North Korea's Nuclear Secret (New York Times' cowardly editorial)

The New York Times ^ | Oct. 18. 2002 | Editorial Board

[seamus]

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October 18, 2002

North Korea's Nuclear Secret

orth Korea has stunned the world by acknowledging that it has been working to produce nuclear bomb fuel despite a 1994 agreement with the United States to freeze nuclear weapons development.

People on both sides of the Iraq debate will use this alarming news to prop up their views. Hawks will say this demonstrates the futility of treaties with megalomaniacal dictators, while doves will say this gives the lie to the administration's argument that Iraq is uniquely dangerous. But the one lesson we should have learned from the murky and frustrating tussle over Iraq is that there is no single approach to foreign affairs. North Korea's weapons pose an acute problem that must be dealt with on its own terms. Tough multilateral diplomacy is the right first step, as Washington understands....

Because North Korea has now violated solemn international weapons agreements, any new understandings will have to be verified unconditionally and highly intrusively. If there is one analogy appropriate to Iraq, it is this: Keeping nuclear weapons out of the hands of dictators who want them requires more than signed agreements.

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[seamus]

You gotta love that. Eight years ago tomorrow, the Times excitedly puts its faith in a piece of paper -- an agreement brokered by Jimmy Carter and signed by Clinton. On Oct. 19, 1994, The Times editorial called the Carter/Clinton diplomatic efforts a “resounding triumph.” Furthermore, those two great men had “put to rest widespread fears that an unpredictable nation might provoke nuclear disaster.”

The Times went further to deride the people who said the piece of paper was worthless as "hawks" who were silly to have “accused the Clinton administration of gullibility and urge swifter, stronger action” to stop the proliferation of nukes to such an unstable country.

Today, the Times is not brave enough -- or honest enough -- to admit that it was 100 percent wrong on this issue -- and the "hawks" were 100 percent right -- when it really mattered. Even if they are too embarassed to admit their stupidity, couldn't they at least offer a slight nod to those who warned Clinton that this would happen?

[newsperson999]

***MUST READ NYT's editorial on N.K. 8 years ago here

[stop_fascism]

doves will say this gives the lie to the administration's argument that Iraq is uniquely dangerous

What part of "Axis of Evil" don't they understand? Once again, "stupid" Bush's analysis was right on the mark, while our pointed headed intellectuals were completely wrong. Makes the score around 10,000 to 0.

[wny]

The only people that were "stunned" were those that were not paying attention.

[Seruzawa]

It is simply mindboggling to be constantly reminede that there are actually people stupid enough to have ever that the NKs would ever honor their agreement. Commies NEVER do. Only a complete and utter fool could believe such claptrap.

These ignoramuses have learned nothing form the lessons of places like Cambodia.

[seamus]

I beat that poster to the punch yesterday with my own post at 11:04 PDT: New York Times sooooo wrong about North Korea (Editorial from Oct. 1994)

[Lucas1]

Exactly...Bush was not stunned. He warned us months ago. And heck for that matter...most of us in this forum knew this long before Bush made his statements. As if North Korea could ever be trusted...lol

[Democrap]

Fellow Democraps we must take the The Pledge of Resistance at “www.looneyleft.com” it’s for the children.

[colorado tanker]

Being a liberal means never having to say you're sorry.

[BaghdadBarney]

". . .Because North Korea has now violated solemn international weapons agreements, any new understandings will have to be verified unconditionally and highly intrusively. If there is one analogy appropriate to Iraq, it is this: Keeping nuclear weapons out of the hands of dictators who want them requires more than signed agreements..."

You can always count on the New York Times being right on target 9 years and 364 days after the fact...

[backhoe]

-The Atomic Genie- what we have about North Korea's Nuclear program--

[seamus]

You betcha. And count on their selective amnesia. (love your screen name).

[Guillermo]

When has the editorial board of the trah NY Times *ever* been right about a foreeign policy issue?

I remember when they completely freaked out when Reagan labeled the USSR the "Evil Empire".

[republicman]

--couldn't they at least offer a slight nod to those who warned Clinton that this would happen?--

Not a chance, they'd sooner have NK drop a nuke on top of their building than admit the right was right about anything.

[mhking]

North Korea has stunned the world by acknowledging that it has been working to produce nuclear bomb fuel despite a 1994 agreement with the United States to freeze nuclear weapons development.

Stunned who? Let's get real here. What did you think they were doing over there, playing canasta? C'mon.

All this is is more proof that Bill Clinton sold us a bill of goods and now, we're having to pay the piper.

Greatest president my ass. More like greatest grifter & con artist.

[seamus]

Yes. But they could at least include a sentence criticizing the Clinton administration -- ever so gently -- for its naivete. Lord knows if a Republican committed such a foreign relations blunder, that would be the entire topic of the editorial.

[Boot Hill]

NYT says:   "...this gives the lie to the administration's argument that Iraq is uniquely dangerous."

Straw man argument. President Bush has never argued that Iraq was "uniquely" dangerous. In fact, it was the NYT that severely criticized Bush for the very opposite thing when Bush publicly identified and named the "axis of evil".

NYT says:   "Because North Korea has now violated solemn international weapons agreements..."

Now??? North Korea has admitted that their nuclear program has been ongoing and continuous even while Kim Jong Il was giving the useful idiots Carter and Clinton his "personal reassurances" that all such activity had ceased.

This nuclear debacle with North Korea underscores the historical truth that in matters of the military and foreign affairs, the NYT is way out of it's league and should sit down and STFU.

Regards,

Boot Hill