North Korea Threatens To 'Wipe U.S. Off Of The Map'

Been awhile since my last post. But, as I have said before, I do have a life outside of blogging.

Seen the new headlines? North Korea is rattling its sabre (however insignificant such a sabre is by comparison) at the United States.

From the Associated Press:

North Korea threatened Wednesday to wipe the United States off the map as Washington and its allies watched for signs the regime will launch a series of missiles in the coming days.

Now, why would North Korea make such an idiotic threat against a foe that could potentially turn the land north of the 38th parallel into a glass parking lot?

Read on:

Off China's coast, a U.S. destroyer was tailing a North Korean ship suspected of transporting illicit weapons to Myanmar in what could be the first test of U.N. sanctions passed to punish the nation for an underground nuclear test last month. The Kang Nam left the North Korean port of Nampo a week ago with the USS John S. McCain close behind. The ship, accused of transporting banned goods in the past, is believed bound for Myanmar, according to South Korean and U.S. officials. The new U.N. Security Council resolution requires member states to seek permission to inspect suspicious cargo. North Korea has said it would consider interception a declaration of war and on Wednesday accused the U.S. of seeking to provoke another Korean War.

This is another test of Barack Obama's leadership strength/weakness. It may very well be that there is nothing aboard the Kang Nam. But, North Korea is looking to find out how Barack Obama responds to the provocation. If Obama's response is weak, then that will most likely encourage North Korea to deploy ships like the Kang Nam more often and maybe even transport a nuclear weapon for real.

That prospect is so dangerous that no rationally thinking person would allow a suspected illegal cargo go uninspected. The Obama Administration needs to step up and take definitive action to let North Korea know that we will not tolerate such behavior from irresponsible dictatorships like DPRK.

You can access the complete article on-line here:

N. Korea Threatens US; World Anticipates Missile
Hyung-Jin Kim
Associated Press via Google
June 24, 2009

BTW, where are all those leftists who claimed that Fox News was just making this up?

More On North Korea Situation

It isn't enough that Japan is reporting a North Korean intent to launch on the 4th of July. We also have to deal with a DPRK ship that may be carrying an illegal cargo.

From Fox News:

The U.S. military is tracking a flagged North Korean ship suspected of proliferating weapons material in violation of a U.N. Security Council resolution passed last Friday, FOX News has learned. The ship, Kang Nam, left a port in North Korea Wednesday and appears to be heading toward Singapore, according to a senior U.S. military source. The vessel, which the military has been tracking since its departure, could be carrying weaponry, missile parts or nuclear materials.

What is Obama's response? Read on:

The apparent violation raises the question of how the United States and its allies will respond, particularly since the U.N. resolution does not have a lot of teeth to it. The resolution would not allow the United States to board the ship forcibly. Rather, U.S. military would have to request permission to board -- a request North Korea is unlikely to grant. North Korea has said that any attempt to board its ships would be viewed as an act of war and promised "100- or 1,000-fold" retaliation if provoked. If there is cause to pursue the ship, sources told FOX News the U.S. military would instead likely follow the slow-moving vessel until it goes into port to refuel. At that point, sources said, the U.S. military could request that the host country not provide fuel to the ship.

Uh-huh. That will certainly put DPRK in line, now won't it?

Why not just fire a shot across it's bow and give the command: "Heave to and prepare to be boarded!" Because Obama is a weak president and would prefer to wait until thousands of people have been killed in an attack before deciding on how to respond. It would never occur to him or the Dems to take a pro-active stance and err on the side of safety.

You can access the complete story on-line here:

U.S. Military Tracking North Korean Ship Suspected Of Proliferating Missiles, Nukes
Jennifer Griffin and Justin Fishel
FoxNews.com
June 18, 2009