Didn't even have to send them pallets of cash
Didn't even have to send them pallets of cash
Yet*
Misspelling both "missile" and "stopped" shows quite the attention to detail.
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So did we get anything from this? I'm not gonna hate on the man if he made peace with North Korea.
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it's a symbolic diplomatic breakthrough, an outline for a path forward, but not a real treaty like SALT or even a non-treaty non-binding deal like the Iran Nuclear Deal. there are no deadlines or targets or verification protocols, no promises made that can't be undone in a single moment by a leader changing their mind. North Korea reaffirmed their commitment to denuclearizing (which is our only real goal with them), and agreed to shutter a missile testing site and allow the return of remains of some American servicemen from the war. and we have agreed to suspend the biannual war games we conduct with South Korea on how to respond to a North Korean attack. our military remains in place, the sanctions remain in place, and we can resume the war games whenever we desire.
but again, symbolism. nothing concrete is signed, nothing is treaty'd, the negotiations are and will continue to be ongoing. for quite some time i imagine. and to be unequivocal ceasing war gaming with South Korea while still maintaining our existing military presence in South Korea in exchange for denuclearization would be an unbelievable deal. but the North Koreans are liars - they have violated more concrete agreements reached with each of the last three presidents - and this is not yet even a deal. still, a hopeful start.
Did we even end the Korean War?
i will say letting the South Koreans get blindsided to his intent to suspend the war games was typical Trumpian buffoonery however. they are dear allies and dependent on us for security so they put the best possible spin on it but his inveterate alienating of our allies is resulting in a more brittle Pax Americana.
i will also say the hypocrisy from the left (not a one of them having criticized the Russian Reset in which we actually gave up tangible military assets in Eastern Europe in exchange for nothing more than promises) continues to affirm my belief personality and tribe is what matters to most, not policy. it is extremely endearing to see them all become free-trade hardline North Korea hawks however. if Trump became an atheist they'd probably start buying rosaries.
Can't fault people for being skeptical. In the end, all this comes off as "We made a deal to make future deals!" since there's otherwise no real teeth to anything. If NK pulls through, great. If they don't, let's not feign shock.
You think Trumps gonna take it well at all if they fuck him over?
He's gonna go apocalyptic. Literally.
skepticism is necessary
but we must not let skepticism become pessimism. the agreement will be overblown by the man and his supporters but that cannot overshadow the fact that the agreement is mostly good. the deescalation of tensions on the peninsula is an unequivocal good. war is the greatest of evils and the world is a little less close to one today than it was yesterday. let us not bate our breath while we await further progress, more tangible progress, but let us hope.
I hope to god NK managed to audio record the entire meeting so when Trump backs out on something and says he didn't say it, they can just release the audio recording.
I know no one is going to believe this but: I don't think Trump is going to shit this up. I expect him to make peace. I expect this to be a huge victory for him.
Why?
Because Trump wants to win in 2020. And this will make him win in 2020. Most of the shit he blunders is because he couldn't give a single fuck about it.
Yeah, this is probably the defining leg he will stand on for reelection in 2020.