HotDogBreath: This is what happens when the 'Dear Leader' has not been put to bed after having a bottle. He gets a little grizzly and declares war on the south.

A good spanking and straight to bed with a pacifier and he should be a little happier in the morning.

China should be forced to have words with him.

Maa... so much pain and hurt in the world, and an entire nation of people forced to suffer under the grip of a mad man.

joker97: so is this WWIII? North Korea declares war agaisnt South Korea - and I'm pretty sure the USA will do "all means necessary" to stop Pyongyang should words escalate to action ...

SaltyNZ: Almost certainly not. They do it annually, when the US-Sth Korea war games are on. It's no more likely to result in a war this year as any other.

mckenndk: After sinking a war ship and shelling an island killing people a few years ago the level of threat is not that high really, I am sure Kim will know that he will be on the loosing end if he goes to war.

jpoc:

mckenndk: After sinking a war ship and shelling an island killing people a few years ago the level of threat is not that high really, I am sure Kim will know that he will be on the loosing end if he goes to war.

I disagree with both of those points.

While almost all that we see at the moment is threats and blustering the level of the threats and bluster is substantially higher than in the past. In terms of actual actions, the breaking off of most of the channels of communications between the two sides is also something not seen recently.

The entire North Korean army will now be aware that they are adopting a much more threatening posture than in the past. This increases the likelihood that an individual or small unit in the North Korean forces will start to take pot shots.

In the past, the US and South Koreans have adopted a policy of not responding to provocative acts in order to keep the peace. Considering that one of those provocative acts was the torpedoing of a South Korean ship in international waters and that almost fifty people were killed, that is a pretty high degree of restraint.

What is different this time is that the South Koreans have pledged that they will no longer restrain themselves. They are explicit that they will respond to any incident.

So, while we have not yet seen any shooting, it looks more likely than in earlier years and it looks almost certain to escalate.

For the second part, can the North Koreans really think that they have a chance against the US?

To answer that question, you need to try and see that world as the North Koreans do and not as we do. From the point of view of Kim and his generals, the US got its butt kicked in Iraq and Afghanistan - and Vietnam too. The North Korean military is much bigger and stronger than the Iraqi one and Afghanistan barely had an army at all. The North Koreans have nukes and the US were unable to use theirs in Iraq and Afghanistan so they are behind the North Koreans in that department. In fact, on North Korean analysis, the US has never actually won a war in it's entire history. WWI? The US was on the winning side but was no more than a bit part player. WWII? Again the US was on the winning side but it was the Russians that won it really. Conflicts before the 20th century? Too far in the past for the North Koreans to pay attention.

Now, I know that, to us, all of that is nonsense but it is easy to see that the North Koreans would believe it. If you think that they could not entertain such views, find a Russian and ask them who won WWII, find a Belgian and ask them the same question or find a supporter of Bin Laden and ask who was responsible for the end of communism and the Soviet Union.

jpoc: 

While almost all that we see at the moment is threats and blustering the level of the threats and bluster is substantially higher than in the past. In terms of actual actions, the breaking off of most of the channels of communications between the two sides is also something not seen recently.