Did N. Korea do the right thing?

[Feanor]

...
I agree though, I doubt NK will ever fire a Nuke off - the inevitable retaliation would end the regime. I'm just worried about a few crazy terrorists strapping warheads to their chests and walking into a football stadium somewhere....

It's all posturing on the part of NK. They don't intent to attack anybody; the real risk is that they sell weapons to people to do. NK has a long history of success successful threats followed by appeasement; this only the latest cycle. The US and Japan have had enough but it seems China and Russia aren't yet ready to draw the line.

As for MAD, well, the best thing that can be said is that it worked while the players were supers powers. It might be different tale when a bunch of smaller states or even orgs like Al-Qaeda get hold of them.

[bobsticks]

Well, gosh and gee, we could talk about the Hitleresque tendencies of that bizarre, little man in charge over there. We could view the videos of the soldiers goose-stepping...

We could talk about about the fact that Japan and China, two countries which loathe one another so much so that they tend to go to war every 900 years actually agree that the PRNK has crossed the line (figuratively)...

We could talk about the fact that Japan and Russia who were still technically fighting WWII until the fall of the Soviet Republic actually agree that the PRNK is in the wrong...

We could battle over the intentions of NK, even though Feonor is probably correct in that the true intent is pure bribery...

But, surely we can all agree that a country that has to borrow hundreds of millions of dollars a year merely to feed its people could find more humanitarian uses for its resources than nuclear development...and before you ask, I am unconditionally against all nuclear weapons anywhere, anytime, owned by anybody.