And now we see the wisdom of the “preemptive doctrine” of George Bush and the neo-cons: war in Afghanistan which is rapidly falling back into the hands of the Taliban. War in Iraq which has turned into a quagmire that no one sees a way out of. Posturing toward Iran. And now, North Korea threatening war and shaking their nuclear sabre.
That last one I am hesitant to blame solely on Bush — although his policy of preemptive strikes has created the perfect atmosphere for the completely insane dictator there to justify his actions.
It was simple for the neo-cons to go after Saddam Hussein, a dictator who looks downright democratic when compared to Kim Jong Il. Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction, so it was easy for the White House to claim he did as an excuse to invade. If the White House had any real evidence that Iraq possessed nuclear weapons, there would have been no invasion for fear of Hussein using the bomb against Israel. The WMD argument was a self-defeating one.
Now, here comes North Korea. They have claimed now that any punitive measures against them for testing a nuclear weapon will be considered an act of war. Of course, this is the country that is still, officially, at war with South Korea. That perpetual cease-fire might be coming to an end soon.
Now, I know very little about the geopolitics of Asia; it seems obvious that the people of South Korea are under threat right now, but perhaps that’s not the place to watch. After all, that is the most fortified border in the world. No, North Korea has been working its way toward missiles and nuclear weapons so that they don’t have to invade south. Those missiles will fly toward Japan. And what’s to stop Kim Jong Il from claiming — as the “leader of the free world” does — that he has the right to preemptively attack aggressors?
Still, North Korea telling the U.S. to end its “hostile attitude” is like Madonna telling Britney Spears to put her clothes back on.
And although common sense tells me that they certainly can’t lob a missile as far as San Francisco, that doesn’t stop me from shuddering a little.
First Bush brought back the cold warriors from the Reagan years.
Now, they’ve brought back the cold war itself.
