On North Korea, Keep Calm and Carry On | Cato Institute

On North Korea, Keep Calm and Carry On | Cato Institute: "The same news media outlets that solemnly intoned that sequestration would strangle the federal government, and who earlier suggested that going over the so-called fiscal cliff would wreak havoc on the entire U.S. economy, are now warning about a dire North Korean threat to American security."

"But there is little evidence that North Korea poses a threat to the United States. It is unclear whether Pyongyang’s embryonic nuclear program has produced even one deployable weapon. It certainly has not produced sophisticated, compact “cutting edge” warheads that can be married to ICBMs.

Nor is the country’s missile program likely to be mistaken for those of first-rate military powers. The successful December launch followed several spectacular failures over nearly a decade, and a single successful test is a long way from creating a fleet of reliable missiles."

"Pyongyang may pose a security threat to South Korea and a modest danger to Japan. But if the United States did not foolishly maintain military bases in those two countries — nearly seven decades after World War II, six decades after the Korean War and more than two decades since the end of the Cold War — North Korea’s saber-rattling would be of little relevance to Americans."

"If Tokyo and Seoul truly regard North Korea as a menace, they would be wise to create more robust defenses of their own. Yet South Korea spends a mere 2.6 percent of its gross domestic product on the military, while Japan is just now considering lifting the self-imposed limit that has that country spending a pathetic 1 percent on defense."