Well, the problem is...what can the U.S. really do? If we attack North Korea, Seoul is history. There are more guns, cannons and missiles aimed at Seoul than probably any other city in the world, from fairly close range. If we're willing to sacrifice Seoul and start a new war with North Korea, we would ultimately win, but it'd be a bloodbath, and I doubt the U.S. population would be real happy with death on that scale. Certainly South Korea would be quite unhappy. At least those left alive in the end would be unhappy. I'd rate the odds of conflict with North Korea as being around 5 percent or less, and only that high because their ruler is a nutjob and you just can't predict what crazy people might do.

Iran is a different story. I could easily see us attacking Iran, and doing so before November. And if Israel attacks Iran unilaterally, which is definitely not beyond the realm of possibility, then we'll get dragged into it too. I'd rate the odds of some conflict arising with Iran at around 50/50. (They probably don't have nuclear weapons yet, their air force and especially navy are weak, they don't have a huge standing army like North Korea, and they're causing problems in Iraq.)
jamstigator Reviewed by jamstigator on . N. Korea. Serious Issue at hand SEOUL, South Korea - A North Korean foreign ministry official defended North Korea's missile tests as a matter of national sovereignty, a Japanese TV report aired in South Korea said. ADVERTISEMENT The footage, by the Japanese TBS network and broadcast by South Korea's YTN, showed Ri Pyong Dok, a researcher on Japanese affairs at the North's Foreign Ministry, saying no one can interfere in Pyongyang's missile program. "The missile launch is an issue that is entirely within our Rating: 5