Time for Fresh Thinking on North Korea

Big Peace  "Lastly, our 15-year record of impotent and vacillating dealings with North Korea over their nuclear weapons program only serves to send a message to Iran, and other nations, that the U.S. will do nothing to interrupt their drive to nuclearize. There is far more at stake on the Korean peninsula than the fate of Seoul and the survival of the weird and brutal regime in Pyongyang."

US lawmakers slam China over North Korea  "Tuesday's congressional reaction was likely calculated as much to hike pressure on the Obama administration for a robust response to North Korea's behavior as motivated by any expectation that it would mould Chinese policy."

Undesirable?  "With the full backing and fierce determination of President Obama behind him, Mr. Bosworth unleashed a scathing verbal attack against the North Korean terrorists. It must make Americans chest swell with pride as the Envoy's voice forcefully booms the words, "Such conflict is very undesirable."
"Huh?
"Mr. Diplomat of the Year, as anyone who has been under rocket or artillery fire can tell you, ‘holy crap, that was undesirable', is most assuredly not the first thing out of their mouths when the world blows up around them, if they can even speak"

http://townhall.com/cartoons/cartoonist/MichaelRamirez

Asia Bibi, Christian convicted of blasphemy:

onaired.com "Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari pardon Asia Bibi, a Christian woman who was sentenced to death for blasphemy, the Punjab governor told CNN."...

"Minorities Minister, Shahbaz Bhatti, who regretted that the country’s blasphemy law is used for “political revenge” and to settle “religious enmity,” a report is due tomorrow on the case to Asif Ali Zardari."

Bruce Springsteen: 'The boss' rails against 'very ugly' political climate surrounding Barack Obama

UK Telegraph  "In his interview, Springsteen admitted that his decision to support Mr Obama had alienated some of his fans.
"He once criticised Ronald Reagan, the late American President, for using his name to rally Republican voters in the 1980s.
""A moment comes when you cash in whatever credibility a guy can have who plays and sings rock songs for a living and you put your chips where you think they might do some good,” he said."
If he was taking requests, I'd raise my hand and say "I love any of your stuff that doesn't bash America".

President Obama looks like a lame duck on the world stage as US global leadership goes AWOL

Nile Gardiner, UK Telegraph  "President Bush may not have not have won the Nobel Peace Prize and was hugely unpopular at the dictator-friendly United Nations, but he was mightily feared by America’s enemies. Many a tyrant shuddered after US tanks rolled into Baghdad and removed one of the most odious psychopaths on the face of the earth from power. Even the supposedly unbeatable al-Qaeda wilted in the face of the surge in Iraq, suffering huge losses and humiliation at the hands of US forces.

"George W. Bush believed in American exceptionalism and wasn’t afraid to show it." ....

"The Obama administration’s “smart power” approach has been anything but, and the latest aggression emanating from Pyongyang is a stark reminder that America cannot afford to be letting its guard down, and needs to stand up to its enemies rather than appease them." Via Lucianne

North Korea shells South Korean island

Thomas Lifson  "It was inevitable. With the United States de facto foreign policy of apology and appeasement as well as deference to China, it was only a matter of time before North Korea would re-emerge seeking attention and concessions."

http://townhall.com/cartoons/cartoonist/LisaBenson

Can We Finish This Please????

Blackfive "I think it is worth a try. And I think it might send the message to a few of the other bad actors in the world that this is not the way the world expects you to act and that aggression will not be tolerated.
"And that the time for honoring themselves for this kind of activity will soon be at an end

America Has Sailed from Europe. What Next?

Najwyższy Czas!, Poland  Via Watching America : "The question is: Will Barack Obama’s Republican successor be able to radically change his foreign policy and put an end to isolationism?"

Boehner: A Leader on School Choice

gopleader.gov   "House Minority Leader John Boehner (R–OH) made quite a statement last Monday when, on his first day back in office post-elections, he took time out to meet with parents and children enrolled in the D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program (DCOSP). In doing so, Boehner sent a clear signal to D.C. families of his support for school choice in the nation’s capital. A statement released on Boehner’s blog noted:..."  Via Heritage.

