Kim Jong-il is Dead!

The tune they sing in "The Wizard of Oz" when the witch melts keeps running through my head.  "Kim, Jong, the Il is dead!"  From the BBC:

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has died at the age of 69, state-run television has announced.

Mr Kim, who has led the communist nation since the death of his father in 1994, died on a train while visiting an area outside the capital, the announcement said.

It's always good news when an evil, sadistic, megalomaniacal dictator dies, and Kim Jong-il was among the worst, but there's a dark lining around this silver cloud.

1. The Kim dynasty is still in place.
2. This could lead to a power struggle between the Kim brothers.

Kim chose his youngest son, Kim Jong-un, to succeed him.  The youngest Kim has two older brothers, and he's widely considered weak.  Could one - or both - of the older Kim brothers make a power play?  How will this affect the people of North and South Korea?  

UPDATE 1: Oh, crap.

Following the death of Kim Jong-il, the North Korean leader, China is moving quickly to deepen its influence over senior officials in North Korea and particularly with those in the military to try to ensure stability in the isolated nation, according to Chinese and foreign former government officials and analysts.

Mr. Kim’s death “means that China will have to assume a heavier responsibility over the relationship in order to maintain peace and stability on the Korean peninsula,” said Xu Wenji, a professor of Northeast Asian studies at Jilin University and a former Chinese envoy to South Korea. Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations at Renmin University in Beijing, said, “The death significantly enhances uncertainty on the peninsula.” He added: “In my personal view, the succession is very hastily arranged and Kim Jong-un is very ill prepared to take over.”

 “Frankly speaking, there is a substantial chance of political instability in North Korea,” he said. “This is based on the nature of the regime, the inadequate process of succession and economic hardships in the country.” 

UPDATE 2: Little Kim seems to be flexing his (military hardware) muscles.

North Korea test fired two short-range ballistic missiles off the country's eastern coast just before midnight Sunday, the same day leader Kim Jong Il's death was announced, a senior US defense official told FOX News Channel.  The unnamed official said both landed in the sea and posed no threat to anyone.