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Kim Jong-il is dead

On August 14th, 1912, the United States launched its first aircraft carrier, the USS Langley. This 11,500 ton ship served during both World Wars until its luck ran out near Java in 1942 and had to be abandoned and sunk in order to avoid capture by the Japanese. Almost one hundred years later, China has just launched its first aircraft carrier and the U.S. State department is demanding to know why. "We would welcome any kind of explanation that China would like to give for needing this kind of equipment," said Victoria Nuland, a State department spokeswoman. Let me give...

1. Americans should leave. 2. Radiation will not reach the U.S. 3. The CDC do not recommend that people take precautionary measures except for staying inside (cowering is optional). 4. US nuclear plants are safe. However, what we can learn now in Japan may make them even safer. 5. SAR teams from US will help in Japan. The US military is pitching-in. 6. Responders are being given the best equipment. 7. American citizens are mobilizing to help. You can do so on (website suchandsuch). 8. Japan and the US share many cultural bonds. This friendship is certain to bring everyone...

An uncritical one line report in Mike Allen's 'Playbook' column at Politico this morning says:"PRESIDENT OBAMA is taping his NCAA picks today, and they’ll be revealed tomorrow on ESPN."With our top Asian ally Japan facing an economic meltdown on top of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear plant crises--an economic meltdown that is already affecting the U.S. and global economies; with the Middle East in flames; with the U.S. government on the verge of bankruptcy; with the U.S. still involved in two wars, Barack Obama is focused on being the cool guy with the jocks in school by being filmed picking...

President Obama, "heartbroken" by the unfolding tragedy in Japan, reiterated Monday that the United States stood ready to support its ally in the aftermath of Friday’s devastating earthquake and tsunami. "The United States will continue to offer any assistance we can as Japan continues to recover from multiple disasters," Obama said. His remarks came at a Virginia middle school, the latest event in what the White House has called "Education Month." The president used Monday’s event to call on Congress to reauthorize "No Child Left Behind" before the start of the next school year. "I want every child in the...

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama voiced condolences to Japan Friday for the people who perished in a massive earthquake, saying the United States "stands ready to help" in any way it can. At the same time, Obama said in a statement that his administration will "continue to closely monitor tsunamis around Japan and the Pacific going forward" and he directed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to be ready to help if U.S. states or territories are struck.

The United States has transported coolant to a Japanese nuclear plant affected by a massive earthquake and will continue to assist Japan, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Friday. "We just had our Air Force assets in Japan transport some really important coolant to one of the nuclear plants," Clinton said at a meeting of the President's Export Council.

Very carefully choosing his words. In other news, "Feds say fish need water" ....

President Obama "dropped by" a meeting with top officials discussing North Korea's attack on a South Korean island on Tuesday, an administration official e-mailed reporters.

President Obama is "outraged" by North Korea's attack on a South Korean island, White House deputy press secretary Bill Burton said Tuesday. Obama plans to call South Korea's president, Lee Myung-bak, on Tuesday, Burton said, adding that Tom Donilon, his national security adviser, called Obama at 3:55 a.m. to tell him of the attack. "The president is outraged by this action," he told reporters on Air Force One. "We stand shoulder to shoulder with South Korea."

KIM TAE YON made the statement just now in S. Korean Parliament (budget committee) that this is due to the just released information that North Korea has been building a light water nuclear reactor at amazing speed, details just released to the world and satellite photos also revealed.Minister of Defense of South Korea Kim stated that this is to put a halt to North Korean nuclear weapons ambition, and is now being considered, which will go back on South Korea's committment in 1991 under President Roh Tae Woo to never manufacturer, house or use nuclear weapons in South Korea.

It turns out being president is a lot harder than Barack Obama thought it was. After the biggest electoral defeat in 80 years, Obama packed up Air Force One and headed out for a political shellacking abroad. You'd be hard pressed to locate an accurate picture of world opinion regarding Obama's trip from our adoring media, so here are the highlights as reported by the foreign press. Nothing is more emblematic of the Obama Administration's tactful use of "smart power" than the front page of the Drudge Report the other day after Obama delivered his Jakarta speech. As reported by...

