North Korea's Petulant Saber Ratling

Much like a child having a tantrum, North Korea is busy screeching "Hey, Look at me, Look at me!"

The Detroit Free Press: North Korea says it is in 'a state of war' with South Korea

North Korea declared today it has entered "a state of war" with South Korea in the latest of a string of threats that have raised tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

North Korea's government, parties and organizations said in a joint statement that all matters between the two countries will now be dealt with in a manner befitting war

The Norks then decided to up the ante by threatening to Nuke the United States: White House takes North Korea's threats seriously

"Now that the revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK have entered into an actual military action, the inter-Korean relations have naturally entered the state of war," said the statement, which was carried by the official North Korean news agency and referred to the country by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Provocations "will not be limited to a local war, but develop into an all-out war, a nuclear war," the statement said.

According to a South Korean "expert" on North Korea, these threats are really just attempts for peaceful normalized relations with South Korea and the United States.

"I don't think military action will be imminent," said Lim Eul-chul, a professor of North Korean studies at Kyungnam University in Seoul.

Despite the bellicose statements, "Kim Jong Un wants to terminate the repeated harsh action and reaction [cycle] with the United States. They want to establish a more eternal peace mechanism and they want a more sustainable relationship with the USA."

That's an interesting way of showing a desire for normalized relations. I daresay the expert should take a break from the academic delusions he seems to cherish. While the threats may be for domestic consumption to prove the current Nork leader's toughness, the threats are either an attempt at blackmail for more food or material aid, or the Norks are crazy enough to think they can win a short, victorious war - they'd be wrong on both counts, and hopefully the South Korean sand the US have the backbone not to be blackmailed yet again.

Meanwhile, The White House takes these threats so seriously that President Obama is off, in between vacations, playing Golf.