On The Third Hand

I think most of us assumed they had them - now they’ve proved it. One good thing - sounds like China is NOT happy with them. (Neither is anyone else - except, probably, Iran.)

Instapundit has some good links.

Wizbang is following a rumor that they may be about to do a second test.

My biggest worry for the US is that they might sell their nukes to someone… like Iran.

A Snarl From The Den……..

When you read THIS [Iran] and THIS [NKor], it brings back to the front burner a very serious threat of not just ordinary terrorism, but the distinct possibility of threats of entire huge sections of the globe being held hostage through intimidation, and, in the case of NKor, being harmed for real.

Be Aware !!

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR !!

N Korea says it blew up mountain

Blew up a mountain, eh? Where are the eco-freaks when you need them?

Pictures of the destruction caused by the train wreck. Not graphic. According to NKZone, all dead and wounded were removed before pictures were permitted. Also, pictures are all taken by aid workers, no actual journalists were allowed in. Note that NKZone is also reporting that foreign doctors offering to help are being refused.

It’s difficult to get news out of North Korea. There are two blogs following the story closely, reporting both official news and rumors (and they are labeling rumors as rumors). NKzone (latest update is here)and The Marmot’s Hole (the latest update is here).

The Command Post is also following the story. They have a good roundup here. (They also led me to the Marmot’s Hole, which led me to NKZone… )

The official North Korean News agency is, of course, not reporting the story at all.

N. Korea to Let U.S. Experts See Nuke Site

SEOUL, South Korea - North Korea (news - web sites) has agreed to allow a U.S. delegation to visit its main nuclear complex next week, a South Korean official said Friday.
The trip, first reported Friday by USA Today, would mark the first time outsiders have been allowed to inspect North Korea’s main nuclear facilities at Yongbyon, north of Pyongyang, since the communist country expelled U.N. nuclear monitors in late 2002.
USA Today reported that Washington approved the trip and it was scheduled for Jan. 6-10. The newspaper said the U.S. delegation would include Sig Hecker, director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory from 1985 to 1997. The laboratory produced the first U.S. nuclear bomb.
“The report is true,” an official at the South Korean Foreign Ministry said. “The U.S. side has informed us of the trip.”
Jason Rebholz, a spokesman of the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, said he had no information on the trip and could not comment on the news report.

I’m taking this with a grain of salt until I hear it confirmed (note that the only named official says he has no information on this).

Hasn’t been forgotten. Nor should it be. Today is the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Armistice.

The link is well worth a look, and some thought.

50th anniversary. And we are still there. Korea could be called a quagmire. But South Korea isn’t a bad place to be at all. Those who are already jumping up and down and screaming ‘quagmire’ about Iraq have no knowledge of history, and certainly no sense of time.

Thanks to Avocare for the link.

Nth Korea warns Australia of nuclear strike

The executive director of the Centre for Korean-American Peace, Kim Myong-Chol, says if US ships interdict North Korean vessels, North Korea will retaliate with a nuclear missile attack on major cities such as New York and Washington.
Mr Myong-Chol has told the ABC’s Lateline program that if Australia is part of the interdiction, it could also be attacked.
“If Australia becomes part of American manipulation against North Korea, North Korea reserves the right to strike back on Australia - that is official North Korean position,” he said.
He added: “North Korea can reach Australian mainland anytime. Unfortunately, Australia has no capacity to reach North Korea.”

Seems, sir, you don’t quite realize what would happen if NK attacked Australia (even without attacking the US). Australia might not be able to reach North Korea but the US certainly can. And, I further assure you, we would.

(By the way, isn’t it interesting that no one ever mentions our submarines?)

Dishing the dirt on Kim Jong Il

A Japanese sushi chef who served the reclusive North Korean leader, Kim Jong Il, has written a book exposing his former employer’s violent temper, desire to develop nuclear weapons, and the tortuous, four-day long banquets at which the premier would order his “entertainment squad” to dance naked.

Sounds like a nice guy, eh?

Link thanks to Paul Jané

A  Shriek  From  The  Den……..

The food situation in NKor is getting so bad they are now peddling human flesh!

The D-T has the gruesome and disgusting details; that totally fuxxored dictator they have has prevented the UN from finding out what’s going on, too.

[hat tip: Conrad]

Avocare has some disturbing thoughts about what North Korea may be trying to do.