. So, too, are his days as a healthy, young American. He’s been in a coma for over a year - or at least that’s what Kim Jong-un’s henchmen are telling us. His doctors haven’t issued a statement yet, but his prognosis is grim. Let's hope he beats the odds.

Living in a free, open, and democratic society that operates under the rule of law, we forget that many people - Chinese, Russians, and Syrians, to name a few - only dream of such privileges.

Watching last year's Associated Press video clip of Mr. Warmbier pleading for his life and crying in front of a North Korean court, after being sentenced to 15 years of hard labor, is gut wrenching. Knowing that he now lies in a Cincinnati, Ohio hospital bed in a vegetative state is even more disturbing. Just the thought of being a prisoner of a tyrannical regime controlled by a psychopathic killer terrifies most of us. We can't even imagine what he went through.

But if you want an idea, try reading the 2012 Pulitzer-Prize winning novel, The Orphan Master’s Son, by Adam Johnson. It's probably the closest you’ll get to the real thing. The book is a powerful, frightening, and unforgettable glimpse into North Korea. It should be required reading for those contemplating a visit to Kim Jong-un’s horror house or anyone curious about the totalitarian government and its oppressive gulags.

What now happens in the wake of Otto Warmbier’s tragic story?

Yesterday, The Washington Post editorial board defiantly wrote, “North Korea’s outrageous mistreatment of a US student must not go unpunished.” They propose putting more sanctions and pressure on a small group of Chinese companies that supply much needed cash to Pyongyang. The Chinese government must also do its part, they believe, and "if Beijing does not respond promptly the United States should act unilaterally.”

We’ll see. And in the meantime, pray for Otto and his family.