Scorn, support for tough talk
Re Time to cool the bluster, Editorial, Aug. 10 The armistice ending the Korean conflict was signed on July 27, 1953. Eleven presidents have tried to placate the regime in the North by buying their compliance. The world knows that appeasement of aggressors simply does not work and never will — just ask Neville Chamberlain.
U.S. President Donald Trump was able to get a unanimous United Nations resolution for sanctions against North Korea. How often has the Security Council issued unanimous resolutions? For 64 years, the world has tried the carrot; it is now time for a real leader to use the stick. Pat Biondi, Montreal Loose lips sink ships. This phrase was prevalent during the Second World War when there were fears that foreign spies would glean information from conversations between citizens that would hinder the allies in the war effort.
This phrase could well be applied to the moronic outburst of U.S. President Donald Trump, which, if taken literally, could very well be a declaration of war against North Korea by the unbalanced mind of Chairman Kim Jong Un.
To illustrate just how unbalanced he is, Kim has threatened to attack Guam in retaliation for Trump’s remarks.
Trump says North Korean threats “will be met with fire and fury and, frankly, power the likes of which this world has never seen before.” This is a very brash statement considering the devastation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
I hope there is someone, anyone, in Washington who can convince Trump to be more diplomatic before he starts a third world war. Warren Dalton, Scarborough When a president of the United States speaks about a crisis, he often reassures us that cooler heads will prevail and that hopefully the crisis can be resolved through diplomatic means.
But on Aug. 8, the opposite happened. President Donald Trump warned North Korea it would face “fire and fury like the world has never seen” if it threatens the United States.
He sounded more like a hothead rabble-rouser than the president of the greatest democracy on Earth. What Trump did is irresponsible, reckless and dangerous behaviour, as it only escalates tensions and dramatically increases the likelihood of military action and war.
By Trump’s threatening language, North Korea may believe the U.S. is on the verge of attacking it, so it may carry out a pre-emptive attack on the U.S. or its allies.
What was said about candidate Trump was right: He just doesn’t have the temperament to be president. Can he be trusted with the nuclear button? Kenneth L. Zimmerman, Huntington Beach, Calif.