For the pro-Trump camp, it is a moment of celebration; for his enemies, consternation. There they go, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korea Supreme Leader King Jong Un, crossing and re-crossing the Demilitarized Zone in a symbolic ending of an era. Just how much credit does Trump deserve for all this? And more … Continue reading Is Trump About To Get Peace In Korea?
North Korea, America, China, And The Credibility Gap
Why would anyone "beg for war," in the words of American ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley? Why would anyone say such a thing, when they seem to gain so little from war? The consequences of a general war on the Korean peninsula are obvious to anyone who's bothered with half an article from a … Continue reading North Korea, America, China, And The Credibility Gap
U.S. Armada Closes In On North Korea
Trump is sending the Navy to Korea. Will he hit it as he just did Syria?
America Wants North Korea To Think It Will Bomb Pyongyang
The Trump administration is rattling a saber at Pyongyang. Are they madmen on purpose, or just actually madmen?
Imagining the North Korean End Game: How North Korea May Collapse
North Korea won't last forever. Here's the most useful way to figure out how its end may come.
The Dynasty Has Gotten Too Fat: Or, Kim Jong Un’s Gout Is Both Predictable and Potentially Disastrous
One should never take something complicated - like a nation-state of 24.9 million - and reduce its fate to a single personality. Caesar may be fat, incestuous, and even downright evil, but that does not mean the Empire will fall (and there are plenty of cases where bad leaders still led good states). That being … Continue reading The Dynasty Has Gotten Too Fat: Or, Kim Jong Un’s Gout Is Both Predictable and Potentially Disastrous
2013 in Review (Or, A Cliche but Highly Traditional Way to Ring in A New Year)
I'll be off on holiday for the next few weeks, so there'll be no updates until January 6, 2014. So why not end this year with a review of that which happened, that which didn't happen, and that which might come next, in a final geopolitical round-up of the year. It was shit to be … Continue reading 2013 in Review (Or, A Cliche but Highly Traditional Way to Ring in A New Year)
And Now, A Break To North Korea
Just when you thought it was safe to ignore the mad Stalinists of Asia...DUN DUN DUN! Executions! Purges! Is North Korea dying? (No it's not!) Let's time travel to 1960 and pretend that the internal wranglings in Pyongyang could suck us into World War III! Of course, it's not all fun and games for those … Continue reading And Now, A Break To North Korea
The Rogue State Depoliticized
(Preface: Did anybody, and I mean anybody, see this coming? Right now, Syria's best left untouched. Events are moving and I'm not in the room for any of the meetings. Will Assad give up his chemical weapons and be allowed to conventionally slaughter the rest of his country? Time is now going to have to tell. … Continue reading The Rogue State Depoliticized
A World Without America (Part II)
Previously, we've discussed the basic premise of the world system, all of which is underpinned by American military might and hard power. So let's now take the fun to a new level and imagine planet Earth minus America. The election of 2020 Some president is elected on a platform of "End the Empire now," or something … Continue reading A World Without America (Part II)
