(un)informed confusion
~ and other odd oddities ~

10.17.2006

Where oh where...

...is China's resolve to tame North Korea? Oh wait, here it is. To my friends in Asia: if you read reports that China is securing its border with the DPRK, and you live in any major city that sits within range of a Nodong, well... I suggest you quickly become friends with your basement, or at least the bottom of a desk.

UPDATE: Dual-Citizenship review? Can we spell "bad idea"? I am all for the Asia-Pacific Gateway initiative that Harper launched last week. Even the N.S. premier caught on -- ol' MacDonald will be snooping around for a similar Asia-Canada programme, this time focussed on the East, when he heads to O-Town. But a dual-citizenship review would throw the gateway intitiative out the window, not to mention put a big dent in the economy of Vancouver, or, shall we say, Hongcouver.

* * *

Here's an interesting poll. Ironically, Canada already had nuclear arms in the early 1960s, installed in missiles meant to replace the not-so-popular-with-Dief's-liver Avro Arrow. Oh, and I love this from Bourque.com -- Canada is surrounded by nuclear powers, it seems.

Ahem:


Another irony is that the CANDU reactor, built and designed by Canadians, is responsible for a whole whack of the colourful nuclear proliferation you see above. Yay!

In other news, I've become a facebook addict. Well, sort of. I was enthralled for the first 48 hours, adding people I knew to my friends list, sending messages, writing on walls, and poking people (why does this sound like high school?).... then the high wore off and I thought, "what is the ultimate point of this?" At least I can exchange useful information with people on MSN. Or here, even.

posted by C. LaRoche at 20:48

6...thoughts from my fellow Saturnalians:

  • Somehow I don't think the Chinese have anything to worry about though. The South Koreans have the most to fear.

    The border fence that China is building is to the approval of Kim as far as I know. Kim wants to keep his people in, China wants to keep them out.

    Its the 125 000 soldiers that Kim might be worried about and the fact that China has a history of performing a smack-down on its vassal states that get out of hand (Vietnam)

    By Blogger Eric, at Thu Oct 19, 02:02:00 p.m. ADT  

  • I think the Chinese are worried about North Korea collapsing regardless... but yes, they are definitely more worried about their relationship with the U.S., and how that relationship is being affected by North Korea.

    S.O., have you read the Robert Kaplan piece on a possible North Korea collapse? It's quite interesting.

    By Blogger C. LaRoche, at Thu Oct 19, 03:44:00 p.m. ADT  

  • This is better than facebook, I quite agree.

    Did you find my question about The Green Goblin's Last Stand in your Barry Lyndon thread, by the way? Curious what you thought, if you've seen it.

    I mean, not that nuclear holocaust isn't an appetizing topic, too...

    Anyway, I didn't realize that the CANDU was so important to proliferation - wow. Amazing bit of information that really took me aback.

    By Blogger Jacques Beau Vert, at Thu Oct 19, 08:27:00 p.m. ADT  

  • Oh, *a* whole whack. I misread it to say *the* whole whack, which I thought was pretty nonsensical, but I trusted you.

    By Blogger Jacques Beau Vert, at Thu Oct 19, 08:28:00 p.m. ADT  

  • Yeah, the CANDU react can-do that stuff. =P

    Its sad really, but we shouldn't have been selling it all over the world then. At least we were egalitarian about it, selling it to any nation, Pakistan, India equally. =)

    By Blogger Eric, at Fri Oct 20, 07:22:00 p.m. ADT  

  • Jason, there's a good piece about CANDU in a Walrus issue from a little while back. I'll see if I can find it for you.

    Also, I did notice your post under the Barry Lyndon update. I'll get back to you as soon as I have a moment!

    By Blogger C. LaRoche, at Mon Oct 23, 08:07:00 p.m. ADT  

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