The DPJ has finally managed to offer up an alternative to the LDP's anti-terrorism bill.  But as all previous indications were it is totally unrealistic in the conditions it sets for Japanese involvement in operations in coalition operations.  On a hopeful note the LDP has apparently come to the same conclusion as the LDP that a permanent SDF dispatch law is needed and that the basic SDF rules of engagement need to be overhauled to reflect the new reality of today.

From the Daily Yomiuri:  DPJ must stop delaying govt's antiterrorism bill.

     While the DPJ has presented its bill as a proposal for action by Japan in the war against terrorism, its plan will never win support and understanding from the international community.

     The DPJ initially intended to put off submitting its alternative bill during the current extraordinary Diet session, but changed its policy at the direction of party leader Ichiro Ozawa in an effort to fend off criticism that the party has an irresponsible attitude. The DPJ is likely to consider having the upper house debate its bill in parallel with that of the government and postpone the voting on the government's new antiterrorism bill at the upper house.

     If the government's bill is not voted on by the upper house, the ruling bloc intends to pass it into law via a two-thirds majority vote by the ruling coalition in the House of Representatives in mid-January. If that happens, the DPJ is considering claiming that the ruling parties forced the bill through the Diet without sufficient deliberations, according to sources.

     In the end, the DPJ's bill effectively offers nothing as an alternative to the MSDF's refueling mission that was suspended following the expiration of the Antiterrorism Law on Nov. 1.

     However, there are noteworthy points in the DPJ's bill. It outlines the basic direction for development of a permanent law to dispatch Self-Defense Forces personnel overseas, while it allows SDF personnel to use arms when doing so is essential for fulfilling their duties.

     There also are mounting calls within the government and ruling parties to change the criteria for allowing SDF personnel to use arms and for establishment of a permanent law on overseas SDF deployments. After the government's new antiterrorism bill is passed into law, both ruling and opposition parties should seriously discuss these issues and seek common ground.

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     There are some things in life that are as regular as the rising and setting of the sun, and among them is North Korea's  ability to stall, delay and whedle out of her obligations under the six party agreement, while at the same time demanding rewards for what at best can be called half measures best. 

Both from the Chosun Ilbo:

N.Korea Hints at Halt in Nuclear Disablement.

     North Korea has warned it could halt the process of disabling its nuclear facilities until it gets energy aid it feels entitled to as a reward, casting a pall over the future prospects of six-nation denuclearization talks. Hyon Hak-bong, deputy director of the U.S. affairs bureau at the North Korean Foreign Ministry, on Wednesday said the other nations in the six-party talks “are dragging their feet on their fulfillment of economic compensation duties. We have no choice but to control the pace of the disablement of nuclear facilities." It was the first mention of such “pace control” for political rather than technical reasons.

     While the progress made thus far is encouraging it is merely the first step in what is a long road toward North Korea's total and lasting nuclear disarmament.  Until the Stalinist regieme of North Korea can hold up its end of the bargin they should not, and will not recieve rewards simply because they demand them.

A New Crisis Over N.Korea's Nuclear Program?

     The Chosun Shinbo newspaper, which is published in Japan and acts as a North Korean mouthpiece, said Thursday that Pyongyang was willing to talk about “no longer producing any nuclear weapons and not selling them to other countries.” In other words, it is not willing to declare the nuclear weapons it has already produced. North Korea has acknowledged it has purchased uranium enrichment equipment. The president of Pakistan testified that its uranium enrichment technology had been handed over to North Korea. Yet North Korea reportedly has no intention of properly declaring its uranium enrichment program. The U.S. believes North Korea’s suspected nuclear connection with Syria should also be included in the declaration.

     The participants in the six-country talks agreed to provide heavy oil to North Korea as compensation for the shutdown and dismantlement of the rusty Yongbyon nuclear facility. But now the time has come for North Korea to declare its nuclear materials, which would show its true willingness to scrap its nuclear ambitions, the Stalinist country is suddenly having second thoughts. Looking at North Korea’s attitude now, it is questionable whether it will be honest in declaring the total amount of plutonium it has processed.

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     South Korea has a new president and he is all about business, literally.  The conerstone of his campaign was all about maintaining and increasing South Korea's economic growth.  But on the front of foreign relations he offers a breath of fresh air, as he and his party are going take a harder line with the north and their not so dear leader.

From the Chosun Ilbo: Lee Myung-bak Elected President by a Landslide.