Dateline: Asia

President Obama is getting defensive about his attempts to play offense for the U.S. economy. The President, who is winding up a tour of Asia this weekend, told an economic conference in Yokohama, Japan Saturday that his mission is to bring jobs to America. "For America, this is a job strategy," Obama told the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation conference. The President added that he makes "no apologies" for trying to pump up employment in the U.S. The unemployment rate in the U.S. is currently 9.6%. In his speech, Obama promoted the idea that economic competition between the U.S. and Asian countries...

India is preparing for Barack Obama's first visit to the country by removing coconuts from palm trees in Mumbai to protect the US president. Mr Obama will visit India, Indonesia, South Korea, Japan and China on the 10-day tour. Photo: WHITE HOUSE Mr Obama will arrive in India on Saturday for the first leg of an Asian tour. But as well as the usual security measures that come with welcoming a a visiting dignitary, Indian authorities have decided to go one step further, by removing all natural threats to the president as well. Mani Bhavan, where Mahatma Gandhi stayed during...

The White House will, of course, stay in Washington but the heart of the famous building will move to India when President Barack Obama lands in Mumbai on Saturday. Communications set-up, nuclear button, a fleet of limousines and majority of the White House staff will be in India accompanying the President on this three-day visit that will cover Mumbai and Delhi. He will also be protected by a fleet of 34 warships, including an aircraft carrier, which will patrol the sea lanes off the Mumbai coast during his two-day stay there beginning Saturday. The measure has been taken as Mumbai...

The United States and South Korean militaries have postponed an aircraft carrier drill in the Yellow Sea ahead of next month's G20 summit in Seoul following strong criticism from China, local media reported on Monday. Beijing had said the Pentagon's plans to send the nuclear-powered carrier USS George Washington to the joint exercise -- set to take place between China and the Korean peninsula -- threatened long-term damage to Sino-U.S. relations. South Korean government and military sources told local media that the decision to cancel the drill, which was scheduled to take place late this month, was made to avoid...

South Korean media reported Sunday that Seoul and Washington have called off plans to hold a major joint naval exercise in the Yellow Sea this month. Yonhap news agency quoted government sources as saying the exercise involving a U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier has been postponed to avoid tensions on the Korean peninsula during the upcoming G20 summit in Seoul. There was no official confirmation of the reports. The Chinese government has fiercely opposed the deployment of the U.S. aircraft carrier George Washington in the regional waters.

U.S. defense officials say they may deploy the massive aircraft carrier USS George Washington off the Korean Peninsula in the Yellow Sea, where North Korea allegedly sank a South Korean warship. The deployment would be a show of force by the U.S., which has vowed to protect South Korea and is seeking to blunt aggression from North Korea. An international investigation last month blamed North Korea for torpedoing the Cheonan warship in March, killing 46 sailors. U.S. officials, who spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly, said Wednesday that a final decision on deployment of...

Seoul - North Korea on Saturday warned it was prepared to use nuclear weapons if it was invaded by the US and South Korea. The official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) carried the remarks by the North's Joint Chief, General Ri Yong-Ho, during a national meeting on the eve of the birthday of the communist country's armed forces. "The revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK (North Korea) are fully ready to frustrate any provocation of the aggressors at a single blow," Ri said. "They will mobilise all means including the nuclear deterrent... should the US imperialists and the South Korean...

Abstract: North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il's faltering health has raised concerns about regime stability. Succession rumors have been swirling for years, with Kim's third son, Jong-eun, currently rumored to be Kim's favored choice. But regardless of whether leadership stays in the family or is wrested away by a challenger, a new North Korean leader is likely to keep in place the same belligerent policies--toward South Korea, toward China and Japan, and toward the U.S. If succession does not go smoothly, and if the North Korean regime were to collapse, the ensuing chaos would require immediate action by the U.S. and...

At a crucial moment, China is throwing a lifeline to Kim Jong Il. North Korea is an increasingly fragile state. But with Beijing’s help, it will probably survive to once again threaten the United States with nuclear destruction. Today, North Korea threatened to unleash “unprecedented nuclear strikes” on the United States and South Korea. The reason for Pyongyang’s extreme unhappiness? Washington and Seoul are making plans about what to do should the North fall apart. Kim Jong Il’s regime called the possibility of internal unrest a “pipe dream.”

