What the F#$@ (WTF) is going on with this North Korea shit?!
I mean take a look at this logic and tell me what is missing... Iraq had missiles and might have Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) so we invade (oops!They didn't, but it is good to get rid of such a dictator!) but Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has the damned nukes and is getting the frakking missiles... and we play nice with them and offer more aid?! WTF? [I can't think of any other specific difference - surely oil could not have played a role? And yes, they have millions of peasants starving on China's border, but surely the international community could take care of them like they did with the peoples of Iraq? Am I getting old and cynical?]
And the other wierd thing about this is that the US and South Korea are still at war with DPRK, so isn't it better to restart (and hopefully finish) a war than start a war from scratch? Isn't there some cost in ramping up to be 'AT WAR'? [Not too sure about this, but my mum always told me to finish something before I started something else.] See the Korean Armistice Agreement for more info on the state of play here...
Also nice work on Aussie foreign affairs for Bob Carr! “North Korea’s nuclear and long-range missile programs present a real and credible threat to the security of the region, and to Australia,” Senator Carr said. ... So... is this talking them up or talking them down? Don't they WANT to hear that? Isn't little Kim (Kim Jong-un) happy hearing Bob worry so much about this? At least he was a little more vehement in his tweet (but even this was just a link to the statement on his blog).
I mean I am outraged... (can you feel the outrage?)... Carr says that this missile test would breach the United Nations Security Council resolutions 1718 and 1874! (Psuedo-outrage - not naming names, but other countries treat the UN like shit, too.) But let us take a look at this a little more... I mean, at least Alexander Downer had the decency to talk it up! "They could fire a missile from North Korea to Sydney," he said, later saying it was a threat that Australia had "no capacity" to defend back in 2004. Ooops! How did THAT slip in there!
And if we actually take a look at 1718 and 1874... They are actually focused on nuclear weapons tests, not missile tests. UN Resolution 1718 demands DPRK come back to the negotiating table and establishes trade restrictions with the "aim to prevent illicit trafficking in nuclear, chemical or biological
weapons, as well as their means of delivery and related materials." UN Resolution 1874 is a toughened 1718 and demands further trade restrictions and inspections, including "denying fuel or supplies to service the vessels carrying them". Small arms and light weapons were exempted from the inspections, so they are OK to continue selling to DPRK while their people go hungry.
I'll admit... UN Resolution 1874 does say "The country must refrain from any act that would further aggravate the situation on the Korean peninsula." And although there is a lot of talk demanding DPRK stop nuclear and ballistic missile development, neither 1718 nor 1874, there is nothing I can see that demands any stop to ballistic missile tests or space launch. It 'urges' or it 'recommends' that DPRK stop. Please? Pretty please? Pretty please ... with food aid on top?
Now I have no argument that things are being swapped under the table. And although I have no proof other than what this censored bullshit media is feeding me (and what my own free mind struggles to interpret), I do feel that the Axis of Evil is at work here. They may not have been an Axis of Evil before Bush's speech, but they probably are now. Something I learnt with looking at foreign affairs - if you consider national diplomacy like a schoolyard.
Traditional school-yard diplomacy - think about it. Some dude with a lot of friends (Randy) gets on a chair and points to Iran (Sardar), Iraq (Ali) and North Korea (Kim) [Why? Cause they don't like the dude on the chair! Go figure!] . Ali and Sardar had been at it for months with fart bombs and some pretty nasty arm burns. They had their heads hit together recently and things have settled down, but poor Kim up in the back of the class is the sick, snivelling kid that no one really notices until they throw a tantrum! No one had ever really spoken to Kim as far as anyone knew. Kim figures out how to work a slingshot he borrowed from the big quiet chaps China (Chen) and Russia (Vladimr), who have their own fan clubs, but have not gone up against the popular kid for some time. Kim also figured out how to make a wicked fire cracker with help from Pakistan (Khan) who is sometimes close friend of everyones.
Historically, though... Randy and friends have already beat up Kim and they all know there is still some reckoning to be had in the future (they aren't at normal peaceful relations). Randy was friends with Ali for a while when Ali and Sardar were fighting (even helped to some degree/were complicit with the fart bombs) but not any more. In fact, Randy beat up Ali and now they give a little bit of their pocket money to Randy each week.
So, if that is the schoolyard, what happens? Sardar has some pocket money and some good slingshots themselves and could be willing to share some with Kim in exchange for ...what? Kim is always hungry and has nothing to give except fire crackers!
And, sure, North Korea agreed not to shoot any more slingshots in February... but this one was already pulled tight and ready to let loose... and no one was talking to them when they said they would. They don't get pocket money and sometimes can get a bit hungry, but have noticed if they shoot slingshots near people and let off fire-crackers then the schoolyard takes notice.
Anonymuncles
