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There will be no war between the United States of America and North Korea. If such a military encounter were to become a reality, we can all kiss our loved ones goodbye and say farewell to the planet Earth. A U.S.-North Korea war would be the beginning of World War III...and World War III would be World War Death. And World War Death...would be the end of our world.
This is one big poker game. It's a giant bluff by both country's so-called leaders. I say "so-called leaders" because neither is truly leading anybody. A leader needs followers...and in the United States, two-thirds of the population (and counting) have no desire to follow Donald Trump anywhere. And North Korea is a dictatorship with no laws other than...whatever Kim Jong-un says, goes.
Trump must cease from inflaming an issue with North Korea. He must discontinue his incendiary threats. Adding fuel to them cannot be productive. A calming effect by America's President would have been better than Trump's off-the-cuff remark - on Tuesday, August 8th, 2017 - when he warned North Korea to "not make any more threats to the United States" otherwise the east Asian country "will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen." Trump then embellished on his pledge by vowing that North Korea "will be met with fire, fury and frankly power...the likes of which this world has never seen before." But on Thursday, August 10th - while on vacation at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey - Trump announced that his harsh words may not have been "tough enough."
Donald Trump's promise is in reaction to the insanity of Kim Jong-un's nuclear threat. Some - but not all U.S. intelligence analysts - have assessed that North Korea has created a miniature nuclear warhead. Apparently, North Korea has been able to shrink a warhead and place it inside a missile. Some analysts have determined that such a nuclear warhead could travel the distance from Pyongyang to Los Angeles.
But Trump is instigating a situation that can be avoided. Bluntly put in simple terms - and in plain English - Donald Trump needs to keep his damn mouth shut. Trump - the narcissist that he is - has boasted about the U.S. nuclear arsenal... merely because he wants to take credit for making our stockpile the most forceful and most dynamic in American history. In his tweet on Wednesday morning, August 9th, Trump wrote..."My first order as President was to renovate and modernize our nuclear arsenal. It is now far stronger and more powerful than ever before." But - as is the norm for Donald Trump - he has once again lied. He has no business and no right to praise and compliment himself for accomplishments that are not his own. Experts in the nuclear field - as well as former U.S. officials - have categorically stated that our nation's nuclear arsenal is no different than it was when President Barack Obama left office on January 20th. Jeffrey Lewis - a nuclear expert at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies - told The Washington Post..."There's no point at which (Trump's) statement touches reality." After all...it was President Obama who signed in to law a one-trillion-dollar modernization plan...and nothing - according to experts and officials - has been adjusted or improved since then. Yet, instead of Trump correcting his misstatement, America's "Liar-In-Chief" told reporters at his Bedminster club - on Thursday, August 10th - that the United States' nuclear arsenal is in "tip-top shape...and getting better...and getting stronger." Trump proves more and more everyday that he is a pathological liar.
Hostile threats and apocalyptic rhetoric by both Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un can only inflate this issue. North Korea is currently trying to intimidate the United States with nuclear action near Guam. North Korean state media has reported that Kim may consider firing four missiles over the Pacific Ocean near the American territory. Such missiles would first soar over Japan and then land about twenty miles off the coast of Guam.
The United States of today - as other American Presidents or their Secretaries of State and other diplomats have done throughout history - would be better off attempting negotiations towards peace rather than confrontations towards war. Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un should both be thinking...meetings not missiles.
Everyone needs to slam on the brakes and stop all the scare tactics about nuclear war. I happen to be acquainted - as I'm sure many of you are too - with numerous people who have expressed a tremendous amount of fear that Trump and Kim are going to threaten each other until a war commences. Perhaps you feel that way. I, however, do not believe that either of these two dunderheads are stupid enough that they will risk the possibility for the complete destruction of our globe. Therefore, Trump...nor Kim...will cross the line in to a nuclear military operation. Nobody wants a nuclear world war.
Both Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un are delusional and dangerous. But even if either one is protected...and survives a nuclear war...without a living planet, neither would have a nation of people...or a world of people...to rule. In a nuclear world war...seven-and-a-half-billion people will die. We will all be dead.
And that's The Controversy for today.
I'm Gary B. Duglin.
"We'll talk again."
