First, the Kimchee GI informs us of some of the USFK role changes happening on the Korean Peninsula, namely, how U.S. forces will no longer be patrolling the DMZ after this year. He also links to a site run by former members of the 2nd Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, which patrolled along the Demilitarized Zone between the Korean War and the Nixon-era USFK reductions. Anyway, it’s got some great pics and even better stories.
Next, both the Kimchee GI and the Infidel discuss this NYT piece reporting that Pakistan’s Dr. Nuke has testified that he personally saw three North Korean nuclear devices during a visit to the DPRK. The Chosun Ilbo, naturally enough, was more than a little concerned as well. Personally, I’m not sure if I really care, even if the report is true. Of course, I’m not so hot on nonproliferation to begin with, and I really don’t see how North Korea’s possession of nuclear weapons changes anything. Sure, it could proliferate, but then again, Pakistan seems to be doing a good enough job at that already, and unlike Pakistan, the North Koreans have to assume that a North Korean nuclear attack (or an attack with a weapon traced back to North Korea) would result in South Korea becoming an island. Sure, I’d prefer North Korea without nukes, but then again, I’d prefer North Korea without a lot of things, namely, its supplies of biological and chemical weapons, its forward deployed artillery (much of it probably aimed just across the street from my house) and its 22 special ops divisions which are trained to wreak havoc in South Korea. Heck, I’d rather North Korea just cease to exist; the knowledge that one day it will helps keep me sane. Unless we invade North Korea, however, there is probably very little we can do to prevent North Korea from wasting more money on useless weapons systems, assuming North Korea is hell bent on driving its economy further in the tank than it already is.
