Six-Party Talks, Six-Schmarty Talks

Why aren't the U.S, China, Russia, and South Korea aren't applying full pressure on the North? The North doesn't have any bargaining chips at all, in my opinion. She said that she will not engage in more six-party talks if the U.S doesn't lift its financial sanctions. N.K imports 90% of its oil, and 1/3 of its food from China (The Japan Times). If China really wanted N.K to denuclearize, then why doesn't China just stop exporting all of the oil and food into N.K? Kim Jong-il wouldn't have any choice but to actually engage in true disarmament talks. If he didn't, then he would be likened to Mao Zedong. Mao Zedong

Mao spent so much time, money, and effort focused on making China an industrial nation during his reign, that he allowed millions of his own people to die. He didn't care for them.

Hopefully Kim Jong-il is not the same. Hopefully he doesn't use his only remaining bargaining chip, his nuclear strength. Perhaps the wiring in his head isn't completely correct, and that's why these countries aren't willing to apply full pressure on his country. They're afraid that he might act rashly, seeing too many short-sighted effects of a nuclear attack on another country. Undoubtedly, Mr. Kim will see an attack as a solution to his problem in such a case. The world will withdraw their sanctions and allow his country to act the way it wants to.

Kim Jong-Il

Of course, he would be wrong in such a case.

I hope that Kim Jong-il isn't only considered with self-preservation. He must soon realize that he cannot try to run the world.

We can only wait and see what happens.

Why Doesn't Kim Jong-il Make Any Sense?

According to BBC News, Kim Jong-il, North Korea's leader, wants a "nuclear-free" peninsula (BBC News). Doesn't this seem slightly ambiguous, considering that he just supported the testing of a nuclear warhead in his own country exactly one month ago? Now Mr Kim is beginning to have disarmament talks. He even "expressed his intention to honour a 1992 declaration to preserve a nuclear-free Korean peninsula in accordance with the wishes of his father, the late leader Kim Il-sung. "

Personally, I don't think that Kim Jong-il really gives a hoot if the peninsula is nuclear-free. I don't think he gives a hoot about his dead father. If he really had did, then he wouldn't have supported the testing of the country's first-ever nuclear bomb. Perhaps, he was just curious if his scientists could really come up with the technology. Or, maybe he wanted to see how big of a boom it could really make...All I know, is that he should've thought twice before making the statement about preserving a nuclear-free Korean peninsula in accordance with the wishes of his father. If he really wanted to do this in honor of his father's wishes, then you'd think that the leader would have done everything in his power to stop the project before it even got close to the point of testing. Right now, he just seems like a man in power trying to gather some support from the world. He didn't expect this type of reaction from the world, so he is going through the motions of undoing it.

Someone try to explain this to me!

Nuclear Proliferation in North Korea

Because of recent weeks' events, there is no reason why anyone in the world shouldn't know about North Korea's testing of their first nuclear warhead. I have many different thoughts on this issue. Firstly, I feel like I should be slightly afraid. North Korea isn't that friendly to the United States, and they might have ideas to use their fledgeling nuclear program for terrorism. This makes me want to put all of my efforts into writing to our local government officials and urging them to do whatever they can to stop the North Korean nuclear growth.But then again, another part of me wants to congratulate the scientists that made this possible. There are many brilliant minds in many countries other than our own. Shouldn't they also have the right to claim the honor of such a great scientific achievement. I don't like that the country may use it for war purposes, but you have to give them props.Why should the US have any right to tell North Korea to destroy their nuclear program when the US has nuclear capabilities of their own. We do not have the right to be the world's policeman. Each country should be working to further their technological advances equally. What they choose to do with their new technology is their own prerogative. Hopefully, they choose to do good instead of evil. That is up to the prayers and faith of good people who wish to see a progressive world instead of one filled with destruction and the apocalypse.