While everyone's attention was focused on North Korean missiles, the real story is the North Korean economy. It continues to fall apart, and more North Koreans are unhappy about that. Worse yet, more North Koreans are finding out how badly they have been screwed by their leaders. Meanwhile, North Korean officials engage in even more bizarre behavior. For example, food and fuel supplies sent to North Korea have been halted, not to force North Korea to stop missile tests or participate in peace talks, but to return the Chinese trains the aid was carried in on. In the last few weeks, the North Koreans have just kept the trains, sending the Chinese crews back across the border. North Korea just ignores Chinese demands that the trains be returned, and insists that the trains are part of the aid program.
While North Korea continues to have problem mastering 19th century railroad technology, they continue to work on their 1945-era V-2 technology.
These nimrods have a UN seat and Taiwan does not. I'm just noting this interesting fact as an aside.
Waiting for the Kim regime to die may not be ideal, but it appears to be the best way forward. As long as we don't write checks and rescue them from disastrous economic policies that lead Pyongyang to steal aid trains from their main ally.
UPDATE: Jim Dunnigan (via GlennandHelenShow.com) says the North Koreans are quietly returning the trains.
