Sanctions Don't Work ... Are You Ready for What May?

Much has been made about sanctions since North Korea's nuclear test. The sad reality is that it doesn't work. The present sanctions on Kim Jong Il's regime include a ban on luxury items, including jewellry and nuclear materials. Hmm, call me a skeptic, but how exactly will banning items the powerful will have access to anyway, and other items that were already banned prevent North Korea from going forward with their nuclear program?

There is one way that might work, but it is simply too hideous for anyone but thugs like Kim Jong Il. That is to stop the subsidy we are providing the Korean nuclear regime. You shaking your head wondering what I'm talking? Well, we provide the food needs of the Korean people, allowing the North Koreans to divert those resources to a military program. A cessation of food aid would cause massive starvation, but might lead to a revolt. But not even the most radical neocons would be able to digest that scenario. Alas, that's how the thugs win every time - because we in the civilized world are unable to call their bluff!