CHANGING REGIMES LIKE SOCKS
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James Joyner | Wednesday, April 30, 2003 |
Someone called Claudia Rosett has a column it today’s WSJ arguing for forced regime change in North Korea. Her argument boils down to “Kim is a sorry SOB and, with Saddam gone, he is now the sorriest of the sorry SOBs.” That strikes me as inadequate rationale for war. While we are all pleased that Saddam is gone and that the Iraqi people are already comparatively free, that was not the primary rationale for invasion. The US should not simply start picking off all the dictators. There are a whole lot of them. Instead, we should be looking at regime type, regional issues, and threat to the US and our interests. Not to mention simple cost-benefit analysis. Invading North Korea should definitely not be Option 1 in solving the current crisis.
About the Author: James Joyner is the publisher of Outside the Beltway and the managing editor of the Atlantic Council. He's a former Army officer, Desert Storm vet, and college professor with a PhD in political science from The University of Alabama. He lives just outside the Beltway in Alexandria, Virginia.
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Gee whiz--if SOB-edness was sufficient for military-directed regime change, we would be busy for a while.
That having been said, I wouldn't mind seeing the guy gone.
However, James is correct--the military option is not and should not be, option 1. This is a far different case than Iraq.
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