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April 8, 2009
FSM Reader Extra: Top Takes on Global Security What Are the Implications of the North Korean Missile Launch?
Carol A. Taber
The world well knows that virtually any launch of missile technology is a presentation of its capabilities for those wishing to buy (read: Iran). Further, the launch is full of lessons to be learned for its creator, whether or not the launch "succeeds". In either case our tolerating this launch, while asking the UN merely to wave papers at the North Koreans in response, is a dereliction of duty and inexcusable.
- Carol A. Taber is President of FamilySecurityMatters.org.
Christopher G. Adamo
I find it interesting that the North Koreans resorted to the lame excuse that this missile test was being conducted to develop a satellite launch vehicle. That's the exact excuse used by Bill Clinton to justify his treasonous sale of U.S. technology to China through Loral Space Systems (See David Limbaugh's book Absolute Power). Clinton and his minions knew that the technology needed to launch a satellite into orbit is identical to that needed to lob a nuclear warhead into the next continent. Only the targeting information is different. As a matter of fact, up until the development of America's Saturn series of moon rockets, every major U.S. launch vehicle, whether for satellites or manned spacecraft, was a slightly modified ICBM. These North Koreans are apparently quick learners.
- Christopher G. Adamo is a freelance writer living in southeastern Wyoming, where he has been active in local and state politics for many years.
Walter Anderson
In my opinion, the North Koreans have tested not only the rocket and how far it would go, but also how far they could go with the new president, Barack H. Obama. Guess what – they got further with President Obama than they did with the rocket. It is apparent that even though the rocket fell short of its mission, their test of the new President was a success. It showed that his response to the possible threat of a North Korean missile launch that could reach our shores was weak and without force. All the bluster and fancy words that he could muster fell short of making an impression on North Korea and/or other enemies of the United States because they now understand that our untested President has been tested – and he failed!
- Walter Anderson has an extensive background in business, served in the Marine Corps, and is experienced in grassroots political activism.
James Jay Carafano, PhD
By any measure the North Korean test represents a significant advance in its ballistic missile program – forget what the New York Times says – the threat is real and growing – and the administration is whistling past the graveyard by dismissing the threat. Announcing a 1.4 billion dollar cut of missile defense one day after the launch sends all the wrong signals.
- James Jay Carafano, Ph.D., is a leading expert in defense affaires, intelligence, military operations and strategy, and homeland security at the Heritage Foundation.
Alan Caruba
The firing of the missile by North Korea essentially neuters both the United Nations and the United States, demonstrating their inability or unwillingness to take either direct action against the missile site or by tightening economic sanctions. Over the years, the U.S. has provided millions in humanitarian aid to North Korea and received nothing in return so far as their proliferation of weapons is concerned.
- Alan Caruba writes a weekly column posted on the Internet site of The National Anxiety Center.
Kay Day
No response – from President Barack Obama or from the United Nations – has been adequate, not even close. North Korea's launch was an insult to the world, the equivalent of a rocket-sized middle finger. We should not have resumed humanitarian aid to this country; America should not aid countries that break the peace or ignore UN sanctions. Only when dictators are held accountable by their people will hostile politics direct to the proper target. This latest infraction is another in a long line of impotent responses by the UN, and it is yet another affirmation we should withdraw from a world body that once had a great ideal but has now outlived its usefulness and some might say, its moral core, that last being manifested by the International Atomic Energy Agency's admission that US aid had "indirectly" gone to help fund Iran's nuclear "program."*
*As reported by he Wall Street Journal March 31, 2009 [A-3] and subsequently ignored by established and pop media.
- Kay Day is a writer, poet and freelance correspondent for the Florida Times Union.
Lee Ellis
No, I do not think the response was appropriate. Many pundits, including me, have suggested in the past that it will take the destruction of an American city to wake up Americans again to the fact that there are evil people in this world who want to kill and maim innocent men, women and children here in the U.S. in order to destroy our economy and world leadership. A majority of American citizens have already been mesmerized by a clever orator and campaigner who promised “Hope and Change” without defining it, similar to what happened in Germany in the late ‘30s, allowing the Hitler regime to flourish. The so-called promised diplomacy has turned out to be a mere emulation of Neville Chamberlain’s claim in 1938 of “Peace in our time.” Thus, the Dictators of Iran, North Korea and other terrorist nations are laughing at our naiveté. We know that Kim Jong-Il is considered by many leaders as demented and determined to attack the U.S. with a nuclear missile. Newt Gingrich stated that the launch should have been stopped by either a special ops team or by one of our defense missiles from a ship. President Obama did nothing. He is still a clever campaigner but sadly, he knows nothing about governing or management since he has never had any experience or knowledge of such. The Peter Principle* is at work again. The implications: While North Korea failed to get a satellite into orbit, it did prove that it now has the ability to bomb a major city on our West Coast. If this does not wake up America, nothing will. The Spirit of 1776 (and 9/12) will have died forever!