U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Walter Sharp has warned of sudden regime collapse in North Korea and called for urgent preparation for such an eventuality. Sharp was speaking at a subcommittee hearing of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday. "We would also be mindful of the potential for instability in North Korea," he said. "Combined with the country's disastrous centralized economy, dilapidated industrial sector, insufficient agricultural base, malnourished military and populace, and developing nuclear programs, the possibility of a sudden leadership change in the North could be destabilizing and unpredictable." South Korea and the U.S. are ready for any...

Taiwanese Americans met with a US State Department official and one from the AIT to deliver a petition asking that the US president reaffirm the TRA(Taiwan Relations Act).A large group of Taiwanese American organizations is petitioning US President Barack Obama to dramatically increase the US’ ability to stop a Chinese military takeover of Taiwan. Over the past three months, the group has collected 17,000 letters of support from Taiwan, Japan, Canada and across the US. They met on Tuesday in Washington with Ted Mann, director of the US State Department’s Office of Taiwan Coordination, and Barbara Schrage, managing director of...

These ones have to have been the absolute WORST.Is it any surprise??CNN in the US is bad enough. The CNN JAPAN outfit has relentlessy covered for Obama and his socialist foibles from Day 1 and accordingly denied the Japanese material and critical information about Obama, news on his lack of popularity among Americans, information that not all Americans are jubilant over this man anymore (and never were), etc. It has been right out of George Orwell. Spin. BS. Spin. BS. And more Spin.Maybe they realize their viewership falls as people turn to alternative news sources which show CNN Japan...

The Japanese daily equivalent to the American "Wall Street Journal", the "Nihon Keizai Shimbun" (or "Nikkei" for short) has run a Japanaese language story just now reporting the slamming that Obama and Gibbs are getting for not only cancelling the Obama Asian trip, but in the rather crass, cavalier, informal and rude way it was apparantly gingerly announced (by Gibbs apparantly) through "Twitter".Alludes in Japanese that this is insulting in an Asian context. Original article (link provided to Japanese) is: 米大統領�アジア歴訪延期�「ツイッター発表��波紋Or my translation: "Obama's Asian Trip Postponement; (White House) Announcement Via 'Twitter' Causes Waves"

America's Newsroom on Fox News has reported. Just announced on the air, not on website yet.

The United States has informally told Japan it will retire its sea-based Tomahawk cruise missiles carrying nuclear warheads, in line with President Barack Obama's policy to pursue a world free of atomic weapons, government sources said Monday. Washington said the move would not affect the nuclear umbrella, addressing concerns in Tokyo about the step's effect on U.S. deterrence against potential attacks from China, North Korea or other countries, the sources said. The retirement will probably be stipulated in the Nuclear Posture Review, a new nuclear strategic guideline the Obama administration is slated to submit to Congress next month, they said....

For much of the past decade, "declinism"--the notion that America is heading toward a deadly denouement--has largely been a philosophy of the left. But more recently, particularly in the wake of Barack Obama's election, conservatives have begun joining the chorus, albeit singing a somewhat different variation on the same tune. In a recent column in TheWashington Post George Will illustrates this conservative change of heart. Looking over the next few decades Will sees an aging, obsolescent America in retreat to a young and aggressive China. "America's destiny is demographic, and therefore is inexorable and predictable," he suggests, pointing to predictions...

The Defense Intelligence Agency’s (DIA) annual threat assessment on China finds that the country is strengthening its ability to conduct military operations along its periphery on its own terms. According to the report, which was published in March, 2009, but was just declassified in Jan. 2010: “(China) is building and fielding sophisticated weapon systems and testing new doctrines that it believes will allow it to prevail in regional conflicts and also counter traditional U.S. military advantages. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is increasingly building its own sophisticated aircraft, surface combatants, submarines and weapon systems while still purchasing select systems from...

China's indignant reaction to the announcement of U.S. plans to sell weapons to Taiwan appears to be in keeping with a new triumphalist attitude from Beijing that is worrying governments and analysts across the globe. From the Copenhagen climate change conference to Internet freedom to China's border with India, China observers have noticed a tough tone emanating from its government, its representatives and influential analysts from its state-funded think tanks. Calling in U.S. Ambassador Jon Huntsman on Saturday, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei said the United States would be responsible for "serious repercussions" if it did not reverse the...

