North Korea a threat?

"Sanctions mean a war and the war knows no mercy," read an editorial by the official Korean Central News Agency.
"Certain circles in the United States continue to address the nonexisting problem of North Korea's nuclear problem and continue to expand attempts to oppress the North with such talk like 'tailored containment,' " the editorial said.

N.Korea has been building up a nuclear program for some time and and with it's recent developments has caused quite a stir in the world area. They have currently not been allowing nuclear inspectors in the country and the UN has given them two weeks to comply. N.Korea is one of only three communist states left in the world, with China and Cuba. No actions are planned at the moment and Bush has sought to reassure the communist leader that the United States has "no intention of invading North Korea." "I believe this will be resolved peacefully, and I believe it can be resolved diplomatically," Bush said Monday after a Cabinet meeting. The United States, South Korea, and Japan are meeting very soon to have talks on this issue.

Do you think N.Korea is a threat at all?
Do you think they'd actually use nuclear weapons?
Would you support going to war with N.Korea if tensions became extremely hostile towards the United States?

Any thoughts really...

[Baby_boy]

I don't see any threat in N. Korea

If they want to remain a place on the map then they'd be best advised to keep their missiles where they are

And i definately support a war against north korea just because if i do end up getting sent overseas i'd rather be stationed there than iraq

[buckeye]

North Korea standing alone poses little or no threat to the United States. Our military is far superior to there’s in regards to the 3 most important fundamentals of a military; numbers, training, and technology. The only way for Korea to keep the war from looking like a repeat of the gulf war would be to escalate it into a nuclear conflict. However I feel if they did this there would be only 3 targets that would draw a nuclear attack from them. The first one being Japan, a nuclear warhead fired from N. Korea could reach a major city in Japan, this would send a major uproar across the globe, and would have America re-thinking their wartime strategy with N. Korea. The second being a tactical nuclear weapon used on American troops in the event that we are kicking there ass and they are on the brink of surrender. The third of course being a target within South Korea, more than likely a tactical attack used as a spearhead for a N. Korean offensive. Either way they would know that any such actions would constitute a full scale nuclear attack from the United States, so the likely hood of them using nuclear weapons is slim to none.

On the other hand the one thing that worries me the most about this potential conflict is a possible alliance with China. It’s a long shot, but given the fact that North Korea does have nuclear weapons, in no way would China side with the US, the risk of nuclear action from N. Korea would one that they wouldn’t take. China considers us an enemy and a war with N. Korea would be the perfect opportunity for them to attack us, it would also provide a huge boost to their economy.

[buckeye]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Baby_boy:

And i definately support a war against north korea just because if i do end up getting sent overseas i'd rather be stationed there than iraq<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

A war with iraq would also be one with less casualities. We can use the full force of our nations military, that being the heavy armor that cant transverse jungle terrain. If i was you i would much rather be picking off the enemy with a 30 ton Abraham battle tank behind me, rather than another guy with an M16. but then again thats just how i feel, i could be wrong.



[This message has been edited by buckeye (edited January 07, 2003).]

[Baby_boy]

Buckeye brings up a very valid point, with an alliance of china there would be a great threat. They outnumber us and have quite a large military. If this were to happen it could possibly lead to the next world war. Not a pretty thought, but definately a reality that needs to be taken into consideration

[Lethal]

Just this morning on the news, while you boys were at school, I saw a report about several senators introducing a bill about bringing back the draft, thats right the draft. It probably wont pass they said but still its crazy. I sure as hell don't want the draft to come back.

If they bring it back, and start drafting us, first thing I'm doing(before I get drafted) is joining the coast guard or the navy.

Also, I do feel that as long as N.Korea has nuclear capabilities, they're a threat.

[This message has been edited by 50 Cent (edited January 08, 2003).]

[Ugly Bastard]

50 Cent-

A few things to clear up for you:

1.) Joining the Coast Guard might save your ass. But not the Navy, they pretty much see just as much action as any other branch.

2.) Our military has grown to the point that we could basically win a full-scale war whilst using only a few thousand soldiers.

3.) But let's just say that there were to draft; two of the last groups of people they draft are 18 year olds, and college students. Luckily for you, you are both.

See ya at Ball State

-Ugly Bastard

Alright, well my dad always told me join the navy if you're going to be in the military.

They're at sea, not on the front lines in the jungle, thats how I see it. It's harder to sink a ship than to kill a soilder.

Also, I may be going to Purdue, I've not quite made that decsion, but hey, if I go to Ball State, see yah there.

[BrassMonkees]

For N. Korea, i think they could be a threat. not directly to the US since there is no way they can hit us. but if they start bombinb south korea, we have to defend them. and if they start bombing japan, we have to help defend them. then there is the alliance thing with china. i cna't imagine china wanting to start a war at this time. eventually definetly. those chinese are some serious crazy asses.

oh yeah. they numbers thing for buckeye, N. Korea has a million man army i believe. not that that really matters a whole lot cuz we could still kill em.

i think they would use nuclear warfare. they are some crazy sob's.

and i don't support a war right now. nobody wants to be fighing 2 wars on two fronts right now. i can't even imagine how bad taht could get for us. im more in favor of the diplomatic solution for the time being. if we can get the other countries to sever their ties with N.korea, then they will be screwed. having no food and water would show those bastards.

even if they did bring back the draft, ugly is right. and by the time they passed it, wouldn't we probably be out of college anyway? and i think the air force would be cooler than the navy.

