North Korea in the News

North Korea is once again in the news. It seems that not only do they have a nuclear capability, they now are ready to test a long-range missile with which to deliver this dreaded device. China and Japan are both concerned for the stability of the region, the USA is concerned that the Koreans might terminate California before Arnie does, and a recent poll taken in South Korea tells us that about 60% of the youth there would support North Korea in a war with the USA. This might be construed as good news to those who wish for a re-unification of the two Koreas, but it does not bode well for western world...or the eastern one for that matter.

An article today, in the New York Times, discusses the issue. There have been calls from some Democratic defense experts for a preemptive strike on North Korea to do away with the threat. There have also been calls for the USA to enter into talks with North Korea..which have come to no avail. Nobody seems to know what to do here. How many wars can the USA throw themselves into? Is every perceived threat to be the excuse for military action? Will America declare war on the world itself in order to feel safe?


The USA has an image problem today, not just in those countries that find themselves on the ever-increasing list of unfriendly states, but even among the traditional allied states there is a perception of the USA as being paranoid, militaristic, violent, petty, greedy, and overbearing. In a recent poll in Europe most of those questioned actually placed the USA in first place when asked: what is the greatest threat to world peace today?

The North Koreans have long been encouraged to hate America. The USA has maintained a military presence along the border that separates the two Koreas. But, given the totalitarian nature of the regime in North Korea, most of the population have no idea that they are so perilously close war. They simply have not been told that they are poised in a global nuclear stand-off with the USA.

With the war in Iraq doomed to last long into the next decade, and the war in Afghanistan failing, can America really afford, in terms of money and manpower, to wage further wars in Iran, North Korea, Somalia, and every other hot-spot on the planet? Do they really believe that they can coerce their traditional allies into joining them on their military follies?

I believe it is time to introduce some real diplomacy into American foreign policy. Even a superpower needs to engage with the rest of the world, without the constant flexing of military and economic muscle.

This man and his cronies are bullies. They display an arrogance and ignorance that beggars belief. They have used 9/11 as an excuse to further a political and economic agenda that pre-dates that tragic event. They have dragged their own and other nations into war to further that agenda. Rather than defeating terrorism in the world, they have managed to increase and empower it, and the world is a much more dangerous place as a result of their misguided attempts at world domination.

If anyone is interested in learning more of Mr. Bush's agenda that can go here and see for themselves: http://www.newamericancentury.org/

That's about it for today.