North Korea threatens war.... again.

First of all, why is this little showdown between North and South Korea over a sunken South Korean warship not gaining a little more attention in the media. It seems that a few tar balls washing up in Key West is more important than the implications involved in this strutting contest in the Pacific. First may I remind readers that North and South Korea have never signed a formal treaty, and are still, technically, at war. Second is the fact that we have a large military presence in South Korea, and are tied by treaty to defend them in war. Thirdly we have a senile dictator in charge of the North who may wish to go out in a blaze of glory. And forthly, we have a weak government in Washington that may not have the stomach or balls to stand up to the North as we should. And now for a little background.

Tensions deepened today on the Korean peninsula as South Korea accused North Korea of firing a torpedo that sank a naval warship, killing 46 sailors in the country's worst military disaster since the Korean War. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak vowed "stern action" for the provocation following the release of long-awaited results from a multinational investigation into the March 26 sinking near the Koreas' tense maritime border. North Korea, reacting swiftly, called the results a fabrication, and warned that any retaliation would trigger war. It continued to deny involvement in the sinking of the warship Cheonan.
"If the (South Korean) enemies try to deal any retaliation or punishment, or if they try sanctions or a strike on us .... we will answer to this with all-out war," Col. Pak In Ho of North Korea's navy told broadcaster APTN in an exclusive interview in Pyongyang.An international civilian-military investigation team said evidence overwhelmingly proves a North Korean submarine fired a homing torpedo that caused a massive underwater blast that tore the Cheonan apart. Fifty-eight sailors were rescued from the frigid Yellow Sea waters, but 46 perished. Since the 1950-53 war on the Korean peninsula ended in a truce rather than a peace treaty, the two Koreas remain locked in a state of war and divided by the world's most heavily armed border. The United States currently has 28,500 troops in South Korea, and thousands more in Japan which is in range of North Korean missiles. The exchange of war rhetoric raised tensions, but the isolated communist regime - already under international pressure to cease its nuclear weapons program - often warns of dire consequences against South Korea or Washington for any punitive steps against it. Its large but decrepit military would be no match for U.S. and Korean forces. The impoverished country is already chafing from international sanctions tightened last year in the wake of widely condemned nuclear and missile tests. U.N. sanctions currently block funding to certain officials and companies, while North Korea is barred from exporting weapons and countries are authorized to inspect North Korean ships suspected of carrying illicit cargo. The Obama White House called the sinking an unacceptable "act of aggression" that violates international law and the 1953 truce. Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama declared his support for South Korea, calling North Korea's actions "inexcusable." China, North Korea's traditional ally, called the sinking of the naval ship "unfortunate" but stopped short of backing Seoul.