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I agree with you mostly Gary. Especially Trump must cease from inflaming an issue with North Korea. However I do think that they are so dangerous that this could end up a reality. Jong-un appears more unbalanced than our so called President and he doesnt have check and balances in his country. I pray that we still have ours.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your response, Debbie. You make a good point with your hope that America still has our "checks and balances." I think we do, but only to a certain point when you have people like Mitch McConnell leading the Republican-controlled Senate and Republican Paul Ryan as Speaker of the House. As much as I dislike McConnell, at least he has the guts to not let Trump steamroller him. No matter what Donald Trump does, Ryan remains wishy-washy. He lacks strength to let Trump know when he's wrong. As for North Korea, as I wrote in my column, I really don't think either Trump or Kim want to get rowdy with each other when - as I also wrote - a nuclear attack by North Korea on Guam will be the start of World War III. And I truly believe that nobody wants that. But thanks again for your comments. I do appreciate. GBD
DeleteGary, I know your dislike for President Trump (I call it hatred; you claim it’s not, LOL). Would you prefer the President to tell the world the truth about our military, that because of the bozo we had in the White House the last 8 years, that our nuclear weapons are old and deteriorating, that they haven’t been maintained properly or updated, some launch sites sill run on floppy disks. The US Marines just this week grounded its entire aircraft fleet. The US Air Force says only 7 out of every 10 planes are cleared to fly and the US Navy per CNN only 1/3 of the Navy fighters are capable of flight, I’m not talking about fighting they can’t fly. We have the greatest men and women in the military but because of President Obama and his push for sequestration, they have outdated and equipment in disrepair. What President Trump did is no different than when President Truman warned Japan that we would keep dropping A-bombs if they didn’t surrender, but we didn’t have any more, we dropped the only 2 we had. Do you think they would have surrendered if they knew our gun was unloaded at that point? As for negotiations Kim Jong-un is certifiable and believes his only way to stay in power is to have nukes and if need be use them. He needs to be taken out and the Chinese need to do it. As for checks and balances only the President, the Commander-in-Chief can order the military into battle or order a nuclear strike (God willing it will never be needed) but Congress can’t order it and short of impeaching the President can’t stop it. President Trump was duly elected under the Constitution and as Commander-in-Chief it is his call.
ReplyDeleteOnce again, here's another Republican reader who doesn't stick with the issue that I write about in my column. But, that being said, I will still respond to some of your points.
DeleteFor you to compare a threat by North Korea to the Japanese in World War II makes no sense whatsoever. At the time the United States dropped the bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, we were involved in a World War. We are not - thankfully - at war today. And as I wrote in my column above, there will never be a World War III. If there is...we all die. So for you to equate World War II to bully threats by Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un makes you look foolish.
Other U.S. presidents have negotiated with foreign leaders who have been "certifiable." But then those American Presidents weren't "certifiable." And, of course, Donald Trump is.
Again you sound like you just don't know what you're talking about. A nuclear strike would be a declaration of war. And ONLY Congress can declare war. So your comment that "the President, the Commander-In-Chief can order the military in to battle or order a nuclear strike" is not accurate. And with regards to simply "order(ing) the military in to battle" - if Congress does not agree...all they have to do is cut funding. There are ways for Congress to stop a president from doing the things you claim he can do. And with more and more Republicans running away from Trump as if he had bubonic plague, Congress won't be letting Trump do some of the things that you think he may want to do. I do say Trump is crazy, but I doubt that he is THAT stupid.
The bottom line is this. And it's worth repeating so I will. A nuclear strike would be a declaration of war. ONLY CONGRESS CAN DECLARE WAR. Read the United States Constitution. Our founders were very clear on that issue. It is NOT the president's call. Study the Constitution and you'll see I'm right.
GBD
After your comments I will say it, your HATRED for President Trump is sickening. My comparison of President Truman lying as you would call is no different then what President Trump did. Making nice with North Korea will not work it didn’t work when President Clinton cut a deal with them and said they would not get nukes and he was wrong. Once again your comments show your lack of knowledge on the US Constitution and the law. I never said the President could declare war; don’t put words in my mouth. What I said was “as for checks and balances only the President, the Commander-in-Chief can order the military into battle or order a nuclear strike (God willing it will never be needed) but Congress can’t order it and short of impeaching the President can’t stop it. President Trump was duly elected under the Constitution and as Commander-in-Chief it is his call”. Congress is the only one that can declare war but they can’t order a single soldier into battle, a single bomb to be dropped or a single missile to be launched, only the Commander-in-Chief and do that. As for cutting off funding the DOD reserve fund would last between 30 and 90 days, so as I said, hoping it never happens, but there is nothing Congress can do to stop a President Commander-in-Chief from launching a nuclear strike. I have studied the Constitution and yes only Congress can declare war but it is the Presidents call to send in troops or launch an attack, so you are wrong again!!!!
ReplyDelete1) I have NO hatred for Donald Trump. I strongly oppose his politics, his points of view, and his offensive, belittling, demeaning and insulting behavior.
Delete2) Donald Trump is a playground bully who is using the Office of the President to make threats in response to threats being made by another school's playground bully, North Korea's Kim Jong-un. There will never be a nuclear strike by either country or we are all dead. And they know that. As I have said over and over again, there will NEVER BE A WORLD WAR III or that will be Armageddon. It will be the end of the world.
3) My column has NO reference whatsoever about "checks and balances." In a reply to another reader above - Debbie George - who said "Jong-un appears more unbalanced than our so called President and he doesnt have check and balances in his country. I pray that we still have ours." I then responded to her comment by writing..."You make a good point with your hope that America still has our 'checks and balances.' I think we do, but only to a certain point when you have people like Mitch McConnell leading the Republican-controlled Senate and Republican Paul Ryan as Speaker of the House." Therefore - to use your words - DON'T PUT WORDS IN MY MOUTH. You are a typical Democrat hater who tries to put your own spin on truthful comments that you want to believe are false. They are not. My knowledge of the U.S. Constitution and the law is exactly how I described it in my earlier response to you. The fact of the matter is this. As the old saying goes, "if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it must be a duck." A "nuclear strike" - to use your original reference - IS A DECLARATION OF WAR. AND ONLY CONGRESS CAN DECLARE WAR. That is NOT the President's "call."
