Breakthrough in North Korea?

[Foppa]

N. Korea invading Seoul would be the last mistake they'd ever make, unless they did it weaponless and waving a white flag and holding an empty bowl.

[knapplc]

N. Korea invading Seoul would be the last mistake they'd ever make, unless they did it weaponless and waving a white flag and holding an empty bowl.

 

They've done it before.

 

Granted, they didn't do it while the U.S. had such expressed interest in the region, but they had a much wiser leader back then. Today... who knows? I wouldn't have put it past Kim Jung Il to invade, and we really don't know what we're getting with Kim Jong Un.

[The Dude]

A million-man army, no matter how poorly equipped, can make a hell of a mess and cost a lot of money and lives before it's contained. Pretending it's irrelevant is some major-league silliness.

 

Seoul is what? Ten miles from the border? Less? It makes a LOT of sense to keep a close eye on the N. Koreans.

 

Plus, let's not forget that this is a million-man army that is hungry. Even the military in North Korea is getting pared down rations because of their food shortages. The civilians are getting by on weeds and grass. To me, it seems this can make their army either extremely dangerous (in that they're willing to do anything for sustenance), or make them extremely open to surrender (so long as they get treated better than they are now).

Their military won't starve as long as they have their nuke program to blackmail us for food. I think we're in a spot where we have to give Un the benefit of the doubt, and assume this really is a breakthrough, and not just more of the same.

[Sub-Husker]

A paper tiger military could level a city of ten million at will? Your definition of paper tiger must be different than my own.

 

Carl, you are playing stupid again.

 

Go back and read the posts in this thread.

[Sub-Husker]

They've done it before.

 

Granted, they didn't do it while the U.S. had such expressed interest in the region, but they had a much wiser leader back then. Today... who knows? I wouldn't have put it past Kim Jung Il to invade, and we really don't know what we're getting with Kim Jong Un.

 

In a different era with different military reality. There was much more world-wide parity back then.

[carlfense]

A paper tiger military could level a city of ten million at will? Your definition of paper tiger must be different than my own.

 

Carl, you are playing stupid again.

 

Go back and read the posts in this thread.

I read it again.

 

Your statements are still at odds.

 

I asked if North Korea would quit militaristic posturing if we left the Korean peninsula. Somehow you tried to say that NK has plenty of of artillery but little ability to invade or occupy. (Side note: Your answer doesn't really address my question.) I replied with the size of their forces. You said that NK forces sound scary . . . but on paper only. Then you admit that a city of 10 million exists only so long as NK wants it to exist.

 

What am I missing, exactly? And why shouldn't SK worry about a million infantrymen ready to pour over, under, and around their borders and into their cities and mountains? I'm guessing their view of the threat is a bit different from your own.

[knapplc]

A paper tiger military could level a city of ten million at will? Your definition of paper tiger must be different than my own.

 

Carl, you are playing stupid again.

 

Go back and read the posts in this thread.

I read it again.

 

Your statements are still at odds.

 

I asked if North Korea would quit militaristic posturing if we left the Korean peninsula. Somehow you tried to say that NK has plenty of of artillery but little ability to invade or occupy. (Side note: Your answer doesn't really address my question.) I replied with the size of their forces. You said that NK forces sound scary . . . but on paper only. Then you admit that a city of 10 million exists only so long as NK wants it to exist.

 

What am I missing, exactly?

 

I saw the same conundrum and almost commented on it, but realized I'd get the same response you got.

[walksalone]

What makes you think that North Korea would quit their militaristic posturing if the US leaves South Korea?

 

They have almost no ability to invade South Korea and occupy land, all they have is alot of artillery to shell cities.

 

Other than a 1,000,000 man army with almost 100,000 special forces personnel?

 

That sounds scary... but on paper only.

 

Seriously.

 

Never, ever, underestimate your enemy's....

[walksalone]

A paper tiger military could level a city of ten million at will? Your definition of paper tiger must be different than my own.

 

Carl, you are playing stupid again.

 

Go back and read the posts in this thread.

 

That might be a stretch on the "paper tiger" military, but they would make a hell of a mess. And if they were able to "hunker down" in a city, they'd make it hard as hell to dig em all out without destroying a good part of the city in the process

[walksalone]

They've done it before.

 

Granted, they didn't do it while the U.S. had such expressed interest in the region, but they had a much wiser leader back then. Today... who knows? I wouldn't have put it past Kim Jung Il to invade, and we really don't know what we're getting with Kim Jong Un.

 

In a different era with different military reality. There was much more world-wide parity back then.

 

I guess you don't realize that if you're one of the guys in the 2nd Infantry, sitting on the DMZ, if North Korea launched an all out assault, your life expectancy is roughly 30 seconds.

 

The underestimation of an enemy is the quickest way to lose a fight.

[HSKR]

n a related note, VICE.TV site has a nice multi-piece documentary on a journalist's trip into North Korea. Worth a look if you have an hour or so to kill.

The VICE piece was excellent. Scary . . . but excellent.

 

Thanks for mentioning that piece Matthew, just watched it and agree with Carl, very scary but at the same time very very sad that they live like that.

[HuskerShark]

I would love for the world to have a Jackie Moon mentality toward each other. I'm really not much for wars. I just don't want to see world-wide chaos, especially not this year. I do not want Nostradamus to be right...

[carlfense]

n a related note, VICE.TV site has a nice multi-piece documentary on a journalist's trip into North Korea. Worth a look if you have an hour or so to kill.

The VICE piece was excellent. Scary . . . but excellent.

 

Thanks for mentioning that piece Matthew, just watched it and agree with Carl, very scary but at the same time very very sad that they live like that.

I haven't seen it for a long time but if it's the one with the captured US intel ship and the tea shop out in the middle of nowhere . . . just bizarre.

[carlfense]

That might be a stretch on the "paper tiger" military, but they would make a hell of a mess. And if they were able to "hunker down" in a city, they'd make it hard as hell to dig em all out without destroying a good part of the city in the process

That's my concern. Our military is still not particularly well suited for urban warfare and fighting guerilla style combat in mountainous terrain.

[HSKR]

n a related note, VICE.TV site has a nice multi-piece documentary on a journalist's trip into North Korea. Worth a look if you have an hour or so to kill.

The VICE piece was excellent. Scary . . . but excellent.

 

Thanks for mentioning that piece Matthew, just watched it and agree with Carl, very scary but at the same time very very sad that they live like that.

I haven't seen it for a long time but if it's the one with the captured US intel ship and the tea shop out in the middle of nowhere . . . just bizarre.

 

Yep that's it. Most of the the people there have no idea what the world is outside their borders.