*Peter Principal: The theory that employees within an organization will advance to their highest level of competence and then be promoted to and remain at a level at which they are incompetent.
- Lee Ellis is a retired journalist, narrator, and formerly a Vice President with both CBS and Gannett (USA Weekend). He can be contacted at indiolee@dc.rr.com.
Tom McLaughlin
We need anti-missile technology more than ever before, yet President Obama is cutting it back in proposed budget. The Missile Defense Agency is losing $1.5 billion, including development of a laser anti-missile system for a 747. Meanwhile, he tells an audience in Prague he’s not being naive in his vision of a world without nuclear weapons, though maybe not in his lifetime. It’s this lifetime the rest of us are worried about, though. Maybe he thinks he can sit down with Kim Jong-Il and reason it out, especially if he brings Michelle along.
We need anti-missile technology more than ever before, yet President Obama is cutting it back in proposed budget. The Missile Defense Agency is losing $1.5 billion, including development of a laser anti-missile system for a 747. Meanwhile, he tells an audience in Prague he’s not being naive in his vision of a world without nuclear weapons, though maybe not in his lifetime. It’s this lifetime the rest of us are worried about, though. Maybe he thinks he can sit down with Kim Jong-Il and reason it out, especially if he brings Michelle along.
- Tom McLaughlin is a history teacher and a regular weekly columnist for newspapers in Maine and New Hampshire. He writes about political and social issues, history, family, education and Radical Islam. E-mail him at tommclaughlin@fairpoint.net
Tom Ordeman, Jr.
In the 1990s, North Korea began harassing its neighbors with ballistic missile tests and belligerent rhetoric. President Clinton sent former-President Carter to ply North Korea with carrots in order to get them to stop – an errand for which Carter received the Nobel Peace Prize. Once the ink was dry, North Korea ignored the agreement and resumed missile testing. President Bush sent more diplomats to offer more carrots, during which time North Korea built its nuclear program, constructed a few bombs, tested a few missiles, and then dismantled its reactor in exchange for those carrots. Once the ink was dry, North Korea ignored the agreement, resumed missile testing, and allegedly began rebuilding a clandestine nuclear program. Now, President Obama has taken office, and North Korea has once again resumed its belligerent rhetoric and missile tests. While use of the proverbial stick may not be appropriate just yet, one thing is clear: those pesky carrots just don't seem to be doing the trick.
In the 1990s, North Korea began harassing its neighbors with ballistic missile tests and belligerent rhetoric. President Clinton sent former-President Carter to ply North Korea with carrots in order to get them to stop – an errand for which Carter received the Nobel Peace Prize. Once the ink was dry, North Korea ignored the agreement and resumed missile testing. President Bush sent more diplomats to offer more carrots, during which time North Korea built its nuclear program, constructed a few bombs, tested a few missiles, and then dismantled its reactor in exchange for those carrots. Once the ink was dry, North Korea ignored the agreement, resumed missile testing, and allegedly began rebuilding a clandestine nuclear program. Now, President Obama has taken office, and North Korea has once again resumed its belligerent rhetoric and missile tests. While use of the proverbial stick may not be appropriate just yet, one thing is clear: those pesky carrots just don't seem to be doing the trick.
- Tom Ordeman, Jr. is a technical writer for a major defense contractor in Hampton Roads, Virginia.
Frank Salvato
North Korea’s launch of a multi-stage intercontinental missile presents several troubling issues that would take more space than allotted here. But one issue that needs to be recognized is that their actions were meant to serve as an advertisement for their missile program; an advertisement aimed at nations such as Syria and Iran. The fact that the UN Security Council has failed to act in an immediate fashion sends the message that North Korea can safely assume it can execute business as usual with the most nefarious nations on the planet. This also spotlights the folly of President Obama’s attempt to “talk with our enemies.” It should be crystal clear to Mr. Obama – and the world – that any ingenuous attempt at reaching out verbally to rogue nations will only be interpreted as a sign of weakness and a signal that the United States remains, as Osama bin Laden noted before September 11, 2001, a paper tiger.
North Korea’s launch of a multi-stage intercontinental missile presents several troubling issues that would take more space than allotted here. But one issue that needs to be recognized is that their actions were meant to serve as an advertisement for their missile program; an advertisement aimed at nations such as Syria and Iran. The fact that the UN Security Council has failed to act in an immediate fashion sends the message that North Korea can safely assume it can execute business as usual with the most nefarious nations on the planet. This also spotlights the folly of President Obama’s attempt to “talk with our enemies.” It should be crystal clear to Mr. Obama – and the world – that any ingenuous attempt at reaching out verbally to rogue nations will only be interpreted as a sign of weakness and a signal that the United States remains, as Osama bin Laden noted before September 11, 2001, a paper tiger.