China threatened to impose sanctions on U.S. arms firms and cut cooperation with Washington unless it cancels a $6.4 billion arms sale to Taiwan, in an unprecedented move signalling Beijing's growing global power. China on Saturday bitterly denounced the Obama administration's announcement a day earlier that it planned to sell the package of weapons to Taiwan, a self-ruled island that Beijing views as an illegitimate breakaway province. The dispute deepens the rifts between Beijing and Washington, also at odds over trade, currency, Tibet and the Internet. Beijing said it would sanction U.S. companies that sold arms to Taiwan, a break...

SEOUL (Reuters) - North and South Korea exchanged artillery fire near their disputed sea border on Wednesday, the second time in three months the rivals have clashed and briefly sending prices down on jittery Seoul financial markets. Analysts doubted the latest clash would escalate and saw it more as an attempt by Pyongyang to stress the instability on the Korean peninsula and press home its demand for a peace deal that would open the way to international aid for its ruined economy. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the North fired artillery shots from land toward the South but...

Seoul seeks to make own jets, choppers The government yesterday said it had finalized plans to start exploratory development of home-grown fighter jets and light attack helicopters next year. The decision marks South Korea's aspirations to indigenously develop such aircraft, instead of mostly relying on imports as it has done so far. The plans were announced following a meeting of related ministries including the Defense Ministry, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy and the Defense Acquisition Program Administration yesterday. "These are part of government's hopes to bolster the country's aircraft industry to globally competitive levels by 2020," DAPA spokesman Kim Young-san...

The Tokyo Stock Exchange fell 2.72% Friday mid-session after the announcement by U.S. President Barack Obama steps to limit the size and activities of banks. A break from 11.00 am (0200 GMT) the Nikkei 225 index of blue chips lost 295.40 points (-2.72%) at 10,573.01 points. Losses as high as 2.99% during the morning, the Nikkei touching its lowest level during the meeting since December 28 last. President Obama attacked head-banks Thursday in announcing his intention to enter into law measures that restrict their size and their activities to stop the excesses that led to the crisis.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 21 (AP) - U.S. President Barack Obama showed willingness Thursday to visit the atomic-bombed city Hiroshima during his meeting with visiting Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba. Akiba, who met Obama at the White House with around 230 members of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, requested Obama to visit Hiroshima. The president responded, "I would like to come," although he did not elaborate, Akiba told reporters in Washington after the meeting. The Hiroshima mayor also suggested that he expects Obama to visit his city in November when Japan hosts the summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Yokohama.

BEIJING) — China announced that its military intercepted a missile in mid-flight Monday in a test of new technology that comes amid heightened tensions over Taiwan and increased willingness by the Asian giant to show off its advanced military capabilities. The official Xinhua News Agency reported late Monday that "ground-based midcourse missile interception technology" was tested within Chinese territory. "We did not receive prior notification of the launch," Maj. Maureen Schumann, a Pentagon spokeswoman, said. "We detected two geographically separated missile launch events with an exo-atmospheric collision also being observed by space-based sensors. We are requesting information from China regarding...

Obama's body language says get out of my way.

Contemplating Korean Reunification The North could collapse more quickly than we think. By PETER M. BECK North Korea's nuclear program has preoccupied foreign policy makers for years, but it's not the only problem on the Korean Peninsula. Kim Jong Il's regime looks increasingly unstable and could collapse. That could lead to North Korea's reunification with the South and could present foreign leaders with the expensive task of modernizing the North's economy. There are three plausible scenarios for a Korean reunification. One would be sudden and bloodless like what Germany experienced. The worst would be a reunification marked by the kind...

By JAY ALABASTER, Associated Press Writer Jay Alabaster, Associated Press Writer – 31 mins ago TOKYO – Japan's prime minister said Monday he will press for more equal ties with Washington this year, the 50th anniversary of a joint security treaty that grants many special privileges to U.S. troops stationed in the country. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, in a New Year's speech shown live on national television, said he hopes the alliance will evolve to become more open and candid. It is important "for both sides to be able to firmly say what needs to be said, and to increase...

North Korea is likely to conduct a nuclear test next year in an attempt to boost itself as an atomic power and shore up the regime's legitimacy at home as Pyongyang prepares for a dynastic power transfer, South Korea's state-run think tank warns. North Korea is also expected to launch more long-range ballistic missiles and provoke military clashes along the heavily fortified border with South Korea, the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses said in its 2010 outlook. North Korea conducted its second nuclear test last May following its first in 2006, which led to tougher trade and financial sanctions by...