[This message has been edited by BrassMonkees (edited January 08, 2003).]

I don't give a shit which would be cooler, I give a shit on which one I am least likely to die while serving. The idea of war is not to die for your country, it's to make that other son of a bitch die for his.

Also, I heard that we are capable of fighting two wars on two fronts. Not probably something we want to do, but if necessary I guess possible, according to some dipshit on the news.

[BrassMonkees]

yeah we could fight 2 wars, but we definetly don't want to. our economy is bad enough right now as it is. bush's economic plan won't do anything to help it. and if it doesn't, good-bye republicans come next election.

i doubt if being in the air force will kill you any quicker than being in the navy.

[victim]

If North Korea gains nuclear weapons, the whole region will be destabilized. Directly, North Korea is not a threat, while they are one of the largest proliferators of SCUD missiles in the world, even their best technology could only reach remote regions of Alaska, which are also only place in the United States that has some sort of missle defense due to continued testing of the Star Wars program.

While they could not directly attack us, an invasion of South Korea could be disasterous for us and our allies. North Korea has over a million man army, and thousands of American and South Korean troups are located near the DMZ (De-Milatarized Zone). A nuclear bomb detonated in Seoul, South Korea would also kill many American citizens. Even with their military strength, North Korea would probably not be able to topple South Korea, even if they didn't have our support, though it would cause millions of casualties, and destroy their economy, which would have a serious effect on our economy.
In addition to all of this, anti-American sentiment is growing in South Korea, and their new president-elect is strongly opposed to American military involvement in South Korea.

The ungrateful South Koreans essentially want us out of there country. Between this and the Northern threat, I say we pull all military support out of South Korea, and continue placing sanctions and other pressure on North Korea to cease its nuclear program. If those South Koreans have already forgotten how we saved them from a malicious Communist regime, I say that we let them deal with this problem. If they want to face the wrath of Kim Jong Eel, they can do it without us for all I care, the last thing we need is a war with North Korea in addition to military action in Iraq.

Historically, war is good for the econemy...isn't it?

[Ugly Bastard]

50 Cent-

You are right in the sense that WWII pulled our country out of depression.

But the fact is, there hasn't been a war that has truly been good for the economy since WWII, (or possibly Korea).

Vietnam, and Desert Storm did nothing for the economy, and so far, neither has the so called, "War on Terror".

-Ugly Bastard

50cent makes a good point. Wars are good for the economy. (go to IU)

Also, the US military is designed to be able to fight two full scale wars are two completely seperate fronts. We would most likely be able to fight Korea and Iraq without ever drafting a single person.

[Jake]

I think that sanctions by the UN is actually our best policy. North Korea is already starving, and the country is bankrupt. The are very chauvanistic and say that sanctions means war, but in reality North Korea knows that any attack on the U.S. brings basically half the world agaisnt it. Nato has been enlarged just recently and its memember continue to grow economically also. As for a war with Iraq we might not be able to get the defense of the world, because we would be considered the agressor and Sadaam is not stupid enough to attack us. But with North Koreas we can sanction them and it would come up with two results, cripple them economically and end communism or they would be forced to attack us, which would certainly be the single biggest mistake, because then all NATO memember and allies would be forced to war with North Korea, then they'd be fucked. Hell they already are fucked. But the sanctions would finally deliver the final crippling blow the the bankrupt communisits, who are creating this whole mess and bluffing in order to get concessions from the West.
As for China in this conflict, they actually have not been supporting North Korea much, and have just been tryin to end the conflict. More and more china is liberalizing and become more capitalist, which is why their economy is growing so fast. Plus China's leaders would not want to engage in this war because, this war would actually crush china's economy. Its true that WW2 helped the american economy but that doesnt mean that war is good for economies. The only reason it was good for America was because we were in a depression and it helped solve unemployment problems, but more because the industral powers of Europe had been destroyed forcing them to buy from us, and giving us a favorable balance of trade as our industries remained unchallenged. For the most part war ruins economies. And in this case it would destroy China's export driven econonmy. China's major trading partners are the U.S., Japan, and the European Union. If they sided against us, then they would have no one to export to meaning, no growth or money for china, which maybe growing fast now, is still delicate, and its leaders know it. Their leaders realize that as long as their economy is growing then they can remain in power, so they wouldnt risk damaging themselves in a war against the still more powerful west.
P.S. there are four communists countries, China, Cuba, North Korea, and your forgot Vietnam.

[buckeye]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by BrassMonkees:

oh yeah. they numbers thing for buckeye, N. Korea has a million man army i believe. not that that really matters a whole lot cuz we could still kill em.

[This message has been edited by BrassMonkees (edited January 08, 2003).]<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

of those fundamental principles of military strategy that i listed, according to our military and of those around the world, numbers would be the most important of the 3. Just look at what Russia did to Germany, who excelled at both training and technology.