DiscussWorldIssues - Socio-Economic Religion and Political Uncensored Debate - View Single Post

**PhillipHer** · 01-05-2010, 08:59 AM

But no one wants the regime to collapse in a way that leaves the surrounding enemy countries (Japan, South Korea) nuked, gassed, anthraxed, or otherwise permanently crippled.

So nothing will be done. And so it goes...

If the act of carrying a Bible and a protest letter across a frozen river in the dead of winter can bring about such an apocalypse, I submit that the peace is very fragile indeed and that Koreans and Japanese set to work immediately on building bomb shelters and equipping themselves with Hazmat suits.

The risk of the North attacking its neighbors is tiny, but since the consequences, however remote, would be devastating, they must be taken seriously. That is exactly the pathological game the DPRK has been playing, over and over, for years now. The North Korean government announces (see above) its desire for peace talks over New Years, but in May it unilaterally withdrew from the 1953 armistice agreement.

Threatening military retaliation over these acts is counterproductive, and cutting off food and medical aid is inhumane, but speaking out against nuttiness need not be provocative or lead to greater distress. A steady, rational approach seems to be effective. An activist's demand that Pyongyang dismantle its concentration camps is not irrational. In fact, it might help lead the way out of this mess: if the Koreas are ever to be reunited, the less traumatized the population of the North is, the greater the likelihood for a normalized transition of North-South relations.

Kim Jong-Il is not going to attack Japan (or Hawaii or California) with nuclear weapons. He knows very well what the result would be: Pyongyang would be obliterated within a week. He's too attached to his James Bond flicks and his Hennessy XO to let that happen.

In short, Robert Park's paltry but highly symbolic gesture will have little bearing on the success, or lack thereof, on any peace talks. The North has to want to participate in finding a solution.

01-05-2010, 08:59 AM	#11
PhillipHer Join Date Jun 2008 Age 59 Posts 4,481 Senior Member	But no one wants the regime to collapse in a way that leaves the surrounding enemy countries (Japan, South Korea) nuked, gassed, anthraxed, or otherwise permanently crippled. So nothing will be done. And so it goes... If the act of carrying a Bible and a protest letter across a frozen river in the dead of winter can bring about such an apocalypse, I submit that the peace is very fragile indeed and that Koreans and Japanese set to work immediately on building bomb shelters and equipping themselves with Hazmat suits. The risk of the North attacking its neighbors is tiny, but since the consequences, however remote, would be devastating, they must be taken seriously. That is exactly the pathological game the DPRK has been playing, over and over, for years now. The North Korean government announces (see above) its desire for peace talks over New Years, but in May it unilaterally withdrew from the 1953 armistice agreement. Threatening military retaliation over these acts is counterproductive, and cutting off food and medical aid is inhumane, but speaking out against nuttiness need not be provocative or lead to greater distress. A steady, rational approach seems to be effective. An activist's demand that Pyongyang dismantle its concentration camps is not irrational. In fact, it might help lead the way out of this mess: if the Koreas are ever to be reunited, the less traumatized the population of the North is, the greater the likelihood for a normalized transition of North-South relations. Kim Jong-Il is not going to attack Japan (or Hawaii or California) with nuclear weapons. He knows very well what the result would be: Pyongyang would be obliterated within a week. He's too attached to his James Bond flicks and his Hennessy XO to let that happen. In short, Robert Park's paltry but highly symbolic gesture will have little bearing on the success, or lack thereof, on any peace talks. The North has to want to participate in finding a solution.
	Quote