There Is A Way To Neutralize North Korea...

...And that is what really scares me.

Actually, there's probably more than just one or two, but it's the category of what many of them might fall into that is terrifying.

One approach that I can think of involves diplomacy. All of the others I can think of do not.

I'm not going to put a label on what the others are because that's not important at this point. Let me just say that the one in particular that occurs to me in the "other" category, and for which there are no doubt a number of variations, would involve terrible loss of life. It would, however, also have a, at least modestly confident, good probability of success rating, as it relates to limiting direct collateral damage inflicted on South Korea. And because that's all that really needs to be said here, will go into no further detail.

What scares me here is that our de facto ex president may well not care that much about the terrible loss of life involved, nor be able to understand any of the intricacies of the risks such a unilateral action might involve, if this "other" category approach were actually implemented. Which then begs the question of who would stand up to stop him but, important though that might be, it's not the note I want to leave you with.

That note involves the diplomacy approach. In a nutshell, as far as I can see, our only real option is to build a new, and better relationship with China. If you would take the time to go back and see, you will find three or four posts explaining how we could do this to both of our benefits; and regardless of the very real ideological differences we have. The simple fact of the matter is that they have always been a world class culture, now it's time for us to truly recognize them as a world class player in all global negotiations.

The point here is that without China nothing in that region of the world can have truly integrated solutions, and because of their economy, that includes the rest of the world as well. That is just the way it is. On the environment. On peaceful energy development. On peaceful space development. On equitable distribution of increasingly scarce resources; all of it. We need them as trusted partners, not as constantly bickering, near enemies. And in the long run, just you be sure. That's the only way this world is going to survive. Because it will take them, and the Europeans, and the South Americans, the Africans, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, the Pacific Rim, and even Russia, though that might take a bit more time.

In short, diplomacy should always be the default method of operation here. With what is happening in regards to the State Department's budget, though, we can have what ought to be chilling confidence that this is no longer the default at all.

I would urge you to demand of your full Congressional delegation that money be restored to the State Department budget, and that further legislation be drafted insisted that the de facto ex president be prohibited from taking any "other" category approach to North Korea without at least several key committee, major majority agreement.

President Donald Trump Says US Can Solve North Korea Without China | Morning Joe | MSNBC