They always do that in order to get more international aid.. even being a bit crazy, they know that they can be vanished from the map in a couple minutes if they start a war... so they just play to get some advantages..

Mainstream media is hyping the threat of an EMP (electro magnetic pulse) attack on the US by North Korea. The suggestion is an EMP will take out all infra structure including the banking system. Me thinks this may be a good excuse for the usual suspects to follow the Cyprus model of pillaging bank deposits while making North Korea the scapegoat.

http://p.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/dec/19/north-korea-emp-attack-could-destroy-us-now/?page=all

@mintcheerios

:-) Good photos, hope they'll have courage to press red button as this world really needs some method to return to reality.

And its well known by now that the Fearless Leader enjoys using apple products http://www.nknews.org/2013/03/breaking-north-korean-photo-reveals-u-s-mainland-strike-plan/

@mintcheerios

Well there's some precedence here - the Ewoks were able to take out the evil Empire with slingshots. ;)

What many people fail to realize is that NorK has a massive artillery battalion secreted in a huge network of underground tunnels, that place it in the reach of Seoul. If they really do decide to press the crazy button, hundreds of tons of ordinance can be raining down every minute in deadly parabolas on South Korea's largest city with 10 million people. No anti-missile systems would be capable of stopping that.

The only way to stop that rain of terror would be a series of tactical neutron bombs, killing all of the people controlling that artillery. Wiping out their leadership or C+C channels with surgical strikes wouldn't suffice, as once the order is issued, the brainwashed officers of the NK army would keep going until they run out of ammunition.

It's the nightmare scenario, that could lead to hundreds of thousands of deaths. There's no easy answer to this problem... and without massive aid, the Nork refugees will start flooding into China, which is unlikely to allow them to cross the border (which may be why China started moving its own forces to its southern borders last week.)

References: http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/military/news/north-korea-and-flattening-seoul

http://www.iiss.org/publications/strategic-dossiers/north-korean-dossier/north-koreas-weapons-programmes-a-net-asses/the-conventional-military-balance-on-the-kore/

@last_SHIFT

Everyone knows what is going on here - it is not a good v. evil movie plot. North Korea wants economic assistance in return for concessions. They are playing a game, as any player would, to continue their current mode of existence. The irony is - the mode of existence they are trying to prolong is one of the most unfortunate... with 1% enriched absolutely, while the rest are dying (literally). It is a terrible state of cannibalism encouraged by mistaken policies of the West.

https://www.google.com/search?q=north+korea+night&aq=f&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hl=en&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=WcFdUcLHB7Hk4AOo04H4BQ&biw=917&bih=780&sei=WsFdUZ-pHrHE4AOjnoHYDw

This I have decided for myself (as any individual can only ever decide something for oneself). Though I think you are implying that a life of simplicity and deference to nature can in fact be a far superior way of life. With this, I agree.

I do not think this is what we see in NK. By dying - I refer to starvation. And the food shortages are artificial - the leaders oppress the people to the point of helplessness; because if the people had a choice in the matter, things would not be too bright for those few in Pyongyang (the one point of light in the North Korean Night).

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/9461057/Flood-and-famine-hit-North-Korea-but-first-lady-sports-Dior-handbag.html

Yes, I fully agree. The Telegragh is flawed. They, along with other media sources, forget stories when they are not 'active'; there is an inherent conflict of interest. They need money, so the stories that will make the cut are those which bring eyes. There could be worse motivators, though it is reckless that the current plight of countries such as Libya should be forgotten now because they do not sizzle.

Korea went into turmoil after being freed from Japan in 1945. NK and SK separation happened, I think, mostly because the country couldn't live in harmony due to the fact that Japan's decades old brutal ruling truly distorted and separated Korean leaders/parties/classes/regions. Plus its neighboring countries were perfectly fine with the separation. As the peninsular gets closer to unification, more bad news are happening. Media driven. False alarm. Greed. North's royal family led by the Kim family. South's Chaebol families (Hyundai, Samsung, etc). The controlling parties from both sides want permanent status quo. That's the real problem. Everything else is just noise. Just leave the countries alone. They will unite just fine by eliminating or downgrading, haha, the royal family and the chaebol families.

@stonebat We all hope it's a false alarm! But I can't see how any country can be allowed to threaten to use nuclear weapons and expect the rest of the world to just ignore them. Either they expect to be taken seriously or they don't. Even if NK doesn't have the capability now, one day they may have (either they develop it, or buy the expertise). And then...do we continue to ignore their leader? I'm no expert in politics, but obviously this man's a dick.

LoL. Destabilizing the region? The long standing stability is already broken in the region due to the weakening of USA power and the strengthening of China power.