     Grand National Party presidential candidate Lee Myung-bak soared to victory in the 17th presidential election on Wednesday, missing an absolute majority by a hair’s breadth.

     Grand National Party presidential candidate Lee Myung-bak garnered 11,492,398 votes or 48.7 percent of the votes, beating United New Democratic Party rival Chung Dong-young by 5,317,708 votes. Chung notched up 6,174,681 votes or 26.1 percent. Independent Lee Hoi-chang came in third by winning 3,559,963 votes or 15.1 percent. The gap between president-elect Lee and second placer Chung was the largest since the direct presidential election system was re-introduced in 1987. In the 13th president election in 1987, the gap was 1.94 million votes. Lee achieved an unprecedented landslide victory with 5.32 million votes ahead of the second placer in a presidential race where 10 aspirants jostled for votes.

In other Korean News: The Looming Threat of N.Korea's KN-02 Missiles.

     On April 25 at a military parade in Pyongyang to mark the 75th anniversary of the founding of its army, North Korea unveiled several new ballistic missiles -- which were keenly noted by intelligence communities in Seoul, Washington and Tokyo. There were 52 missiles of four kinds, carried on launching vehicles in groups of 13 past a reviewing stand.

     The KN-02 has a range of 100 to 120 km. If launched from near the DMZ, they could hit the U.S. military base in Pyeongtaek. They may seem insignificant compared with North Korea's other missiles which can travel 300 to 500 km to hit Daejeon or anywhere else in South Korea, or the Rodong missiles with a range of 1,300 km that can hit Japan.

     Nonetheless, senior U.S. government and military officials including Gen. Burwell Bell, commander of the U.S. Forces Korea, regard the KN-02 as a serious threat. Experts say that despite its shorter range, the KN-02 has a few characteristics that make it very worrisome. First of all, it can be launched quickly because it uses solid fuel.

     Another strong point of the KN-02 is its accuracy. Although not confirmed yet, experts believe that it has an error radius of just 100 m. With that kind of accuracy the KN-02 could easily hit the central nerve network of the South Korean and U.S. militaries, including the Defense Ministry building in Yongsan, Seoul.

On a related note: What Japan’s Test Means for Korea's Missile Defense.

     Generally I remain very warry of North Korea, as does President Elect  Lee Myung-Bak.  Their recent shenanigans with the revelation that their is strong evidence that they did in fact engage in an enriched uranium program along side their plutonium efforts and the delays in meeting goals set forth in the six party talks makes me believe that Kim Jong-Il is not going to voluntarily give up his nuclear arsenal or know how.  The situation remains one bears watching as South Korea changes governments in the next couple of months, and what more is learned about what the North has and hasn't done vis-a-vis its nuclear program.

From Fox News: North Korean Tubes Found to Be Contaminated With Uranium Traces.

     WASHINGTON —  North Korea recently turned over to the United States equipment found to be contaminated with traces of highly enriched uranium — HEU — apparently contradicting the country's stance that it never had such a program, FOX News has confirmed.

     The equipment was described as a set of "smelted aluminum tubes" suitable for an HEU centrifuge program, a step necessary to make a nuclear weapon.

     "They got some 'splainin' to do," one U.S. arms control official said when first told of the discovery about a month ago, he recalled to FOX.

     However, North Korea claims the tubes were intended for use in the development of a conventional "artillery" weapon, sources told FOX News.

     As part of a six-nation disarmament deal, North Korea is disabling its Yongbyon nuclear reactor and related nuclear facilities, and is obligated to provide a "complete and correct" declaration of all their nuclear programs, weapons, and materiel by Dec. 31.

     American officials anxiously have been waiting to see whether, and to what extent, the North Koreans will acknowledge the existence of their HEU program, about which the United States first confronted Pyongyang in October 2002.

     The Koreans initially admitted to having an HEU program, said Mike Green, a former National Security Council staff aide who was present for the October 2002.

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     The Dear Troll Doll of North Korea is once more trying to deny, lie and hide the full extent of his nuclear weapons program.  While some people might claim that their is little proof of an NK enriched uranium program the evidence is their, straight from the mouth of A.Q. Khan, who gave them the know how and equipment to undertake such a program.  Modern nuclear weapons often have both Pu-239 and U-235 for fissile material, not one or the other, therefore it is only logical that any nation with nuclear ambitions would pursue both plutonium generating reactors and uranium enrichment methods such as gas centerfuges or gasseous difussion.

More for the China Post: Six-party talks at a critical stage.