- Frank Salvato is the managing editor for The New Media Journal. He serves at the Executive Director of the Basics Project, a non-profit, non-partisan, 501(C)(3) research and education initiative.
Nancy Salvato
President Obama responded to North Korea’s Missile launch by issuing a statement.
“We will continue working for the verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula through the Six-Party Talks. The Six-Party Talks provide the forum for achieving denuclearization, reducing tensions, and for resolving other issues of concern between North Korea, its four neighbors, and the United States.”
What do I think of this? My mind is going a million miles a second. I think of how every teacher understands that in order to establish control in a classroom the students need to know who is in charge. A teacher has to back up words with actions. A good teacher establishes clear boundaries so that students understand what is expected of them and what will not be tolerated. On the world stage, our President has not established any appearance of authority. He has waffled. He is a weak man. This in contrast to President Reagan, whose ideology was peace through strength, not negotiation through appeasement.
My mind drifts to our President prostrating himself for Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah. Did President Obama give the same deference to our staunch allies in Britain? Let’s see, he gave the Prime Minister 30 DVDs and the Queen an iPod. I can imagine our President in his teenage years, seeking approval of those who didn’t want his company and slighting those who extend their friendship. Will he shun Israel? Is he Judas, will he betray them?
Our President has evidenced a stunted adolescent’s understanding of the impact of his words and actions in the world theater.
He responded to North Korea with words. He has apologized for our country’s actions. Because of his ignorance, the United States is at a great disadvantage in these troubled times.
President Obama responded to North Korea’s Missile launch by issuing a statement.
“We will continue working for the verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula through the Six-Party Talks. The Six-Party Talks provide the forum for achieving denuclearization, reducing tensions, and for resolving other issues of concern between North Korea, its four neighbors, and the United States.”
What do I think of this? My mind is going a million miles a second. I think of how every teacher understands that in order to establish control in a classroom the students need to know who is in charge. A teacher has to back up words with actions. A good teacher establishes clear boundaries so that students understand what is expected of them and what will not be tolerated. On the world stage, our President has not established any appearance of authority. He has waffled. He is a weak man. This in contrast to President Reagan, whose ideology was peace through strength, not negotiation through appeasement.
My mind drifts to our President prostrating himself for Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah. Did President Obama give the same deference to our staunch allies in Britain? Let’s see, he gave the Prime Minister 30 DVDs and the Queen an iPod. I can imagine our President in his teenage years, seeking approval of those who didn’t want his company and slighting those who extend their friendship. Will he shun Israel? Is he Judas, will he betray them?
Our President has evidenced a stunted adolescent’s understanding of the impact of his words and actions in the world theater.
He responded to North Korea with words. He has apologized for our country’s actions. Because of his ignorance, the United States is at a great disadvantage in these troubled times.
- Nancy Salvato is the President of The Basics Project. She is also a Staff Writer, for the New Media Alliance, Inc., a non-profit (501c3)coalitionof writers and grass-roots media outlets, where she contributes on matters of education policy.
Tim Wilson
In the development of both ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons there are no "failures" as each test provides another step towards achieving a successful weapon. This was not just a test for North Korea, this was also a ballistic missile test for Iran, Syria and perhaps even Pakistan, Cuba and Venezuela. The threat to America and Europe is increased considerably by the proliferation of such weapons by such rogue states, and North Korea is the worst of the bunch. It is also an almost criminal condemnation of the U.S. Government that under successive Presidents, the State Department has continued with diplomatic efforts which have been such an abysmal failure.
The latest moves "condemning" North Korea for this test are only the latest in a long history of condemnations which have left us in more danger than ever. President Obama's comments in Prague that "words must have meaning," is true. To give words meaning, more than condemnation is required, yet State Department diplomacy has not even managed to generate a statement of condemnation by the United Nations Security Council. This is a time for action, which speaks louder than words! We must unilaterally invoke full sanctions, restore Treasury Department investigations into North Korean finances (especially counterfeiting and drug smuggling), cut off all aid, including any which flows through the United Nations and urge our allies to stand with us in a complete isolation of North Korea.
We should also place assets, along with our Japanese allies, to ensure the early failure of any future launches by destruction. A firm stand on these lines might persuade China and Russia we mean business and thus to apply pressure on North Korea to cease and desist from any further development. Even so, .U.S-led isolation would hurt the regime of Kim Jong-Il and would therefore be worthwhile. This is a test of the resolve of President Obama. The world and the American people are watching to see if he can act as well as he talks.
- Tim Wilson is a retired British Army officer who now works as an independent consultant.
Brought to you by the editors and research staff of FamilySecurityMatters.org.
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