NovemberRevolution2010

 
 
According to The Chosun Ilbo(the English version)A team of Korean scientists at Soongsil University reportedly “concluded that the ship was probably hit by a Chinese-made 206 kg-class Yu-3 heavy torpedo.” This evidence will be crucial in the decision of how to respond given by President Lee of South Korea who previously warned that if conclusive evidence proved the sinking of the naval vessel was by the North Koreans a retaliatory strike could be expected. I sincerely doubt Mr. Lee has the fortitude to follow through with this threat as he will no doubt find any support for such an action non-existent from the United States’ current Administration. Most likely we will see more verbal saber rattling and strong finger pointing followed by a long sustained raucous laugh from the North Koreans.

These types of tactics are not new or even escalatory from the North Koreans. In my three tours to South Korea beginning in 2002 on each duty station assignment the North Koreans either attacked, fired upon, or made attempted attacks at US soldiers or South Korean and US naval vessels. The response to North Korea has been consistent...we threaten to levy more sanctions and then end up bartering with Kim Jung Il to stop one thing or the other. We give him funding he needs to feed his people which really results in funding for his military rather than for food to the masses. For a few months Kim Jung Il will be on his best behavior and then once the funding has run out he will go back to the well again with new attacks/attempts and more black mailing…oh I mean, “bartering” with the West.

The definition of insanity is when someone repeats the same action or process and expects a different outcome. So when President Obama and President Lee of South Korea demand more sanctions be placed on North Korea we will just see a continuation of the same cyclical insanity. Until such time as a credible response is made towards North Korea we can expect these guerilla type attacks to continue and more deaths to occur for South Koreas’ military or the US military.

Given that President Obama is an appeaser and believer in his own hype as a great peace broker...we are bound to repeat these tragic steps again and again for at least the remainder of his term in office. I am not suggesting that another US President, i.e. John McCain would have responded much differently but I do find it curious that the last time a “major” attack such as the one that took place against the South Korean Naval ship Cheonan, it would have been the taking of the USS Pueblo, still in the possession of the North Koreans and proudly displayed in their propaganda war museum to demonstrate their superiority over the USA. President L.B Johnson (D) also did very little to retaliate against such an act of war. What he did do was finally allow the North to keep a US Naval ship in return for our dead and captured servicemen. This was a major victory for the North not only militarily but in the eyes of the world. While the US sunk further into a war in South Vietnam, North Korea took the opportunity to act in a way they were confident would have little risk. My how the times they aren’t a changing...currently the US is involved in two wars and North Korea is on the move again.

As you may recall if you are a student of history, the act of provocation that took us to war in WWI was the sinking of the Lusitania, a British cruise ship. I find it odd that while the sinking of another nation’s ship would be just cause for the United States to enter a World War, the taking of a US Naval ship would not. This brings me back to recent events in particular the sinking of The Cheonan a South Korean Naval Ship. One must wonder what type of military attack or provocation by the North Koreans exactly, will constitute a threat sufficient to warrant a military response? Or shall we continue to play the game of black Jack, in which the North Koreans hold all the cards and determine who gets what at the table. The US and S.Korea may pound their chests and decry the actions of the North while expounding how superior the allied forces are etc. but until such time as the North is the one getting “pounded upon” we will see no change in the tactics they use.
 


Comments

Patriot

Sun, 02 May 2010 12:02:50 am

Although the United States current, past, and future administrations will likely NEVER support military action against North Korea. If South Korea and the United States are going to allow the deaths of it's service members and citizens to go unanswered and unchallenged then at least stop giving the North Korean's the free hand-outs after they kill them. Wouldn't it be better to allow these deaths to go unanswered and the North unrewarded, than to continue to turn our heads and hold our noses while handing the North Koreans another pay off? Can we allow the deaths of our servicemen and those of South Korea to have meaning by finally seeing the North implode. We know they continue to exist from the funding they black mail from the west, so let's stop funding them period. Sure, it will mean more deaths in the short term to our servicemen and women, but ultimately those deaths will be vindicated when North Korea collapses as it runs out of money from the Western handouts. Certainly is a better tactic than having them die so that North Korea can live to kill us another day!

 



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