Damn the Torpedoes: North Korea Strikes South Korea

Belmont Club   "In other words, if you want something done in the region, talk to China. Washington’s utility is as a packager of messages to China. But the real gears turn there. Therefore, it would not be surprising if one day the allies simply recognized that the US Secretary of State was an unnecessary and superfluous intermediary between themselves and the real audience: the Chinese leadership in Beijing."  Via Pajamas Media

Victor Davis Hanson:  North Korea and the Ripple Effects of Obama’s Foreign Policy  "And, in a larger sense, the commander-in-chief needs to stop his contextualizing and apologizing, especially this pernicious messianic notion that, as an empathetic and post-national president, his mission is to redeem a previously culpable America. Otherwise, in the next two years that nonsense is going to get people killed."

Al Sharpton: It’s Time for the FCC to Crack Down on Rush Limbaugh (Audio)

Gateway Pundit  "As the Obama regime continues its assault on our bodies the left continues its assault on free speech…"

Rev. Al is portrayed in  the Justice Brothers bits by Paul Shanklin  and featured on the Rush Limbaugh program.

Bristol Palin receives death threats before 'Dancing with the Stars' finale, ABC increases security

NY Daily News  "The 20-year-old faced another scare last week when an envelope containing white powder (which turned out to be talcum powder) was found at the "DWTS" studio addressed to her.

"And earlier this month, a 66-year-old man in Wisconsin allegedly became so angry watching Palin on the show that he fired off his shotgun at his television, leading to a 15-hour standoff with state police. " Do you suppose whoever made the threats has a "COEXIST" bumper sticker on his/her car? See it all on our next "Liberals Gone Wild" video.

Don’t Give In To North Korea Demands (Updated)

Washington spurns Tokyo's demand for reprisal against North Korea "...Obama's lack of response to the Japanese call, despite the presence of 28,000 US troops on the Korean Demilitarized Zone border – even with limited military action - is bound to devalue the defensive umbrella against North Korea the US has pledged South Korea and Japan. US unresponsiveness is already resonating loudly in the Middle East and Persian Gulf which is beginning to take it as betokening feeble resolve in dealing with Iran and its nuclear weapons aspirations." DEBKAfile

Heritage " New START offers the US no new tools to deal with Iran and North Korea which are the clear and present danger. Instead, all New START does is tie our military’s hands by limiting our capacity to build the missile defense systems necessary to deal with these regimes. The President should spend less time hawking flawed treaties to justify his Nobel Peace Prize and invest more time in fighting for peace against America’s enemies."

North Korean Artillery Attack on a Southern Island

Map from STRATFOR

North Korean Attack Designed to Flex Muscles, Both Internally and Externally  "...every time they do this they are usually also in dire need of food, oil and cash. They do a fair business in the arms trade and have dabbled in nuclear proliferation, but they know they will get satchels of cash, barrels of oil, and some rice if they remind us they can make a big mess. So we will soon be partnering with our good friends and owners the Chinese to pay the North Koreans to chill."

South Korea on war alert after North shells border island   "The White House strongly condemned the attack and callsed for a halt to belligerent action. The Japanese prime minister Naoto Kan ordered its ministers to prepare for "unexpected events" in reference to the worst clash on the peninsula since the Korean war 50 years ago. China and Russian expressed concern over the shelling and Beijing called for an urgent Six Power meeting on the crisis." DEBKAfile

 North Korea and Iran: Containment vs. Regime Change "The ultimate solution is plain: regime change. But how to achieve it is another matter. China is North Korea’s major remaining lifeline, but unfortunately it is hard to see how to persuade the Chinese to cut off their client state. They may not like Pyongyang’s powerplays, but they are even less wild about the notion of a unified Korea allied with the United States." 
Max Boot.