Ji Seong-ho, North Korean Defector at SOTU

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I heard someone criticize the president for honoring only Americans at the SOTU.

I thought this was a strange standard. There’s no way the Chancellor of Germany sings the praises of Americans. Or the Queen of England talks about Chinese people. Or the King of Saudi Arabia talks about South Africans. But the President of the United States is supposed to talk about people who aren’t American?

Odd criticism, but the truth is, he didn’t ONLY talk about Americans! He also highlighted a North Korean defector now living in South Korea. He may have been born in North Korea, but he had a deep desire for FREEDOM and for American values.

He grew up near Camp 22, a gulag way up on the border of North Korea and Russia. In 1995, the daily food ration stopped going to the town. He and his sisters would climb the mountains to find grass and bark to eat.

When the crops were gone, they dug up and ate the roots. When those were gone, government officials told them about certain patches of the ground that had nutrients in it. So they ate the dirt.

Yesterday my wife and I went to Chipotle. I spent time considering if I wanted the black or pinto beans. And then I thought long and hard if I wanted to pay another $2 for guacamole or not.

Ji Seong-ho ate dirt to survive

Think about the people commenting today about our first world problems. This man was so poor, and his family was told to eat dirt!

The biggest health problem in America is diabetes because of our decadence. They ate dirt. Or starved to death.

When Ji Seong-ho was introduced by the President at the SOTU, he held a pair of homemade crutches triumphantly above his head. Why did he have crutches? His leg and hand fo cut off when he was trying to steal coal off of a train so his family could survive the freezing nights.

Last month my wife and I did the Whole 30 Diet. You can only eat fresh fruits and vegetables and meat. We complained a lot. “Ugh, Brussels sprouts again!”

Think about that. I’m complaining about whole 30, where I can only eat fresh and healthy food. And this guy survived on grass, tree bark and dirt.

Every ungrateful American needs to hear his story. Once I did, about 98% of my first-world problems disappeared instantly.