N. Korea threatens strikes on US amid hacking claims

[Nebulous's iconNebulous]

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — President Barack Obama is "recklessly" spreading rumors of a Pyongyang-orchestrated cyberattack of Sony Pictures, North Korea says, as it warns of strikes against the White House, Pentagon and "the whole U.S. mainland, that cesspool of terrorism."

Such rhetoric is routine from North Korea's massive propaganda machine during times of high tension with Washington. But a long statement from the powerful National Defense Commission late Sunday also underscores Pyongyang's sensitivity at a movie whose plot focuses on the assassination of its leader Kim Jong Un, who is the beneficiary of a decades-long cult of personality built around his family dynasty.

The U.S. blames North Korea for the cyberattack that escalated to threats of terror attacks against U.S. movie theaters and caused Sony to cancel "The Interview's" release.

Obama, who promised to respond "proportionately" to the attack, told CNN's "State of the Union" in an interview broadcast Sunday that Washington is reviewing whether to put North Korea back on its list of state sponsors of terrorism

The National Defense Commission, led by Kim, warned that its 1.2 million-member army is ready to use all types of warfare against the U.S.

"Our toughest counteraction will be boldly taken against the White House, the Pentagon and the whole U.S. mainland, the cesspool of terrorism, by far surpassing the 'symmetric counteraction' declared by Obama," said the commission's Policy Department in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency.

North Korea has said it knows how to prove it had nothing to do with the hacking and proposed a joint investigation with the U.S.

North Korea and the U.S., which fought each other in the 1950-53 Korean War, remain technically in a state of war because the conflict ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. The U.S. stations about 28,500 troops in South Korea to deter aggression from North Korea.

The rivals are locked in an international standoff over the North's nuclear and missile programs and its alleged human rights abuses. In the spring of last year, tension dramatically rose after North Korea issued a string of fiery threats to launch nuclear strikes against Washington and Seoul.

http://news.yahoo.com/n-korea-threatens-strikes-us-amid-hacking-claims-015728235.html

Thoughts?

 

[Dee]

They threatened to attack us before and it hasn't happened yet. At this point, it sounds like Kim Jong Un is huffing and puffing, but hasn't been able to prove he can blow our house down just yet. Even if he does decide to attack and even if they can, despite their military force of 1.2 million bodies, their technology is nowhere near as advanced as ours and our allies. The thing is that they have isolated themselves quite a bit, and I doubt another country would back them up over a silly thing like a movie.

 

[seasidemike]

Every time N Korea is not I. The news for a while they come out with some big statement to get them back into the news.

 

[Webster]

They threatened to attack us before and it hasn't happened yet. At this point, it sounds like Kim Jong Un is huffing and puffing, but hasn't been able to prove he can blow our house down just yet. Even if he does decide to attack and even if they can, despite their military force of 1.2 million bodies, their technology is nowhere near as advanced as ours and our allies. The thing is that they have isolated themselves quite a bit, and I doubt another country would back them up over a silly thing like a movie.

That's true up to a point, Dee....the key in regards to the Norks is to watch what the puppet-masters in Beijing do in regards to them; nothing of substance happens in North Korea w/out the implicit approval of the Chinese government. If there was ever a country to which the saying 'crazy but not stupid' applied, it would be to the Norks' because they've managed to master that saying over the past 6 decades...

 

[Dee]

They threatened to attack us before and it hasn't happened yet.  At this point, it sounds like Kim Jong Un is huffing and puffing, but hasn't been able to prove he can blow our house down just yet.  Even if he does decide to attack and even if they can, despite their military force of 1.2 million bodies, their technology is nowhere near as advanced as ours and our allies.  The thing is that they have isolated themselves quite a bit, and I doubt another country would back them up over a silly thing like a movie.

That's true up to a point, Dee....the key in regards to the Norks is to watch what the puppet-masters in Beijing do in regards to them; nothing of substance happens in North Korea w/out the implicit approval of the Chinese government. If there was ever a country to which the saying 'crazy but not stupid' applied, it would be to the Norks' because they've managed to master that saying over the past 6 decades...

A war will not break out because of this. China is--I hope--not stupid enough to try and call the shots here because of several reasons that would disrupt the entire global economy. Spiteful, yes, but they could do without their little puppet Kim and still manage. NK means nothing to them or anyone aside from the poor and unfortunate family members and loved ones stuck in that hell hole.