There exists this strange phenomenon in which some of America's biggest enemies are, rather accidentally, also big fans of American culture. Osama bin Laden had a thing for Whitney Houston and enjoyed Pepsi and Coke. Saddam Hussein was apparently a big fan of "Little House on the Prairie." Kim Jong-il was seemingly obsessed with the American film industry.
Those three are dead, but one of America's prime living enemies, Kim Jong-un, is apparently a big basketball fan. And as a result, former NBA star Dennis Rodman now has more first-hand knowledge of the North Korean leader's personal life than arguably anyone else in America.
What a shame that is, because Rodman can't be taken seriously.
After a recent visit with North Korea's supreme leader, Rodman joined George Stephanopoulos on "This Week" to discuss his experience with one of the world's most dangerous dictators.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=GixKLkai6uA?rel=0
Wait, did he just call a man who has said he wants to destroy America and the dictator for perhaps the most oppressive regime in the world "awesome"?
Asked why he seems to be defending a man who maintains prison camps, Rodman responded by saying, "This is all politics, right? He don't want to do that, but you know what, dude? … I'm not like a diplomat. I don't want to do that."
"He's my friend," Rodman added. And in the next breath: "I don't condone what he does."
After that, he compared Bill Clinton's affair to Jong-un's prison camps.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=N-NrPOMBKnw?rel=0
Rodman's "diplomatic" journey to North Korea began as a novelty and something to be poked fun at. Now that The Worm has returned home, and after watching his appearance on This Week, you realize what a farce the trip really was once it was put under legitimate scrutiny. He could have used this opportunity to bridge a gap and work as an ambassador for the west (as crazy as it sounds) or at least taken the issues in North Korea somewhat seriously. Instead he made a new friend with one of the world's most brutal dictators and appears as an unwitting pawn. It's just embarrassing.
Kudos, anyway, to Stephanopoulos for giving Rodman grief for the shameful way this all developed.
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About Brad Gagnon
Brad Gagnon has been passionate about both sports and mass media since he was in diapers -- a passion that won't die until he's in them again. Based in Toronto, he's worked as a national NFL blog editor at theScore.com, a producer and writer at theScore Television Network and a host, reporter and play-by-play voice at Rogers TV. His work has also appeared at CBSSports.com, Deadspin, FoxSports.com, The Guardian, The Hockey News and elsewhere at Comeback Media, but his day gig has him covering the NFL nationally for Bleacher Report.