# North Korea suspending missile testing and closing nuclear site; Trump the statesman? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 20, 2018, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829 "2018-04-20T23:09:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 17
**Author:** ![Lance\_Turbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lance_turbo/32/6156_2.png) [@Lance\_Turbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lance_Turbo)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/321 "2018-05-24T14:54:36Z")
There’s also this from Matt Yglesias… [Why are we taking Donald Trump’s Korea diplomacy seriously? All he does is lie and break promises. This will be no different.](https://www.vox.com/2018/5/14/17343860/donald-trump-korea-diplomacy) > [@](#): > > Donald Trump is a liar. More than that, he’s a fraud. Not just a person who makes factual misstatements but a person who has gotten ahead in life through extensive use of bullshit, leaving in his wake a trail of broken promises. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/322 "2018-05-24T14:55:27Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > True, but if that’s the case, _why have the meeting in the first place?_ (Also, ooh, post 15k!) LOL. Because Trump has a nasty habit of running his mouth off. Trump challenge Kim into a meeting thinking he would never accept. Kim called Trump on his bluff, and what we’ve been seeing for the past several weeks is a game of chicken. NK’s representative said something inflammatory, so now Trump uses that as an excuse to jump ship. And of course Repubs will praise Trump for his “Teddy Roosevelt” like leadership. ---
**Author:** ![Crybaby\_Boobie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crybaby_boobie/32/545_2.png) [@Crybaby\_Boobie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crybaby_Boobie)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/323 "2018-05-24T15:03:09Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > I disagree. Trump painted himself into a corner. If this meeting did take place, there is no way in hell Trump would have come out looking like a winner. Because let’s face it, Kim ain’t gonna de-nuke shit. And all this summit would have done is give Kim legitimacy on the world stage. > > So now, Trump canceled before Kim had the chance to. So point goes to Trump between these two stupid fuckers. I mostly meant that he did it by writing a letter that sounded like he was a spurned 12 year old breaking up with his girlfriend before he got dumped. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/324 "2018-05-24T15:05:02Z")
Do you think this will hurt his chances at that Nobel Peace Prize that everyone is saying he should be getting? ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/325 "2018-05-24T15:05:11Z")
Summit is off. Will they melt down those Challenge Coins? Can we rule out these knuckleheads for the Nobel Peace Prize now? Will we see more tweets about Little Rocketman and The Dotard? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/326 "2018-05-24T15:13:01Z")
> [@Crybaby\_Boobie](#): > > It’s amazing how often this administration can take a bad idea, suddenly realize it, and then back away from it in the most stupid way possible. Hey, healthcare’s a mess. I will fix it. Oh, I didn’t know it would be hard to fix. ---
**Author:** ![TonySinclair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@TonySinclair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TonySinclair)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/327 "2018-05-24T15:15:04Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > With Trump, pretty much _everyone_ in a position of authority is incompetent, malevolent, or both. (Trump himself is both, of course.) This entire Administration is off the rails in ways far beyond what anybody alive has previously experienced in this country. Good thing we have patriotic Republicans in Congress who will check and balance his idiocy. Oh wait… ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/328 "2018-05-24T15:17:11Z")
I know he says he’s taking a break from SDMB, but I’m fairly sure he’s still lurking… Hi Ditka! ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/329 "2018-05-24T15:24:12Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > Do you think this will hurt his chances at that Nobel Peace Prize that everyone is saying he should be getting? Maybe he can submit his Twitter feed for the Literature prize instead. ---
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/330 "2018-05-24T15:35:34Z")
> [@Steve\_MB](#): > > Maybe he can submit his Twitter feed for the Literature prize instead. Have they ever given the Nobel to an author of Fantasy? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/331 "2018-05-24T15:49:31Z")
> [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#): > > Have they ever given the Nobel to an author of Fantasy? Obama won one for…what was it for? ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/332 "2018-05-24T15:57:23Z")
that Obama award was dumb. They must have been drinking that year . ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/333 "2018-05-24T16:02:19Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Obama won one for…what was it for? Providing hope that America wasn’t a lost cause. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/334 "2018-05-24T16:03:36Z")
