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It's kind of hard to be a godlike ruler in that condition. Kim regularly causing flowers to bloom every time he visits a factory, or sick patients to feel better when he visits a hospital. That's kind of hard to pull off when they're wheeling you around, with a drool cup under your mouth and your head cocked to one side.

No, I think Kim is down for the count politically. That's not a country you can run without a strong, paranoid mastermind at the helm. If he's in no position to rule mercilessly, he'll find a new order, or competing orders, will arise below him, and he'll be powerless to stop them. They may even act in his name, and what's he going to do? Drool harder into his cup? Flail in his hospital bed?

I'm not seeing it. If he's even mildly incapacitated, the mice will play while the cat's away. They'll keep playing until this cat gets better, or a new one takes over. But by then, they might not want to stop playing at all.

Right. Up to now, time has been always on his side. His adversary has term limits. They all flail their arms to produce legacy before their time is up. On the other hand, his rule is for life. He just threatens to run out the clock. They all crumble and appease him with economic aids.

Now that his life is not far from end, it is now he who is racing against clock, not his adversaries. The whole game has changed. Besides, as you said, he also watch over his shoulder to make sure his minions are not poking him with long knives.