4) As for a "single soldier in to battle," I never said that the President of the United States cannot do that. But there are ways for Congress to stop a Commander-In-Chief from sending our armed forces in to "WAR." And what we are discussing would be a WAR.
5) Your comment that "there is nothing Congress can do to stop a President/Commander-In-Chief from launchng a nuclear strike" is false. HE CANNOT DO THAT. THAT WOULD BE A DECLARATION OF WAR. And, as I have stated over and over again, the President CANNOT do that.
6) If you have "studied the Constitution" then you must not have been a good student in school. You need to go back and re-read the UNITED STATES Constitution. Perhaps you are reading one from Russia or China. In our country, the President CANNOT DECLARE WAR. So I will use your words on you..."YOU ARE WRONG AGAIN!!!!" Period. End of discussion.
GBD
Maybe you are reading Karl Marx‘s Communist Manifesto from reading your column you believe more in that document (book) then the US Constitution. Please explain to me since you are so educated on the way things work, if the President (any sitting US President) calls for the nuclear football (a briefcase, the contents of which are to be used by the President of the United States to authorize a nuclear attack) opens it up and authorizes a nuclear attack on North Korea, God willing it never happens but if it did how does Congress stop him? They can’t! Just as President Clinton fired missiles into Iraq, President Obama order strikes in Syria so did President Trump, all without Congress. It does not take Congress to activate the codes or authorize an attack; all it takes is the President/Commander-in-Chief! So you’re wrong again!
ReplyDeleteI wish I knew who you are, but you are a coward who hides behind the mask of my forum's "Anonymous" banner. That's okay, though because perhaps I shouldn't know who you are in case you're someone who I have met, simply because our paths have crossed. I certainly hope you are not someone who I know personally or know well. That being said, however, I will continue to respond to all "Anonymous" submissions to The Controversy.
DeleteNow to your comments above.
If I truly cared about your words, I might be offended by your reference to Karl Marx and your claim that I "believe more in that document (book) than the U.S. Constitution." But since you are obviously someone who likes to spew venom...even when you are supporting a president who should be committed because of severe mental illness and deranged behavior...I am therefore not offended...because your thoughts are worthless in my eyes.
There is nothing in the U.S. Constitution that allows a president to launch a nuclear strike. Obviously when the founders wrote the Constitution, there were no nuclear missiles. But there has never been an Amendment to specify such weapons.
The following is from Politifact.
"Donald Trump’s threats against North Korea and tweets about the United States’ powerful nuclear arsenal have raised the specter -- however small -- of nuclear war. But some members of Congress argue that the current process by which the president can order a nuclear strike is illegal. 'Our view is the current nuclear launch approval process is unconstitutional,' U.S. Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif, said on CNN on Aug. 8, 2017. Lieu has filed a proposal to require congressional approval before the president could launch a first nuclear strike. The Constitution allows the president to use significant military force without congressional approval if it’s in self-defense. But would it be constitutional for the president to respond to a conventional bombing with a nuclear strike? The murkiness is due in some part to the framers not foreseeing the capability for mass destruction that nuclear weapons guarantee, said Samuel Issacharoff, a constitutional law professor at New York University.'" Therefore, I stand pat with my words. Congress - in some way - WILL...and quite frankly, if push comes to shove, they CAN...stop Donald Trump from launching a nuclear strike. So again, what you say COULD NEVER HAPPEN. I am done talking to you.
GBD
I don't know either of you... have you worked with nuclear forces? I have. I can assure you that if the president orders a launch the missiles will be launched. We drill and drill to make sure the missiles can be launched within 5 minutes of the president giving the order. That's 5 minutes total time, not 5 minutes before the order comes to us. The president wants to launch and 5 minutes (or less) later we launch. For better or worse, the system is designed for speed. The US can put a nuke anywhere on earth in under 30 minutes total time from decision to impact. You can be certain that if Trump presses "the button" you will see missiles in the air. Guaranteed.
ReplyDeleteThe following paragraphs that are in quotes are directly from The Washington Post.
Delete"Congress could wiggle itself into the debate to stop Trump from launching nuclear warheads at North Korea. At least one bill to that effect has been introduced in the Senate."
"Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) introduced legislation in January that makes it doubly clear the president can't fire nuclear weapons pre-emptively without Congress's approval."
"The president cannot declare war without Congress's approval, and to many, the use of a nuclear weapon is an act of war."
"So, Congress could stop Trump, if it wants to."
The bottom line is this. Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un will NEVER launch nuclear strikes. As I wrote in my column...that would be Armageddon...and the end of the world. And THAT...is never going to happen.
GBD