Yes! Someone does know.

He's short, fat, and has a goofy hair cut.

I suspect that the reason is multifactorial. His successful launches, for example, have had unsuccessful re-entery (burn up). He has cratered some of his underground test sites. He wants a NK Mc Donalds, and then there's that other Donald.

I don't think you get my point. We have told them that we will not allow them to have a deliverable nuclear weapon that can reach US soil. That represents two possibilities, either they give them up, or we take them out. There is no doubt in anyone's mind that they would lose a military confrontation with us. I don't think they are stupid, therefore they see they have no choice. Kim knows he will die if it comes to that, so maybe he's motivated to save his own ass.

We don't know, but you would be a fool to dismiss it out of hand.

Let me see if I understand you. By having a viable nuclear program with a weapon that can reach the U.S., you believe that North Korea believes that we will attack them?

Is that correct?

I don't think they have one that is capable of that at this point in time. I think they believe that there will come a point in time where we deem them to be too much of a risk and decide to go after the weapons ourselves. I am certain that we have many strategies for attacking North Korea.

Hey now java... You don't deer hunt, do ya? :D

read: you're going to spook the thin-skinners here. ;)

Again, pure fantasy. Seriously, no one believes this, no one. North Korea doesn't. China doesn't, Mattis doesn't. No one believes we will attack North Korea for having a nuclear weapon that will reach US soil. No one. Certainly not the North Koreans or the Chinese.

Nope. I let the deer live out their lives however they see fit. I would rather eat a cow than a deer.

You know this how?

Because it's patently silly and has no basis in reality.

North Korea (via Bill Clinton) signed a no nuke deal with the US. --clearly they broke this treaty.

North Korea has seen how surgical our strikes are.

North Korea has seen Trump drop a MOAB on terrorists in a mountain.

So when you say No one believes we will attack North Korea for having a nuclear weapon that will reach US soil. No one. you are simply projecting YOUR fantasy. :)

Just a thing about the latest Kim... He did not grow up in NK. And I expect that he doesn't want to live in a shlthole.

Oh, and Saddam was GD CERTAIN that the US would not take him out. --he had a deal with France to always vote NO in the UN.

Yeah...

Muammar Gaddafi ?

All he did wrong was piss-off Hillary. :cool:

You'd be surprised what our military is capable of and what we do that does not make the news.

We've also been somewhat aggressive in the past and perhaps have pissed away chances for realistically ending the conflict, many many decades ago.

There's a lot you may not know about North Korea. Do a Google search on "abrogation of paragraph 13 D", for your bedtime reading tonight. Take careful note of the type and quantity of weapons we introduced to the Korean Peninsula as a result.

I see. Equating dropping a bomb on ISIS protected by the Afghani goverment is very much the same as attacking North Korea protected by our largest trading partner and 1st/2nd largest economy in the world. Yes, that is a good comparison. Go with that.

Does anyone know why North Korea is willing to discuss denuclearization?

Yeah shaun, let's pretend that China cares whether the latest Kim lives or dies. :rolleyes:

Personally I think this is Kim’s way out of the lose-lose scenario he has created for himself. If he creates a viable nuclear weapon and delivery system, it doesn’t elevate him in any way in the world. That’s just more sanctions, more sabre rattling, more people starving, and his position at the top of a crumbling dictatorship getting very precarious. Which is best case, worst case is some sort of conflict to disable the capability, which is not far fetched. But if he gives up his nukes, makes a deal with the USA that opens up trade, money, investment, and opens his society to the west....he’s a hero. Also a very rich hero, and he gets the connection to the west that he supposedly craves. It’s widely rumored that he attended a western university under a false identity, I don’t think he hates our society like many think.

Let's examine another reason why China may be a player here. If we can get rid of Kim's nukes and the two Koreas can eventually formally end the war and perhaps normalize relations, there will be little or no need for us to maintain a troop presence there. That would be in China's interest, perhaps that is more important to them as they attempt to militarize that part of the world than any benefit they get from being "friends" with North Korea.

I think this is a fair assessment Matt. Not as much fruit on the nuclear program tree as there used to be.

But I don't think you can say crumbling dictatorship. No evidence of that. And we aren't going to attack China's little buddy. No one thinks that.

I think it's all about money flowing into NK, from our perspective anyway, and theirs, but I am very interested in China's plans. NK has been China's banana republic for ages. Why would they let us co-opt some of it? That's what I want to know.