Now he says to remember the Pueblo incident. Why yes, I do remember that incident. Nutball regime seizes an unarmed American spy vessel sailing in international waters and then holds the crew for a year, torturing them at their leisure. The North Koreans still display the boat as a trophy.
And how does Kristof choose to act on this memory?
It's time for us to learn from the Pueblo again. The Bush administration's dismissal of serious, direct diplomacy has made Korea more dangerous. Engagement may be arduous, frustrating and often unsatisfying, but it's the only option we have left.
Is Kristof stoned or stone-cold idiotic? Our refusal to "engage" (i.e., send lots of money with our sincere apologies that it isn't more) is the cause of North Korea being more dangerous? We are to save these psychopaths that very clearly hate us to their core?
As for no other options, I say destroying the regime is an option we haven't used yet. But we have to use it carefully and slowly lest the nutballs of Pyongyang go on a killing spree south of the DMZ. Look, when your enemy is implacable and faltering, the last thing we need to do is prop them up. Let them die. Push them into death. My God, would a stronger North Korea be easier to deal with? We haven't invaded North Korea over the last five decades, so what could we do that would soothe them into giving up nukes?
Perhaps Kristof needs to explain to the South Koreans the need to surrender since North Korea isn't going to collapse and since Kristof has learned the lesson that having a psycho enemy means you should make a deal with them--again.
The South Koreans aren't as optimistic about Pyongyang's future. Seoul doesn't want to absorb North Korea's poverty-stricken society but they don't think that a Northern collapse is unthinkable:
South Korea has been quietly preparing for the eventual collapse of the communist government in the north. South Korea has, for over a decade, been carefully examining the experience of Germany in reuniting its democratic and capitalist West with its communist and ramshackle East.
Indeed, a North Korean collapse may be the only thing that gets China to cooperate with us. China may like having a loose cannon to scare us but they like having South Korea control all of the peninsula even less:
The South Koreans also have to prepare for a possible civil war in the north, which is another worst case situation. It’s not known how much South Korea and China have been working together on peacekeeping in the north. It is known that China is very concerned about collapse in the north, and hordes of starving North Koreans pouring over the their border. China does not like the idea of a united, democratic, Korea. But China doesn’t want a collapse in North Korea, and chaos, either. No one wants that, but North Koreas neighbors are preparing for the worst.
The Pueblo incident may scare Kristof into advocating a disguised surrender to the nutballs of the North, but the South Koreans seem to be losing the fear of the constantly rattling sabre.
With South Korea's army growing more dominant and confident it can not only hold off an invasion but advance north across the DMZ, the Republic of Korea is thinking about strengthening the navy and air force at the expense of the army:
Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung on Thursday (July 7) reaffirmed his commitment to reform the Army-dominated military to achieve a better balance between the Army, Navy and Air Force.
A nation that fears an enemy could capture its capital wouldn't think about reducing the dominance of the army when an ally's naval and air power can fill that need. But North Korea--nationalism or no--is dying. We'd be fools to save such a hideous regime.
As I've written before, I think we need to partition North Korea to meet the demands of all the parties involved (well, almost all--the Pillsbury Nuke Boy can bugger off).
North Korea is still dangerous. Surrendering to them will make them more dangerous--not less dangerous. Squeeze them until they drop. I'd hate for those South Korean plans to go to waste. Because, as you know, American Leftists love post-war planning. They'll be ecstatic about this regime change!
