I hate to see a lot of innocent people die because we're barking up the wrong tree.
Exactly, which is why I perceive your priorities to be mixed up, and that the Bush administration, to their credit, knows that the NK situation requires a different strategy.
There are some major points you seem to be completely ignoring here. For one, There exists a 12 year series of BINDING UNSC resolutions that Saddam's government has completely ignored and attempted to defy. There are no UNSC binding resolutions against NK. And thus, no international authority to take any kind of military action against them.
Secondly, NK is contained by its geography, while Iraq is the "keystone" to the entire Middle East.. Also, NK has few natural resources that the world economy depends upon (Not just the US economy). Thus, there is even less reason to permit ourselves to be drawn into conflict there, whereas the existence of 3/4 of the world's oil reserves lying in the mid-east provides a COMPELLING logic for dedicating our FP focus on that region.
Thirdly, the demographic contrast between NK and Mid-East is striking, with NK's population suffering from famine and population growth that is far below "replacement" rates and are facing an aging demographic, while we see much of the Arab world growing at 3%... And 50% of Saudi Arabia's population is below the age of 18...
That means that the Mid-East potentially can provide a large pool of glory seeking young men who can't get jobs for Saddam to control should he obtain a nuclear "shield" to hide behind.
Futhermore, there is no nation that can truly oppose Saddam except the US, Turkey, and Israel... And since he controls the second largest reserves of oil in the region, gaining control over Saudi Arabia alone, even if only through forcing them to align themselves to his rule, would place him in a position to wield incredible economic control over the world economy. A power he would probably wait little time in excersizing..
So forget about N. Korea, PT.. Kim Jong Il wants to get his name in the papers... He's a spoiled child (figuratively and literally) who's screaming for attention. But Bush is right in regionalizing the confrontation with NK, and hopefully forcing the Chinese to control their unruly surrogate.
We have no international authority to confront NK.. Let the UN get involved and pass a binding resolution against NK possessing WMDs.
There is no compelling strategic interest in confronting NK.. In fact, confronting NK might play into the hands of certain leaders in Bejing who are trying to extract leverage related to Taiwan, in exchange for Bejing controlling NK.. And we can't permit that kind of extorsion. So we call Bejing's bluff and see if they really want a war on the Korean peninsula.
And we have a war on terrorism that depends upon defeating Saddam, and using that nation as a springboard to influence regime change (or moderation) in Saudia Arabia, Iran and Syria.
Don't get caught up in all the rhetoric PT.. Know where the priorities of the US lie... Economically and politically..
Hawk |
