North Korea
We have by now spent over half a century, 54,000 lives, and upwards of a trillion
dollars defending the more populous and industrialized southern half of Korea
from its less populous and much less industrialized northern half. Was this
the plan?
In a nutshell, North Korea has nuclear warheads and the missiles to put them on target, so we can't bomb them. Since that half of the Bush bag of diplomatic tricks is off limits that only leaves the other half, where we try to make the most isolated country in the world a bit more isolated. So far, it hasn't worked.
As an aside, has anybody else noticed how we're not worried about North Vietnam?
reality check section:
Yes, Kim Jong-Il is freaky. He's the born and raised heir to an insular
militaristic communist regime. You were expecting maybe Paul Newman? You
ever hear of Joseph Stalin or Mao Zedong or Harry Truman? There've been lots
of guys in the nuclear club you wouldn't want dating your daughter. If you
want a world with nuclear weapons, get used to it.
addendum:
(10/4/06)- Well, North Korea says it's about to test. They may shoot a tactical warhead or two, but what they really need is a strategic big punch. If I were them and if I couldn't yet put together a multistage weapon I would boost a single stage with cryogenic fuel, maybe go with a thin shell design for maximum criticality, try to get the biggest fission bang possible to give the politicians in DC the biggest circle I could for them to not be inside. That's what I would do.
The test appears timed for maximum impact on US elections.
(CNN)- "The DPRK's nuclear weapons will serve as reliable war deterrent for protecting the supreme interests of the state and the security of the Korean nation from the U.S. threat of aggression and averting a new war and firmly safeguarding peace and stability on the Korean peninsula under any circumstances."
At the same time, North Korea said it would back "nuclear non-proliferation as a responsible nuclear weapons state" and do all it can "to realize the denuclearization of the peninsula and give impetus to the world-wide nuclear disarmament and the ultimate elimination of nuclear weapons."
It bugs me that people like Kim Jong-Il (not to mention Osama bin Laden) typically make more sense than the president of my country. What a thing.
addendum2:
(10/9/06)- Initial seismic data indicates the reported North Korean nuclear test was around half a KT.
Come on, North Korea- half a KT? Half a KT? Please. It was either a failed test or they're full time bush leaguers. I suspect they pushed the big punch idea a bit too far and got a fizzle. If I were them I would have had a quick and dirty dozen KT ready to shoot as a contingency. You should never believe your own rhetoric.
But the really ominous part is that people who can't even hire a competent translator can build an atomic bomb.
addendum3:
(12/1/06)- Here's an article by Cindy Sheehan about the US military in Korea- Siege and Seizure in Korea.
addendum4:
(7/25/08)- Here's an interesting statistic- By 39 percent to 35 percent, South Koreans saw the United States as a greater threat than North Korea..
... tell me again what we're doing in South Korea?
In a nutshell, North Korea has nuclear warheads and the missiles to put them on target, so we can't bomb them. Since that half of the Bush bag of diplomatic tricks is off limits that only leaves the other half, where we try to make the most isolated country in the world a bit more isolated. So far, it hasn't worked.
As an aside, has anybody else noticed how we're not worried about North Vietnam?
reality check section:
Yes, Kim Jong-Il is freaky. He's the born and raised heir to an insular
militaristic communist regime. You were expecting maybe Paul Newman? You
ever hear of Joseph Stalin or Mao Zedong or Harry Truman? There've been lots
of guys in the nuclear club you wouldn't want dating your daughter. If you
want a world with nuclear weapons, get used to it.addendum:
(10/4/06)- Well, North Korea says it's about to test. They may shoot a tactical warhead or two, but what they really need is a strategic big punch. If I were them and if I couldn't yet put together a multistage weapon I would boost a single stage with cryogenic fuel, maybe go with a thin shell design for maximum criticality, try to get the biggest fission bang possible to give the politicians in DC the biggest circle I could for them to not be inside. That's what I would do.
The test appears timed for maximum impact on US elections.
(CNN)- "The DPRK's nuclear weapons will serve as reliable war deterrent for protecting the supreme interests of the state and the security of the Korean nation from the U.S. threat of aggression and averting a new war and firmly safeguarding peace and stability on the Korean peninsula under any circumstances."
At the same time, North Korea said it would back "nuclear non-proliferation as a responsible nuclear weapons state" and do all it can "to realize the denuclearization of the peninsula and give impetus to the world-wide nuclear disarmament and the ultimate elimination of nuclear weapons."
It bugs me that people like Kim Jong-Il (not to mention Osama bin Laden) typically make more sense than the president of my country. What a thing.
addendum2:
(10/9/06)- Initial seismic data indicates the reported North Korean nuclear test was around half a KT.
Come on, North Korea- half a KT? Half a KT? Please. It was either a failed test or they're full time bush leaguers. I suspect they pushed the big punch idea a bit too far and got a fizzle. If I were them I would have had a quick and dirty dozen KT ready to shoot as a contingency. You should never believe your own rhetoric.
But the really ominous part is that people who can't even hire a competent translator can build an atomic bomb.
addendum3:
(12/1/06)- Here's an article by Cindy Sheehan about the US military in Korea- Siege and Seizure in Korea.
addendum4:
(7/25/08)- Here's an interesting statistic- By 39 percent to 35 percent, South Koreans saw the United States as a greater threat than North Korea..
... tell me again what we're doing in South Korea?