Indonesia to equip navy with Chinese-made missiles 16:40, December 22, 2009 Indonesia is going to equip its own navy's warships with missiles made in China so as to upgrade combat capabilities, Agus Suhartono, Indonesian Navy Chief of Staff Admiral said Monday. "We will continue to procure C-802 missiles from China after we test the weapon with good results,” he said adding that the Indonesian Navy was also negotiating with China to obtain C-705 missiles that were more slender in shape. C-705 "Both types of missile will be added to the armament of the navy’s fast patrol boats and Van Speijk...

President Obama has written a personal letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Il that was delivered by the administration's special envoy for North Korea during a visit to Pyongyang last week. The existence of the letter has been closely held, with the administration insisting to its partners in disarmament talks with North Korea that it not be publicly discussed. State Department and White House officials confirmed this week that envoy Stephen W. Bosworth delivered a letter from Obama for Kim, but they declined to describe its contents. "We do not comment on private diplomatic correspondence," said White House National...

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama has written a personal letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Il as part of an intense effort to draw the reclusive nation back to nuclear disarmament talks, a senior State Department official said Tuesday. The letter was delivered to North Korean officials last week by Obama's special envoy for North Korea, Stephen Bosworth, during a visit to Pyongyang aimed at restarting the stalled negotiations, the official said. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the diplomacy, would not describe the contents of the letter but said...

Modern Flourishes as Obamas Host First State Dinner RACHEL L. SWARNS November 24, 2009 WASHINGTON — It is an old tradition, a White House dinner governed by ritual and protocol that happens to be this city’s hottest social event. But at their first State Dinner on Tuesday night, President Obama and his wife, Michelle, made sure to infuse the glittering gala with distinctive touches. They hired a new florist, Laura Dowling, who bedecked the tented outdoor dining room with locally grown, sustainably harvested magnolias and ivy. They selected a guest chef, Marcus Samuelsson of Aquavit in New York, an American...

"At a time when Indian public opinion was looking forward to fruitful results from the forthcoming visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to the US, reports from Beijing on Obama's visit to China would strengthen the impression that Obama is not India's cup of tea." .................................................................................... By B.Raman (November 19, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) The failure of President Barack Obama to understand the distrust of China in large sections of the Indian civil society has landed the US in a situation in which the considerable goodwill between India and the US created during the administration of his predecessor George...

Barack Obama's first visit to Asia since his inauguration was one of the most disappointing trips by any U.S. president to the region in decades, especially given media-generated expectations that "Obamamania" would make it yet another triumphal progression. It was a journey of startlingly few concrete accomplishments, demonstrable proof that neither personal popularity nor media deference really means much in the hard world of international affairs. The contrast between Asia's reception for Obama and Europe's is significant. Although considered a global phenomenon, Obamamania's real center is Europe. There, Mr. Obama reigns as a "post-American" president, a multilateralist carbon copy of...

Not only timely and topical, but genuinely funny. And unlike the last time they hit him hard, this attack comes from the right. Who knew they had it in ‘em? Actually, spending is only a secondary concern here. The chief target is The One’s disintegrating credibility in selling his statist agenda. Never would I have guessed that the great orator’s inability to explain cost savings in ObamaCare would be the subject of late-night mockery this late in the game. No wonder his numbers are at new lows nationally and in the swing state that propelled him to the presidency.

Heads were certainly turned during Barack Obama's goodwill tour of China, as this cheeky sailor's expression reveals. The American leader was inspecting the country's naval forces yesterday when the sailor dropped his mask of indifference and openly gawped at the president. America and China emerged from hours of intense, closed-door talks yesterday after making little progress on the key issues that divide the two nations. Despite reaffirming the importance of greater U.S.-China co-operation to world peace and stability, President Obama and President Hu Jintao were unable to disguise the deep differences that separate their countries on trade, security, climate change...

Even his allies feel let down by the president’s lack of progress both in Asia and at home. even one previously friendly newspaper noted dismissively: “Obama goes to China, brings home a T-shirt.” Nor was the steady decline in the president’s approval ratings ... The real problem may be Obama’s friends — or rather, those among his formerly most enthusiastic supporters who are now having second thoughts. The doubters are suddenly stretching across a broad section of the Democratic party’s natural constituency. ... anti-war liberals depressed by the debate over troops for Afghanistan; and growing numbers of blue-collar workers who...