> [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#): > > Have they ever given the Nobel to an author of Fantasy? Gabriel Garcia Marquez didn’t exactly write fantasy, but books like _100 Years of Solitude_ were somewhat surreal. ---
**Author:** ![Slash1972](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slash1972/32/6461_2.png) [@Slash1972](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slash1972)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/335 "2018-05-24T16:04:52Z")
I really like reading the original OP of this thread. It’s pretty funny now. ---
**Author:** ![simster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simster/32/1047_2.png) [@simster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simster)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/336 "2018-05-24T16:11:34Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > NK’s representative said something inflammatory, so now Trump uses that as an excuse to jump ship. yeah- because what Pence said was totally cool and collected - along with Trump’s own statements recently about it. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/337 "2018-05-24T16:14:23Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > Hey, healthcare’s a mess. I will fix it. > > Oh, I didn’t know it would be hard to fix. "I have to tell you, it’s an unbelievably complex subject. Nobody knew that North Korea could be so complicated.” ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/338 "2018-05-24T16:18:58Z")
[The letter canceling the summit](https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/24/politics/donald-trump-letter-kim-jong-un/index.html) is a wonder to behold, and I don’t mean that in a good way. It has be a new low in diplomacy. It is, in fact, so riddled with awkward phrasing, bad grammar, and incomprehensible logic that a two-bit tinpot dictatorship would have been embarrassed by it. It’s so awful that I’m thinking Trump himself must have written parts of it, or else everyone working for him is both incompetent and illiterate in equal measure. A few choice bits: _We were informed that the meeting was requested by North Korea, but that to us is totally irrelevant._ What??? I repeat, what??? WTF does this even mean? _Sadly, based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement, …_ Nice move. The first thing to do in any diplomatic communication is insult the other party by blaming them for everything and calling them a bunch of angry and hostile meanies. _Therefore, please let this letter serve to represent that the Singapore summit, for the good of both parties, but to the detriment of the world, will not take place._ “Please let this letter serve to represent” is not a phrase I have ever seen in any language that I speak. This is then followed by the inscrutable observation that canceling the summit is somehow good for the US and North Korea, but terrible for the rest of the world. _You talk about nuclear capabilities, but ours are so massive and powerful that I pray to God they will never have to be used._ This has to be the first time in history that a US diplomatic communication has ever stated “mine is way bigger than yours” and “we is so big and mighty youse don’t wanna mess with us”. This has “Trump” written all over it. It has to be. _Some day, I look very much forward to meeting you._ That would be “I very much look forward to meeting you someday”. But, hey, what’s two ungrammatical word transpositions and one spelling mistake for every ten words, other than it sounds like it was written by a newly arrived immigrant from one of those famous African shitholes who was just starting his ESL course? _If you change your mind having to do with this most important summit, please do not hesitate to call me or write._ Wait a minute. Who’s the one doing the canceling here? How does this make even the remotest bit of sense? Also, “if you change your mind having to do with …” is not actually English, but at this point it hardly even matters. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/339 "2018-05-24T16:23:17Z")
> [@Crybaby\_Boobie](#): > > I mostly meant that he did it by writing a letter that sounded like he was a spurned 12 year old breaking up with his girlfriend before he got dumped. Nice poster name/post combo. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829/340 "2018-05-24T16:23:26Z")
> [@Slash1972](#): > > I really like reading the original OP of this thread. It’s pretty funny now. From the OP > [@](#): > > …I’m rather pleasantly surprised with the progress Trump has made on the North Korean front. This appears, at least to me, to be the most significant progress towards denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula that has made in the last couple of decades… Bwhahaha!!! I just can’t even… Let’s see if we can track the brilliant Art of the Deal that Trump tracked through the Korean Peninsula: Step 1 - Declare victory Step 2 - Announce a meeting Step 3 - Declare that you’ve achieved all of your objectives Step 4 - Announce a meeting location Step 5 - Declare that you will destroy the North Koreans Step 6 - Issue commemorative coins Step 7 - Cancel the meeting The sheer brilliance of it all… Are we tired of winning yet? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829.md?page=16) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/north-korea-suspending-missile-testing-and-closing-nuclear-site-trump-the-statesman/812829.md?page=18)