North Korea: Barks Loud, But Only Biting Itself In The...

North Korea fires off 7 ballistic missiles today - on the Independence Day of the United States. Happy 4th to the U.S., from the North Koreans.

I like to think of North Korea as the kid on the playground that other kids reluctantly play with, because they KNOW that North Korea ruins games on purpose. They are the kid you cannot play hide-and-seek with, because if they end up having to be "it", they will quit and say it was unfair. They are the last kid picked for kickball because you KNOW North Korea will intentionally kick it toward that steep hill so that it rolls far away to be lost among the bushes bordering the playground.

North Korea is flashing weapons to gain respect, but it is having the reverse effect. They are slowly grinding away at other countries' patience. In fact, their actions seem are isolating. There was a report that China, an ally and superpower, has been cooperating with the U.S. on how to implement UN Sanctions against N. Korea's tests from May.

If your allies are critical of your actions, then you might want to re-evaluate what you are trying to accomplish, because in this day and age, acting only on your behalf gets you but so far (a lesson ALL countries should think about).

North Korea may be barking alot, firing off a lot of missiles, but if countries continue to turn their backs on them, feeling threatened by them and beefing up security in response to them, their bite might become no more than a flesh wound in comparison to the scale that other countries would respond to any of their aggressive actions.

In fact, all of this smoke North Korea is blowing might just be a public display to hide the internal weakness the country is experiencing from the squeeze of sanctions and international opinion. It is a downward spiral that is not accomplishing anything but a growing security dilemma between North Korea, its neighbors, and world superpowers.

North Korea needs to do itself a favor and put all of these "sticks" away before they poke out their own eye. They may wave it around and make a lot of noise, but from far away, all that waving and stomping and yelling looks the same as the erratic behavior of a crazy man.

Not every animal in the forest is scared away by loud sounds and big movements; North Korea should take that and apply it to the international community at large and its relationships around the world.