I’m basically anti-war, and I don’t want a war with N. Korea. But why can’t we just conduct a nuclear test of our own, like “how many nukes does it take to turn the entirety of N. Korea into slag glass?” Enquiring minds want to know.
Of course, having said that, I recognize that the 800 megaton gorilla in the room, otherwise known as China, might have a problem with that. I figure the only way we can reduce this threat is to a) begin to not give a shit if N. Korea or China or anybody esle is communist (i.e. stop thinking like it’s the 1950’s) and b.) somehow get China on board with us (see a.).
No Wonder he hates the South Koreans! That last character looks like Cartman taking a crap. :eek:
The problem with that is that it’s virtually impossible to have a “meeting of the minds” with delusional little freaks who buy into their own propaganda. You think like a member of a liberal Western democracy and belive that if we could all just sit down and talk we could all understand each other and work out a logical compromise. It just doesn’t work that way. They don’t think like you do. That’s a big part of the problem we have relating to Arab Muslims. We think in terms of cause and effect, and they believe in magic.
a) There’s no expiration date on destructive evil.
b) China does finally seem to be losing patience with the Norks.
Seems to me the problem could all be solved if North Korea (and in fact any other wannabe nuclear power) simply agree not to produce and test more weapons that the USA currently have.
No complaints there, right? :dubious:
Inebitably this will come back to haunt Scylla.
Granted, Kim’s regime can certainly be considered destructive and evil. No argument there. If you’re referring to communism in general, that’s the 1950s mentality I was referring to.
Thanks goodness China, despite their flaws, can recognize the problem with having a nuclear N. Korea. I think that’s our only real hope here.
So “greeted with flowers” is the logical effect of “shock and awe”?
You give us too much credit, and the rest of the world too little.
Ever since this whole Kim Jong Il North Korea nuke thing has been going on I can’t help but think that we’ve been here before. Chernenko. USSR. Fingers hovering nervously over launch buttons as guarded, hesitating discourse is exchanged. Except this time it’s taking place in the school gymnasium as Mrs. Abernathy’s second grade play is acted out and the lead character is wearing a pancake on his head as he gesticulates wildly.
“I am Kim Jong Il!” says little Timmy-with-the-pancake-on-his-head. “You will respect me or I will blow you up! Look! I have bombs! <Pssssswwwwwww, KKkkkkssssshhhh!> Now you must honor me because I am mighty! Ha, ha, haaaa!”
But just then young Neil enters stage right wearing a suit and tie four sizes his senior and says, “I am George W. Bush and I will punish you!” He then knocks the pancake off of Timmy’s head with a dodge ball, and Timmy falls over and begins to cry.
Except throwing this dodgeball will kill, oh 450,000 to 500,000 Koreans.
None at all. THe US is entitled to have nuclear weapons because it has a Stable Democracy[sup]TM[/sup] but Iran and Korea are foaming-at-the-mouth lunatics who hate freedom.
Makes me think of this awesome cartoon.
Glass houses, my good man, glass houses.
I think we should launch a missile directly at the capitol of NK, or wherever KJI happens to be. It shouldn’t have a conventional OR nuclear warhead, however; when it detonates, it should explode into millions of propoganda sheets, all of which say “Cut it the fuck out”. Preferably in Korean.
I am intrigued by your ideas and wish to subscribe to your newsletter.
How many hundred thousand copies do you want? What’s your address? (latitude and longitude please)
I think our government (plus the governments of Japan, South Korea and China) would have been more than happy to trumpet the news that the test was fake. So far, I don’t think they have any reason to believe that. I’m sure we were monitoring the area where the thing was tested, and I think it’s hard to believe that they got that much TNT in there without anybody noticing.
One of the boffins from a monitoring station said that you’d need a pretty big hole to bury 1000 tons of TNT, or whatever figure is being quoted.
That would be easily visible via satellite, and its absence suggests this was simply a rubbish nuke that didn’t have enough ooomph to continue the chain reaction.
One theory is that Kim Jong Il is trying to get the West to offer North Korea the same juicy package of incentives they offered Iran (which Iran rejected) in order to stop their nuclear program.
Right now there is a lightwater nuclear reactor almost ready to ship to North Korea (along with a boatload of other foreign aid from Japan and South Korea) but the USA has killed the project because the current adminstration does not believe that diplomacy and negotiation can work, they do not believe that there is any sort of aid package that will get North Korea to behave like responsible global citizens. This administration seems to think diplomacy and negotiation are just a necessary prelude to conflict.
North Korea has been effectively contained for over 50 years. Japan and South Korea were making significant diplomatic headway. North and South Korea walked under the same flag at the last Olympics. There is a free trade zone in North Korea where South Korean companies partner with North Korean entrepreneurs to run factories using cheap North Korean labor. The Presidents of the countries have visited each other. Tourism to North korea has opened up (many South Koreans have taken trips to North Korea). North and South korea have made efforts to reunite families shattered by the Korean War. There was hope for korean re-unification. Then one day the president of the United States said Iraq, North Korea, and Iran were the Axis Of Evil, then proceeded to invade Iraq in order to effect regime change and turn the country into a disaster area. All of a sudden, North Korea’s nuclear program (which had been around since at least 1970) becomes part of North Korea’s national agenda because they beleive its the only way they can prevent the USA from invading.
Good job guys, invading Iraq sure had the sort of deterrent effect we were all promised it would have.
Its a lot like using “vous” or “tu” in French. You would generally use the given name for a friend, someone who is younger or subordinate you would generally use the title for anyone else.