     The six-party talks hosted by China on North Korea's nuclear weapons program have reached a critical stage, and signs are that while the disabling of the nuclear reactor at Yongbyon is going well, the overall denuclearization of the Korean peninsula may be in jeopardy.

     As a result, North Korea may not meet the Dec. 31 deadline of making a full and complete declaration of its nuclear programs.

     The problem is that the United States insists that Pyongyang address allegations that it had a covert program to produce nuclear weapons by using highly enriched uranium (HEU).

     This issue caused the collapse of the 1994 U.S.-North Korea accord, under which Pyongyang agreed to freeze its Yongbyon reactor. In return, Washington promised to provide heavy fuel oil and two light-water reactors. But soon after it came into office in 2001, the new Bush administration accused North Korea of having violated the agreement by establishing a covert HEU program.

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     The KMT has finally given way and alloowe dfor Taiwan's much delayed arms purchase from the US to happen.  Why it took so long I have no idea, I mean the PRC isn't being real bashful about their intentions with the way their pouring money into their military, especially their navy.  What finally brought the KMT around was most likely the fact that the Ruling praty was hammering them as weak on defense with a preisdental election loomin in Taiwan they felt that they had to prove that they are strong on defencse.  Of course giving this deal the go ahead two years ago would have removed all doubt.  They may have claimed that Taiwan can't afford an arms race with the PRC, but then the PRC could ill afford a real arms race given their current economic situation.

From the Bangkok Post: Taiwan opposition agrees to purchase of US-made anti-missile system.

     Taiwan's main opposition party will vote to approve funding of a U.S.-made anti-missile system for the island's defense after delaying the measure for more than two years, a party leader said Wednesday.

     Caucus whip Tseng Yung-chuan said the Nationalist party had agreed to funding for four units of the Patriot III.

     Opposition lawmakers previously had argued that the arms deal would spark an arms race with rival China that could bankrupt Taiwan's economy.

     "The budget for another two units will be approved after the first four units are installed," he said, adding that the budget for the first four units will be passed in a legislative session next Thursday.

     The Patriot system is part of a US$16 billion (?12 billion) U.S. arms package that President Chen Shui-bian's administration wants to acquire to counter an ambitious arms build-up from China.

     Other elements in the arms package are P3 Orion submarine-hunting aircraft and diesel submarines.

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     I haven't mentioned this yet, even though it has been a done deal for a week now, I have enlisted in the Army and will be shipping off to basic training on January 8^th.  This has been in the works for some time now and I must say that I hadn't mentioned it for fear of jinxing myself, as silly as that is.  Any way I won't let this humble corner of the web gather dust while I am away, I will arrange for some one else to look after things till I get through with basic and have regular access to computer again.  For those that are interested my MOS will be 13D, Automated Field Artillery Tactical Data Systems Specialist.  Basically I will be working a computer that directs the thunder from the big guns on to the poor SOB's on the recieving end.

     Here is a Pic of the afore mentioned AFTADS system, it is the terminal the Sergeant in the foreground is sitting in front of inside what appears to be a M-577A3 Armored command post.

     As for the rest of the details I will enter as a Private First Class (E-3) due to the my college credits and I maxed out my bonus at $40,000.  That is only due to the law capping bonuses at forty thousand for all personel other than doctors, the combined bonuses on offer for the job and quick ship would have come to $55,000 because they are desperate for 13D's since as of December 3^rd it had a $35,000 bonus available.  My training, both Basic and AIT will be at not so scenic Fort Sill Oaklahoma.  I know it isn't sceinic becuase my dad was stationed at Sheppard AFB just south of Sill for five years, it is an area that is actually flatter than this part of Kansas.  Which unsurprisingly is the home of the US Army Field Artillery School.  Total training time comes out to 17 weeks 6 days, breaking down as follows:  Reception six days, Basic Combat Training 9 weeks, Advanced Individual Training 8 weeks. There isn't much more to say really, so that is it on this for now.

And a pic of an M-109A6 Paladin lobbing a shell down range.

Oh yeah, if you want nifty pictures of things military like the ones above try the Defense Visual Information Center website.

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     All of the broken images that were invisable have been repaired, and some are now clickable fro the fullsize version.  With that taken care of everything should (knock on wood) be working properly.  I now have something to ask for when minx goes to 1.2 either a show all feature for post editing or that it not kick you back to page 1 of posts after editing a post on a later page.  Aside from that the fix was fairly simple if time consuming, so no real harm done.

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