Another earth-shattering KABOOM from North Korea

Looks like Hillary has decided to let the Big Dog out:

Bill Clinton Begins Rescue Mission in North Korea

I wish him luck. Twelve years of hard labor in a DPRK work camp is tantamount to a death sentence.

Seems the negotiations are going well. Someone just snapped a photo of both parties.

1716761-400_clinton.jpg
 
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Clinton looks like he means business.

Kim Jong looks like he needs to take care of some business.....in the bathroom.
 
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I guess this proves that Kim Jong Il isn't as dead as a lot of media experts thought. He does look like he could use a little more fiber though.
 
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Looking at that picture I'd say he needs less fiber.
 
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I hear the husbands and relatives are asking the Pope to negotiate a separate compartment for the ladies on the way home. ;)
 
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I can think of only one explanation: The gene pool in DPRK has got to be getting a little shallow, and Willie offered a widespread donation of DNA in return for a crate of Asian porn, the 2 reporters, and a shortstop to be named later.
 
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Chalk one up for Bill Clinton! Damn! What took him so long? ;)
 
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It's very simple. Kim Jong had wanted to meet with Clinton right before he left office, but it didn't happen. He just figured out a way to sate his need for attention. Kidnap some US folks to coerce a visit from Bill. ;)

Think spoiled child and you can understand Kim Jong.
 
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What sort of biting would be appropriate? More sanctions? A complete trade embargo?
And thus, we highlight yet another weakness of that spineless entity. Thanks for finishing the alley-oop.

Rules without consequences aren't even rules. We'll see if someone over there in Talkie Central has the nuts to keep these "strong rules" from becoming the laughing stock I've said they are all along.
 
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So what kind of consequences would you see that are stronger than the current ones? There arent a whole lot of option open when dealing with an extremely isolated rogue state.

Freezing of (the very limited) NK assets abroad? Done.
Seizing ships involved in illegal arms trade? Done.
Travel restrictins for top regime men? Done AFAIK.
A shooting war? Not on the table with Kim literally pointing a gun at Seoul.

In the healtcare debate you are demanding concrete suggestions from those who want to move from the staus quo, so maybe you could suggest some alternative here rather than calling for some vague change, St Barack devotee style.:p
 
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There's really no way out now. They've painted themselves into a corner by four decades of empty threats against a regime that recognizes them for exactly what they are.

Sanctions don't work with a leadership that's nuts and has little stake in the welfare of their own citizens. Never have, never will.

So, to (sorta not) answer your question, I don't really know how to recover from the complete failure the UN has created. What I do know is that, when you find yourself in a hole, stop digging. We pissed away our chance at winning a shooting war back in the 50's, so I'd probably go with a hugs-n-kisses leftie response and throw open the doors and hope for the best. It's not like DPRK can get any more dangerous, and we're clearly not doing a good job keeping them from anything (listen to the KABOOMs), so about the only angle left is a barrel of carrots. It's a crappy solution, but the UN is just embarassing themselves by continuing to screw the pooch with empty words.
 
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At least they actually seized the ship and searched it--that's a step beyond just saying "Please don't do that," which is were it seems we've been for awhile.

I have no idea if any of these new sanctions will have a huge impact but at least the stuff in the following quote *is* an escalation, and a bit beyond what we've seen earlier. It may yet have some affect--I would think getting your assets frozen would be fairly awkward.

The Security Council imposed tough new sanctions on North Korea on June 12, strengthening an arms embargo and authorizing ship searches on the high seas to try to rein in its nuclear program after Pyongyang's second nuclear test on May 25, violating a council resolution adopted after its first nuclear blast in 2006.

The council also has ordered an asset freeze and travel ban on companies and individuals involved in the country's nuclear and weapons programs — and put five North Korean officials, four companies and a state agency on the sanctions list. Three other companies were put on the list after Pyongyang launched a rocket on April 5...
 
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