If you’re ever bored, you might want to go check out The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s official state-run news webpage. The Korean Central News Agency, mouthpiece for everyone’s favorite Asian tin pot dictator Kim Jong Il, is always a fun read. Here’s a little excerpt from one of their latest stories:
“The south Korean puppet group is now getting hell-bent on the wholesale racket for confrontation with the DPRK while groundlessly taking issue with the army of the DPRK over its due punishment meted to the group for its reckless military provocation.”
Stuff worthy of Baghdad Bob, really. The “groundless” issue mentioned above is about South Korean anger stemming from the North Korean shelling of the island Yeonpyeong. This attack, erroneously reported by some media outlets as the first time the North Korean military has attacked South Korea since the 1953 armistice, resulted in the deaths of Two South Korean Marines and two civilians and eighteen others wounded. The North claims it was only responding to the “military aggression” of “the U.S. imperialists and south Korean puppet war-like forces.”
So what is the response of South Korea and the United States? We decide to put on a little Sturm Und Drang right on the border of North Korea, as if a display of force will somehow made Kim Jong Il, and his son/heir apparent Kim Jong Un, rethink confronting their neighbors in a military way.
This tactic shows exactly how little we know about how North Korea operates.
Even if our military leadership does not understand what makes the Hermit Kingdom tick, previous engagements with the KPA (Korean People’s Army) should inform us that the North Korean leadership will not be intimidated into surrendering their military might. No matter how outgunned they are, such a concept does not occur to them, and the reason why might shock you.
First though I would like to show you a parallel situation in the history of the Korean conflict and how a show of superior force by South Korea and the United States accomplished nothing at all.
6 Comments
Great article!
Only point of issue “saber rattling” – is I am not sure how capitulating to N Korea would help.
Their people having been starving for years and I am sure somehow the NK Regime blames the “outside” world for this too.
So whether we saber rattle or do nothing the NK regime will use our action, reaction or lack of action as “evidence” of an eminent attack or their strength in “warding” us off.
The US and UN (haha) should operate in a manner directly respective of security of our countries and those who are allies with little or no concern what NK will propagandize to their ‘captive’ people.
I can recall a raghead in Libya that used to behave in a similar manner. (I say raghead as M Ghadafi is a scumbag regardless of what he purports himself to be.)
Proving to me that the most effective way to deal with tyrants is to push them around and show their people they are not all powerful in the eyes of the world.
Proving to me that the most effective way to deal with tyrants is to push them around. (in effect ensuring our security.)
The best defense is a good offense!
The problem is that we can’t push Kim Jong Il around. Any attacks we make him, or the country as a whole, only feed into the paranoia. Like I said in the piece, our military superiority is substantial, but none of that matters if we are the unpure monsters at the gate. They will unite behind North Korea because they believe it is right – not necessarily because they believe they can win (though some folks might believe they can).
While I do not have a good answer to this question of what to do with North Korea, I think the only chance we’ve got to deal with these guys without an all out war is to convince China to stop propping them up financially. I don’t know what the Chinese would want for such a favor, but maybe someone can convince them it is in their best interests to ‘deal’ with the little monster they’ve created, just as we’ve had to deal with a few of the little monsters we created during the cold war.
I guess we could threaten China by going bankrupt.
Consider after the USSR fell the truth came out regarding what complete pagentry Soviet power really was even in the eyes of Soviet citizens. (Maybe that average bottle a day vodka habit kept them occupied and politically incurious.)
Personally I cant imagine anything sadder than living in NK.
Freedom is so precious that I would rather live risking life and limb in a day to day war zone than have experienced a fate the likes of NK citizens have for the 50+ years.
noticed that a lot of celebrities are deactivating their twitter accounts to somehow support a charity that helps babies with aids.
this seems highly illogical and leaves me wondering why they dont support pro life initiatives?
are healthly babies not worth the effort or saving?
or maybe you dont get that good liberal street cred for helping save healthy unborn babies?