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The word "nuclear" appears 9 times in the text. This is scary.

richardjordan 14y ago
Right. Nuclear in the context of regime with a history of irrational behavior that's been insulated from the consequences of its actions for so long it may actually believe some of the nonsense its official communications machinery puts out.
- coldtea 14y ago
  >Nuclear in the context of regime with a history of irrational behavior that's been insulated from the consequences of its actions for so long it may actually believe some of the nonsense its official communications machinery puts out. Funny how all this could also translate directly to the US.
  - hippobravo 14y ago
    Only the powerless public. The guys at the top seem to behave very rationally in their looting of the country.
viraptor 14y ago
This is pure speculation, but I'd be very surprised if US and South Korea didn't have a secret joint plan of disabling all possible locations of N.K.'s nuclear weapons in a minimal time. This wouldn't help Seoul itself in any way of course. But there have to be some national and military plans prepared for such situation for years...
bayesianhorse 14y ago
North Korea doesn't have a way to deliver the nuclear bomb beyond its borders. It's hardly even conceivable they could smuggle one abroad by more pedestrian means like cargo ships...
- richardjordan 14y ago
  I think what you say is right, but as you point out in your other comment, accurately, they can do a ton of damage with their insanely oversized conventional arsenal, and in a desperate moment who knows what an irrational actor might do with a nuclear device, even in their own country near the border with the South.
  - adventured 14y ago
    That has always been the assumption anyway. Currently nobody actually knows the condition of their conventional artillery or how much ammo they really have. We don't even really know their soldiers' or military command's willingness to fight a prolonged war. Kim of course doesn't run the country, there's no mythology surrounding him for the military leadership, and they're not going to fight a battle to the death for him. I agree that North Korea can outlay a large amount of artillery fire immediately, but I think South Korea + the US can wipe out 90% of it within the first week of combat. After that it becomes strictly a ground war for the north. I also believe a lot less people will die in the south than typically proclaimed, and South Korea can rebuild quickly - meanwhile, the North Korean regime will be finished forever.

Right. Nuclear in the context of regime with a history of irrational behavior that's been insulated from the consequences of its actions for so long it may actually believe some of the nonsense its official communications machinery puts out.

coldtea 14y ago
>Nuclear in the context of regime with a history of irrational behavior that's been insulated from the consequences of its actions for so long it may actually believe some of the nonsense its official communications machinery puts out. Funny how all this could also translate directly to the US.
- hippobravo 14y ago
  Only the powerless public. The guys at the top seem to behave very rationally in their looting of the country.

viraptor 14y ago

This is pure speculation, but I'd be very surprised if US and South Korea didn't have a secret joint plan of disabling all possible locations of N.K.'s nuclear weapons in a minimal time. This wouldn't help Seoul itself in any way of course. But there have to be some national and military plans prepared for such situation for years...

bayesianhorse 14y ago

North Korea doesn't have a way to deliver the nuclear bomb beyond its borders. It's hardly even conceivable they could smuggle one abroad by more pedestrian means like cargo ships...

richardjordan 14y ago
I think what you say is right, but as you point out in your other comment, accurately, they can do a ton of damage with their insanely oversized conventional arsenal, and in a desperate moment who knows what an irrational actor might do with a nuclear device, even in their own country near the border with the South.
- adventured 14y ago
  That has always been the assumption anyway. Currently nobody actually knows the condition of their conventional artillery or how much ammo they really have. We don't even really know their soldiers' or military command's willingness to fight a prolonged war. Kim of course doesn't run the country, there's no mythology surrounding him for the military leadership, and they're not going to fight a battle to the death for him. I agree that North Korea can outlay a large amount of artillery fire immediately, but I think South Korea + the US can wipe out 90% of it within the first week of combat. After that it becomes strictly a ground war for the north. I also believe a lot less people will die in the south than typically proclaimed, and South Korea can rebuild quickly - meanwhile, the North Korean regime will be finished forever.